Happy belated International Men’s Day, it is typically remembered on the 19th of November, but it is an important topic to be mindful of all year. International Men’s Day is a reminder of various areas in society where men, boys and non-binary people can be supported across the UK
The main topic the day covers is men’s mental health. Suicide remains the biggest killer of men under the age of 45 in the UK – and it’s really important men feel empowered to be who they want to be, do not feel they have to conform to typical gender stereotypes and can talk openly about their emotions and feelings.
Around the globe International Men’s Day strives to help work towards shared objectives which are applied equally to men and boys irrespective of their age, ability, social background, ethnicity, sexuality, gender identity, religious belief and relationship status.
Those objectives are:
- To promote male role models
- To celebrate the contribution that men make
- To focus on men’s health and wellbeing
- To highlight discrimination against men the inequalities that men and boys face
- To improve gender relations and promote gender equality
- To create a safer world for everyone
One of our male customers, @mattdungareesdiaries has written a blog about how he discovered Run & Fly and why wearing bright and fun clothes helps him manage the impact of living with depression and anxiety.
“I’ve battled anxiety and depression for many years. It started in 2010 after I experienced domestic abuse by an ex-girlfriend. But back in 2020 during lockdown, I experienced mental ill health again and my severe anxiety returned.
We were all locked down. We couldn’t go out and enjoy ourselves and meeting people on Zoom or virtually became the norm. I couldn’t see my girlfriend Lilly and that was possibly the most difficult aspect. My step-Grandad also passed away while lockdown was happening and only a few of us could attend the funeral.
I remember sitting in the corner of my Mum’s living room, as I was still living at home at the time – I was shaking, couldn’t control my emotions, felt severely dizzy and was very upset and became ill. I’d bottled up my feelings and was so upset about not being able to do the things I usually could do.
I started on a course of antidepressants, prescribed by my GPand began to try and rebuild myself. My emotions were all over the place. As a month or so passed by, I began to discover my inner ‘me’ again. That’s when I looked online about ways to make you feel happy and positive. One blog suggested wearing bright colours and clothes was a good way of making you smile!
It was then I discovered Run & Fly clothing properly. I’d heard of the brand before but thought, being a guy, the dungarees or rainbow tees wouldn’t suit me. When I placed one of my first orders, consisting of the rainbow stripe tee and Dungabee cords I was excited, but also nervous about their arrived. The package arrived a few days later, I tried them on for the first time and the biggest smile emulated from my face for the first time in months.
I started up my own Instagram in June/July 2020 and my collection of dungarees has grown so much I have a dedicated wardrobe for them! I’ve now over 50 pairs of Run & Fly dungarees and dunga shorts, around 10 t-shirts and 8 jumpers.
There’s only a small number of us who are or identify as men in the Run & Fly dungaree community and it would be wonderful to welcome other men to the fold, so they can enjoy the comfort and fun of wearing one of the most comfortable items of clothing around!
Thank you to everyone in the Run & Fly community who’s supported me and continues to do so with my health issues – it really means a lot.
So, for this International Men’s Day, let’s support men to look after their mental health, and who knows, welcome other guys to one of the friendliest and kindest communities around… Run & Fly”.
Follow Matt on Instagram: @mattdungareesdiaries.
If you’d like to donate to some of the charities which support men, please see the UK International Men’s Day website at www.ukmensday.org.
