This November I'll be running in the New York Marathon on behalf of the Movember foundation, and specifically, their work in mental health and suicide prevention for men. Mental health, in the isolation, upheaval, and grief of COVID-19, is an area in which so many of us are struggling. Add to that those without means in need of treatment, add to that those facing stigma perceived and real, afraid to admit that they may need help, and add to that those suffering who don't even realize they have a problem.

I was one of these people. My whole teen and young adult life, I suffered under tremendous social anxiety, stress around success and failure with school and work, and regular panic attacks. Even with an undergraduate degree in Psychology, it took a job where I felt completely out of my league and element with a healthy dose of sleep deprivation to realize that I needed help. Since starting therapy and medication more than 10 years ago, I have become so much happier, and found life to be so much more beautiful. I still experience anxiety, but in a healthy range. I got help, and I got help in time. There are too many people, and too many men, for whom this is not the case. This was true before COVID-19, and this is most certainly true now.

Let's save lives. Let's look out for those who may need help and encourage them to get help. Let's give too and be that difference.