How one Mo Bro is walking across America to raise awareness for men’s mental health

First-time Mo Bro Tim Perreira wanted to get involved with the cause because of a shared mission: raising awareness and funds for men’s mental health and suicide prevention. Tim’s own personal experience with mental health challenges fuels his next journey: an epic walk across the United States to share his story, raising funds and awareness for men’s health with every step.

How it all started

Despite growing resources, the stigma around men’s mental health remains strong - especially for men who “appear” to have it all together. In 2016, I had everything on paper. I looked great from the outside, but I was starting to suffer on the inside. I thought I was broken, I thought I was the only one who was struggling that way. I battled an inner critic that told me to suck it up and not burden other people. After 4 years of bottling it up, I hit my low point. I was in a deep depression and all the material stuff I had started to fall away.

The turning point

My turning point and epiphany moment was hearing the idea: “Everything in life is neutral. Only our mind creates meaning - good or bad.” Man, that hit me right in the chest. I realized in that moment that it was me. My thoughts, my beliefs, my insecurities - those were running the show. I knew that I had to stop looking for solutions externally - new job, new city, more money, better relationship - and start doing the inner work. I started reading for hours a day on things like mindset, Western psychology, health, nutrition, spirituality, etc.

What it did was help me realize that everything in life was a mirror to show me where I still wasn’t free on the inside. I learned that doing this work doesn’t make our struggles cease, it just equips us with the ability to handle them more gracefully when they arise - because they will always arise. I learned that to be human is to suffer. But that life was asking me to feel everything. To drop the story of who I thought I should be, or who I thought I was, and start to be present to who I am.

Taking the journey across America

I faced a shorter bout of incredibly deep, apathetic depression in 2024 for about 3 months, where I had suicidal thoughts for the first time. I knew I didn’t want to take my life, but that a part of me was asking to die. I sensed that once I got through it, I’d be able to connect to men in a deeper way than ever before.

Now, I’m on this walk across America, using it as a daily practice to deepen my presence, open my heart, and work through all the “stuff” that I’ve been suppressing or have been blind to. I’m very committed to this process of internal freedom and self-realization, so the walk has been an amazing playground for that.

I chose to do the walk without any inputs - no podcasts, music, audio books. An opportunity for me to use it as a spiritual practice to be with every step and every challenge. To not run from the self-doubt and negative thoughts that arise, but instead, learn to work with them. Learn to guide my mind and body into a state that serves who I want to be. Personally, it feels like something that is forging me into the next version of me.

I wanted to bring awareness to something near to my heart: the men’s mental health stigma. It means the world to be able to share my experience as I’m going through it. The good, the bad, and the ugly. To share how I deal with things when they come up and my goal for the mission.

My message to others

Silence is not strength. Avoiding, burying, and running from our “uncomfortable” feelings is not strength. True strength is the willingness and commitment to face that which troubles us - to lead by example and raise your hand for help. And to allow others to help you.

To show that men can exude both strength and fierce softness. We are feeling beings, that’s the nature of our species. And as Buddha said, “Life is suffering.” Let’s stop denying those and learn to accept and embrace them. The purpose of life is to grow, evolve, and love.

I strive to lead with a combo of toughness and deep compassion. To me, that’s what it means to live as a man.