The Straitjacket of Masculinity

OCD took me to the brink of suicide, where I contemplated the various ways to take my life. In a year where after my OCD diagnosis in April, then my stepdad ended up in a home as he has vascular dementia, and has rapidly declined. My aunty who helped raise me after my dad died on Christmas day when I was six years old, has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. After this, I tore my ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament), MCL (Medium Cruciate Ligament), and meniscus and fractured my leg. I then ended up in the hospital with severe pneumonia.

After this I found out my cousin was murdered, his body was tied up and he was found with gunshots that killed him. Then whilst in therapy, I found out my half-brother who I never met and only communicated with a few times died of cancer on 25th August. Then, my Aunty, my mother's sister also died.

There was so much pressure on my back and the responsibility and weight of being a man weighed too heavily on me. The one thing that was supposed to be my coat of shining armor my masculinity, was instead the straitjacket I wore. Being a man at times brings about unique struggles, but writing suicide notes is ready to say goodbye to everyone. I stopped myself and went to sleep and woke up crying scared of where my mind could take me. Hopelessness became hope and my
voicelessness became the voice I needed. I realized just how many people reached out to me that change was needed.

Attendee Results:

• Understanding the unique struggles that men face
• What we can do to challenge toxic masculinity
• The difference between hegemonic masculinity vs toxic masculinity
• The effects suicide has on society and those around them
• What in society can we do to encourage more men to speak up about their mental health
• How we can best support men to speak up

The revolution is through the mind | The power of the upcoming psychedelic revolution

Why is current mental health medication failing? During my time on medication antidepressants for my OCD recovery, I discovered that the antidepressants were not helping at all, I was still struggling and incredibly anxious. I wanted to help others so I enrolled on a psychedelic trial at Imperial College London which was a NHS trial for psilocybin which aimed to assess the therapeutic capabilities of psychedelics on OCD symptoms.

The trial drastically reduced his OCD symptoms. Since then he has sought to understand, explore and speak more about the power of altered states of consciousness. From survivor to thriver with OCD, he has reclaimed his life and become an advocate|activist for those with OCD.

According to a 2006 research project, psilocybin was reported to significantly reduce symptoms in OCD patients. The results were positive, yet, no further research has been carried out since due to a lack of funding. Current drug law and drug policy hinder more research which could potentially help lives.

Attendee Results:

• When we hear drugs what comes to our mind?
• Do we consider alcohol? Tobacco? sugar?
• Where do we get these views from? Yet they have existed in many previous civilizations we are the only society that bans altered states of consciousness
• The cost of the war on drugs is in the trillions, yet it has failed
• A potential radical solution for the future of those who live with mental health illnesses.

Whether you have taken recreational drugs in society or not, is not the issue or the problem, it's we pretend as if in society people don't take drugs and it harms people more. •'It is past high time to accept the fact that a society without drugs is an illusion'. This session shares why it’s important for us to challenge our misconceptions and prejudices about drugs and where we get them from, how society has shaped our perceptions and ideas and we have never challenged it. The takeaway is for us to think differently about drugs and to have more of an objective view of drugs regardless if we take them or not. "

Cleaning up the mess that OCD made | The misconceptions of OCD

OCD it’s a condition that affects 1–2% of the population, but it’s often misunderstood. So what is it like to live with obsessive-compulsive disorder? One man shares his story of acceptance and advocacy

When we hear the word OCD, many images come to mind: cleanliness and symmetry. Maybe even something comical “I am so OCD.” But for those living with OCD, it is the opposite of comical.

I use the word 'living' and not 'suffering', as language is very important. 'Suffering' infers a constant state of negativity, trying to survive, whereas 'living' suggests harmony. I live with OCD.

I received my OCD diagnosis on Saturday 4 June, at 27 years old. According to OCD action, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is an anxiety condition that causes someone to become stuck in a cycle of distressing obsessions and compulsions. And it’s much more common than originally thought, with estimates of those with the condition suggesting between 1–2% of the population have OCD. That’s anywhere between 600,000 and just over one million people.

Even so, OCD is often trivialized, not helped by TV shows like Obsessive-Compulsive Cleaners. First airing in 2013, in this portrayal OCD was shown to be almost desirable. That couldn’t be more wrong. Additionally, the numbers (given by OCD UK) show that 'only 26.5% of people with it actually have cleaning compulsions'. Throwaway comments of willful ignorance about OCD perpetuate misconceptions and do not reflect the torture it can, at times, create.

Attendee Results:

• Challenging the ideas of mental health and how we casually dismiss OCD
• Understand the role of the media in shaping views on mental health
• Experience what the human experience is through a breakdown and how we can use it to set us up for a better
• Learn how anxiety disorders and conditions can affect people in the world and how we thrive in spite of it
• Develop a better understanding of what OCD is and how mental health language needs to be challenged.