Men’s Health: Let’s Stop Putting It Off (EP 138)

[0:15] Hello, friends. Uncle Marv here, and welcome back to my unhealthy podcast.

[0:22] Well, no special introduction here. It is November, and that is a time of year also known as Mo-vember, and this is the month that we're talking about men's health. And something that I've noticed, because first of all, I'm a man as well, Now, we will spend hours researching what's wrong with our car, our computer, our lawnmower, our electronic devices. But when something is wrong with our own bodies, suddenly we don't want to investigate. Now, I've had to come to grips with my own personal health years ago when I thought that I would be healthy forever, even if I didn't exercise. Well, that didn't happen. And that's part of the reason I started this show.

[1:12] And basically I've lived all the things that men talk about in terms of the tough guy mentality, you know I grew up hearing things like walk it off be a man I played sports where you had to be tough, we men are often conditioned to view asking as help as a weakness or asking for help as a weakness. We don't want to appear vulnerable. We don't want to complain. We don't want to admit that something is wrong. But I'm here to say ignoring a problem doesn't make it go away. Now, I'm at the point in life where a lot of my friends have had things happen to them, have been diagnosed with stuff that they didn't pay attention to. So, I am trying to put my money where my mouth is, and this year, we are going to be doing a lot of focus on men's health.

[2:10] Basically, I'm going to stop ignoring the warning signs, and I'm hoping that you will also. So, when it comes to that persistent pain, no longer think, yeah, it'll probably just go away. Feeling exhausted all the time? No, it doesn't have to be an accepted excuse that we're just getting older. Uh, changes in urination. Yeah, we don't want to talk about that. And if we're feeling depressed, overwhelmed, and feel like, well, maybe I just need to toughen up. Um, we're going to talk about all these things this month. Uh, we're going to talk about avoiding screenings and routine checkups because we're afraid of what the doctor might find. Now, the reality is prostate cancer, testicular cancer, cardiovascular disease, and mental health challenges are simply not things to ignore. We don't have to wait until something is seriously wrong to start taking our health seriously. So.

[3:14] The big point is having the conversation could save your life. That means talk to your doctor about changes in your health. Ask questions about screenings and family history. Talk to your spouse, your partner, or your friends. Talk to somebody. And then, of course, check in on the guys around you. And sometimes the person who needs help isn't going to ask for it, But you may notice something and that might be enough for you to say, hey, can I help you? Is there something I can, you know, ask you about that you're willing to talk about? And always remember that mental health matters just as much as physical health. So sometimes the most important thing you can do for another man is to simply ask, hey, are you doing okay?

[4:10] So again these are some of the reasons that I am participating in Movember this year and when I say participating I'm actually doing a little bit more than I've done in the past where I've just kind of done a show here or there, I'm actually going to be putting together a little Movember fundraiser to help raise awareness and some funds for men's health.

[4:37] So this month I'm going to have additional shows, and I'll still have some regular shows, but I'll have a lot more men's health-focused shows that'll talk about prostate cancer, testicular cancer, men's mental health. And I'm going to be supporting the campaign through this and other podcasts, and I would like for you listeners to participate, donate and help spread the word. So there will be a link in the show notes where you can go and look up some stuff about Movember and you can donate to my fundraiser. And that's my challenge.

[5:17] That's part one of the challenge. Part two of the challenge is, if you're a guy, make that doctor's appointment you've been putting off, have the conversation you've been avoiding, check in on a friend, any one of those three. Do that. And if you know somebody who needs to hear this, share this episode and some of the other episodes that I'll have this month with them. Now the difference with Movember is I'm not focused on growing a mustache that's not what I'm going to do and you don't have to grow a mustache to participate in Movember you just have to care enough to start the conversation, that's it great episode thank you for listening and as always live healthy and be happy.