Mentell Mondays

For a lot of people, Mondays might not conjure an image of relief, security or openness, but for a growing number of men it’s the time of the week to address their problems and share their experiences. 

Mentell provides online circles for men aged 18+ to talk in a safe and confidential space, free from advice and judgement. The webcam-based charity meet on Monday nits, 7pm. All that’s needed is a link from head office, and you’re ready to go. 

I’ve blogged frequently about Andy’s Man Club, a group with a much bigger attendance and social media following, that I’ve been a member of now for 3 years. (Coincidentally, their meetings are the exact same time.) During the pandemic they have also held webcam meetings in place of face-to-face, but these were stopped some weeks ago and in-person meetings were brought back. I’ve personally not felt ready to head out to these, but I have recently stumbled on Mentell. (Say what you like about social media, but it has brought people together and has been a lifeline for many during the pandemic.) 

I’ll describe the setup here, but obviously not the content of the meeting, which was confidential. On Monday I logged into the meeting (link provided in an email). The group was split into smaller circles: we were assigned a ‘breakout room’- a new Zoom link, and once the group was settled we were asked to grade our mood on a scale of 1-10. A few ground rules were ran over- describe your own thoughts, but don’t give advice- say ‘I,’ not ‘you’- no discussion of politics and religion (argument-starters in any case, more than anything) nor medication (no-one is in the meeting on a medical capacity). 

From that point on, we just aired any life problems we might have. The 2-hour session brought together men of all ages and backgrounds, from across the UK. 

A reassuring, secure and friendly bunch. Find your circle.