According to a recent study, most men would choose electric shock therapy over being alone with their thoughts.
Andrew Smiler, professor of psychology at Wake Forest University, joined HuffPost Live host Caroline Modarressy-Tehrani to discuss this phenomenon.
“Men don’t really get taught to sit alone with their thoughts,” says Smiler. “We teach boys and men that they need to be active, that they need to be doing; we don’t really teach them to reflect on what they’re feeling or what they’re thinking about.”
Digital devices and constant connectivity might also play a role, Smiler explain.
But for filmmaker and photographer Garret Combs, it has more to do with a lack of support from men, for men.
“What most men are looking for is affirmation from other men,” says Combs. “And when you are starting to acknowledge your feelings and process trauma or process something that you may be experiencing, you need another man to tell you it’s OK to feel what you’re feeling, what you’re feeling is justified and come along side you, I think, and maybe even walk you through that -- which is something we don’t get in our society.”
To hear more of the conversation, watch the full HuffPost Live segment here.