Disclaimer: The information in this article should not be used to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease for therapeutic purposes as a substitute for professional medical advice. This article contains references to depression, anxiety and suicide. Melbourne-based Bruno Capella said at the height of his mental health crisis, he could not be left alone, even to shower.
Capella, chief operating officer for a construction products manufacturing company, said he began experiencing severe anxiety and panic attacks in 2022 after the long lockdowns caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. At first, he said he was in denial about his mental ill health because it didn't "fit" with his idea of his role as a man. "It was much more linked to the issue of 'I'm a man, I need to be productive to live, I need to go after things that society imposes'.
And that's when I hit rock bottom where no one wants to go, right?" he said. Capella is among 25 per cent of men in Australia who experience a mental health disorder in their lifetimes. In addition, men make up more than 75 per cent of suicide deaths with an average of six males taking their own lives every day.
In Capella's case, he had arrived in Melbourne in 2020 with his wife Nicoly, and was quickly forced into the city's long lockdowns which occurred throughout that year and also 2021. Credit: Supplied "I just thought I needed to be productive to live and pursue things. Society demands that you need them, and Australia is a very consumer-orien.