University of Maryland and Grit Digital Health Announce New Research on Man TherapyⓇ, An Innovative Men's Mental Health Intervention

A CDC-funded study shows that men who access Man TherapyⓇ as a digital mental health intervention report a decrease in depression and suicidal ideation, a reduction in poor mental health days, and an increase in help-seeking behavior.

DENVER, Dec. 6, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Dr. Jodi Frey, PhD, LCSW-C, CEAP - Professor and Associate Dean of Research, University of Maryland School of Social Work - and Grit Digital Health announced new research today on the efficacy of ManTherapy.org, an innovative suicide prevention and mental health program for working-aged men. Designed as a comprehensive public awareness campaign, Man Therapy uses humor to connect with men, break through stigma, and help them engage with life-saving tools. The innovative campaign and 24/7 digital platform encourages men to think differently about mental health and take action before ever reaching a point of crisis.

From September 2016 to January 2019, a total of 554 men, aged 25-64, throughout the state of Michigan participated in a $1.2 million, CDC-funded randomized controlled trial, called Healthy Men Michigan (HMM), to evaluate Man Therapy's effectiveness in reducing suicidal ideation and depression among working-aged men. The results of this study, published this month, show that men who were offered Man Therapy as one of the digital tools to assess and address their mental health reported a significant decrease in depression and suicidal ideation over time, as well as a reduction in poor mental health days. Additionally, a follow-on study using Dr. Frey's HMM data shows that men in the Man Therapy intervention group reported statistically significant improved rates of engaging in formal help-seeking behaviors through tools like online treatment locator systems, making or attending a mental health treatment appointment, or attending a professionally led support group compared with those who only received screening and referrals.

"Interventions that can be offered online and scaled up to reach men throughout communities, including workplaces, are important additions to comprehensive suicide prevention programming," says Dr. Frey. "Web-based resources, such as Man Therapy, can play an important role in suicide prevention to engage men in considering risk and help-seeking, and this study shows that programs like Man Therapy should be part of a comprehensive, community-based intervention to reduce suicide and depression risk and increase resilience."

Suicide is a complex issue with many unique, contributing variables. In the United States, men represent 78% of all deaths by suicide, and men are four times as likely than women to die by suicide. While there is no magic solution when it comes to suicide prevention, Man Therapy was created under the guiding principle that difficult problems require bold solutions, and the best defense is a good offense. "We realized early on that if we waited until men were in crisis, we would be too late," says Grit Digital Health Founder and CEO, Joe Conrad. "I have always felt that creativity, innovation, and communication could solve any challenge. From the beginning, our team set three goals for Man Therapy: 1) Break through the stigma surrounding mental health by making it approachable; 2) Encourage help-seeking behavior; and 3) reduce suicidal ideation. Through research, men told us to just give them the information they needed to fix themselves, so we built a website that provides a broad range of information, resources, and tools to do just that. It is extremely rewarding to know that we are accomplishing our goal of positively impacting and changing men's lives."

Created in 2012 through a multi-agency effort comprised of Grit Digital Health, Cactus, and the Office of Suicide Prevention for the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment, Man Therapy has spent over a decade smashing the notion that men can't talk about their feelings. On the site, men meet fictional therapist Dr. Rich Mahogany, a no-nonsense man's man who asserts that honest talk about life's problems is how to start solving them. The site experience helps men take action through the proprietary 20-Point Head Inspection to assess their mental health, connect with manly mental health tools, and access a bank of resources that take a deep dive into life's more challenging areas (depression, anxiety, difficult transitions, sleep, grief, etc.).

Man Therapy's innovative approach has seen over 1.5 million web sessions, 3.7 million resources viewed, 400,000 completed head inspections, and 40,000 men connecting directly to a crisis line resource. Facebook's safety team used it to reach high-risk men, resulting in one of its most successful media campaigns ever. And, most importantly, Man Therapy is a proven tool, directly impacting and saving men's lives across the world, like Joe R, who stumbled across Man Therapy while he was feeling "depressed and desperate" and claimed: "It saved my life that night."

Man TherapyⓇ currently offers free, 24/7 access to any person who is looking for information and resources related to men's mental health and well-being. Additionally, Man TherapyⓇ is available for licensing with state and local governments, as well as individual and brand partnerships. Learn more at ManTherapy.org.

If you are concerned and think you or a loved one may need immediate help, please go to your local emergency department, or call the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988 for 24/7, free and confidential support.

This research is supported by the Cooperative Agreement Number, 1 U01 CE002661-01, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the Department of Health and Human Services.

Dr. Jodi Frey - Professor and Associate Dean for Research, University of Maryland School of Social Work - is a senior scholar focused on researching adult and emerging adult behavioral health and well-being. For almost 20 years, she has dedicated a large portion of her work to suicide prevention. Dr. Frey also leads additional behavioral health and well-being efforts such as The Behavioral Health and Well-Being Lab, the International Employee Assistance Digital Archive (co-founder), and is co-chair of the Workplace Suicide Prevention and Postvention Committee.

Grit Digital Health develops behavioral health solutions through design and technology that envision a new way to approach mental health and well-being. They are the creators of Man Therapy, a ground-breaking men's mental health campaign that provides an upstream, innovative approach to preventing suicide for the highest-risk, working-aged men. Additionally, they created YOU at College, a comprehensive suite of solutions supporting higher education. Their work also supports veterans mental health and well-being through Operation Veteran Strong, emergency responder well-being through YOU | Responder strong, and well-being throughout Denver via YOU at Your Best. For more information, visit gritdigitalhealth.com.

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SOURCE Grit Digital Health