Silencing Masculinities: An Experience Report in Psychoeducational Actions within the context of the Yellow September Campaign

Abstract

Discussions on gender and identity formation are still permeated by taboos. In this theoretical–reflective study, we draw on the debates promoted by the Yellow September suicide-prevention campaign and initiatives for the Valorization of Life to analyze how the voices of male adolescents do not always find spaces of welcoming, qualified listening and reception of demands associated with intense emotional suffering and suicidal behavior. The problem emerged from observation and professional practice in both public and private contexts, through lectures, discussion circles and individual appointments conducted in confidential listening settings. In this context, it was observed that only female adolescents sought individual psychological support, with no male adolescents requesting this service. This finding raised reflections on the silencing experienced by boys and young men. The study presents reflections from the perspective of a psychologist regarding the experiences of male adolescents, who are often pressured to silence their emotions in the face of external expectations and internal conflicts that are difficult to identify, which in turn foster feelings of stress, fear, confusion and anxiety. Based on professional practice, it is suggested that boys are socially pressured to suppress emotions that could give rise to self-judgment or external criticism, while also struggling to recognize and name internal emotional states — which contributes to psychological suffering. These reflections are articulated with the actions developed by the author as the psychologist responsible for individual psychological support within the school context during the Yellow September campaign, a period in which discussions on emotional suffering and suicide prevention are intensified.