Gabapentin is a prescription medication primarily used to treat nerve pain, seizures, and sometimes anxiety disorders. It is commonly sold under brand names such as Neurontin, Gralise, and Horizant. Initially developed as an anticonvulsant, gabapentin has been widely prescribed for conditions like epilepsy, postherpetic neuralgia (nerve pain following shingles), restless leg syndrome, and even off-label uses such as fibromyalgia and chronic pain management.

How Does Gabapentin Work?

Gabapentin works by affecting calcium channels in the brain, which play a role in nerve signaling. Unlike other pain-relief medications such as opioids, gabapentin doesn’t impact dopamine levels directly, which means that it does not produce the same level of euphoria or risk of immediate addiction. However, gabapentin does alter the way nerves communicate, making it effective in reducing nerve pain and preventing seizures. Gabapentin is used to help treat or manage the following conditions: Epilepsy: Gabapentin helps prevent seizures by stabilizing electrical activity in the brain. Neuropathic pain: It is highly effective in managing chronic nerve pain caused by conditions like shingles or diabetic neuropathy. Restless Leg Syndrome: Gabapentin enacarbil, a product of gabapentin, is FDA-approved for treating moderate to severe cases. Anxiety disorders: Some healthcare providers prescribe gabapentin off-label to manage anxiety and panic disorders, particularly in individuals who do not respond well to traditional medications.

Men and Mental Health: A Silent Crisis

The men’s mental health crisis is an ever-increasing, often silent problem. Silent in the sense that an overwhelming number of men conceal these battles. Sadly, the unfair and untrue stigma surrounding men and mental health is the reason many men opt to suffer in silence.

However, bottling these troubles inflicts deeper emotional, mental, and physical stress that ends up manifesting itself in self-harming ways. In honor of May’s Mental Health Awareness Month, here are important details to watch for, including symptoms, risks, and challenges.

Common Symptoms of Mental Illness

Someone may have a mental health struggle and not even know it. Please be aware and seek help if you or a loved one exhibits any or all of the following symptoms.

Sudden and Extreme Mood Swings

Mental health conditions are usually accompanied by sudden mood swings that can change on a dime for seemingly no reason. Many personality, anxiety, and depression disorders have very specific triggers that can turn a good mood into a bad one. It’s important to take notice of anyone, including yourself, whose countenance disturbingly shifts without any apparent rhyme or reason. If this characteristic describes you or someone you love, seek professional assessment to get a proper diagnosis.

Suicidal Thoughts or Tendencies

This symptom is especially severe and should not go unchecked without seeking immediate treatment. Any brief or extended ponderings of suicidal thoughts should be met with swift and immediate action. We can help you reverse these harmful thought processes through personalized mental health training. Thanks to our unparalleled mental health experts, you don’t have to suffer the suicidal tug-of-war with these harmful thought cycles.

Feelings or Thoughts of Hopelessness

Separate from suicidal thoughts or tendencies, feelings or thoughts of hopelessness is the preeminent thought or feeling that can ultimately lead to suicidal tendencies. Once any feeling of hopelessness or depression arises, it’s important to treat this before it progresses into suicidal tendencies. Getting help at this stage of your mental health struggle maximizes efficacy potential and therapeutic responsiveness.

High Anxiety Levels

If you or a loved one exhibits anxiety symptoms or paranoia semi-frequently, it may be indicative of a mental illness. Other indications of high anxiety levels include mild to severe involuntary tremors, high blood pressure, and heart rate. Eventually, such symptoms and mental health conditions will lead to physical health issues like cardiovascular or respiratory problems if left untreated. Don’t let elevated stress levels and anxiety disorders take a toll on your mental and physical health. Reach out to us now to get immediate symptom relief

Easy Irritability

If you or a loved one is easily angered over minor infractions, it may be a deep-rooted mental condition. The individual may even recognize their anger problem and not understand the root cause, making it even more frustrating. We have the answers to your frustrations. Our treatment team will help you identify the root of your irritability and help you effectively deal with the underlying cause.

Challenges Men Face in Mental Health Treatment

There are different challenges men face than women due to gender-based discrepancies in treatment approaches, focuses, and public reception. Golden Gate Recovery places a strong emphasis on meeting all of the following challenges through our revolutionary treatment methods.

Men’s Mental Health Stigma

A primary contributor to the men’s mental health crisis revolves around the stigma challenges men face in treatment. Stigma suggests that ‘real’ men can handle their challenges without external help, and any failure to do so is less “manly”. Not only is this untrue, but the opposite is true. It takes a truly strong man to accept help for mental health challenges that are outside of their control.

Opening Up

Unlike their female counterparts, Male mental health patients often find it more difficult to open up. It’s especially difficult to open up to a therapist they don’t know when they have a hard enough time opening up to loved ones. We break these communication barriers by getting to know our patients on a personal level without judgment. We encourage, we motivate, and we empathize with your needs with the utmost sincerity.

Increased Likelihood to Cope with Substances

Statistics conclude that males above the age of 12 turn to substances at almost double the rate of females in the same age bracket. In terms of mental health coping mechanisms, it’s very common for men to cope with such issues through substance abuse. Many who enter mental health therapy also have co-occurring substance use disorders. In such cases, dual-diagnosis therapy is the best option for people struggling with co-occurring mental and addiction disorders.

Some Men Identify Needing Help as A Weakness

This point is so much more than an inability to open up. Some men can be so overly hard on themselves to the point where they feel accepting help equals weakness. On the contrary, as alluded to earlier, admitting you need help is the strongest decision you can make. Unfortunately, the perception of what’s tough and what isn’t has been stigmatized, preventing many men from getting proper treatment.

Overcoming Self-hurdles

Statistics confirm that men are less likely to seek the treatment they need than their female counterparts. This adds additional challenges with men refusing to seek therapy stemming from what they deem as threats to their masculinity. The reason for these self-preventing hurdles includes, but is not limited to, pride, lack of self-esteem, or shame in recovery. Most dangerously, the individual may even be in denial that they need help due to the aforementioned factors.

Common Mental Health Conditions Affecting Men

Studies find there are specific mental health conditions that men are more prone to than others. Seek a mental health assessment to diagnose any of the following common mental health conditions.

Anxiety Disorders

Whether it be work, home, or relationship-related, men have a high tendency to acquire anxiety disorders. While women face the same battle, men handle these anxieties much differently than women, sometimes in less proactive ways. Worse yet, despite needing help, they are more likely to keep these anxieties hidden from their loved ones. It’s important to remember a common theme reiterated throughout this piece: needing help is not weakness, it’s strength.

Substance Use Disorders

Addiction is more than a behavior or habit. It’s an official mental health condition that alters the mind’s genetic makeup. As we touched on earlier, men are more likely to turn to addictive substances as a coping mechanism. This is the case not just for mental health problems, but for other hardships as well. The only way to repair these addiction-induced mental imbalances is to get professional therapy.

Depression

Though researchers find a greater percentage of women suffer depression than men, a staggering 80 percent of suicides are reportedly male. This is a troubling revelation of the dire state of the men’s mental health crisis and the failing level of care. These suicide discrepancies, despite having significantly lower depression rates, are due to a lack of therapeutic attentiveness and men suffering silently. In light of May’s Mental Health Awareness Month, it’s important to encourage men with mental problems to share their struggles.

Personality Disorders

Personality disorders like bipolar disorder, PTSD, OCD, and others are very prevalent among men. In addition, any underlying childhood, adult, or current trauma exacerbates the risk of acquiring these personality disorders. The worst part is that, since men are more unlikely to seek help, many of these conditions remain undiagnosed and undocumented. Our treatment team is standing by to help you diagnose and pave your most effective personalized road to mental healing.

Treatment Options for Men with Mental Health and Addiction Disorders

A variety of gender-specific approaches are necessary since men and women think and respond differently to various treatment methods. Depending on your condition and needs, a specialist will place you in any of the following programs based on your assessment results.

Dual diagnosis treatment: Reserved specifically for individuals with multiple disorders, dual diagnosis is a specialized treatment to help individuals heal from multiple diagnoses. Please note this treatment is only for people who have been officially diagnosed with multiple disorders, not unofficial symptomatic therapy.
Individual Therapy: Individual treatment is the most personal, therapist-attentive approach to rehab. These confidential sessions enable specialists to get to the root of your battles and treat the source.
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy: CBT treatment programs are unlike any other mental health treatment, attacking mental conditions at the neuronic source. These scientifically tried and true procedures help you remove negative thought patterns and replace them with positive, proactive mental habits.
Family Therapy: There’s no better support group to trust than family, and that’s precisely what our revolutionary family program aims to magnify. We incorporate strong family-based healing approaches that strongly reinforce your support system and mental fortitude.
Group Programs: Group therapy is effective for individuals who thrive in social circumstances that expose them to others who personally relate to their battles. This is a uniquely efficient way of building up your individualized support system through external means.

Golden Gate Recovery’s Treatment Center for Men is Here To Help

Curbing the men’s mental health crisis in the world begins with you. We understand the unique challenges men face. It’s the reason we lead the charge in attacking the men’s mental health crisis that has become a global epidemic.

We exert our greatest efforts, tools, and top-quality tactics to ensure men get the most attentive and thorough care they deserve. You’ll be one of the many who’ve found mental healing made possible by our thorough treatment methods. Reach out today to find your healing solution.

Get Started on the Road To Recovery

Questions About Treatment

Get confidential help! Call Us Now for:

Access to top our top rated treatment center
Caring, supportive guidance
Financial assistance options