Only Sensitive Men Can Save the Planet

By Ted Zeff, Ph.D.

 Only Sensitive Men Can Save the Planet
By Ted Zeff, Ph.D.

My colleague Dr. Ted Zeff is going some exciting work understanding

sensitive men and boys. Read this important new article.
For more information, please visit his web site, www.drtedzeff.com;
the amazon link for his latest book, “The Strong, Sensitive Boy” is
http://amzn.to/ciWRxa

For more information on my work, contact Jed Diamond at

www.MenAlive.com

Most boys are taught from an early age to act tough and repress their emotions.
According to William Pollock, the author of Real Boys, whenever boys do not conform
to the “boy code” and instead show their gentleness and emotions, they are usually
ostracized and humiliated. Males then deny their real selves in order to be accepted and
approved of by their peers which can create fear, anxiety, and low self-esteem in men.

Men are taught that they must be aggressive, tough, strong, and in control. Frequently,
when males step out of the “act like a man” box, they are humiliated. In their book,
Raising Cain, authors Dan Kindlon and Michael Thompson state that if boys express
emotions such as fear, anxiety, or sadness, they are commonly seen as feminine, and the
adults and other children in their lives typically treat them as though these emotions are
abnormal for a boy. However, when boys act aggressively or are silent, it is accepted as
normal.

Males Learn to Repress All Emotions Except Anger

Given our societal norms, it may come as a surprise that newborn boys are actually more
emotionally reactive than girls. One study showed that baby boys cry more than baby
girls when they are frustrated; yet by the age of five, most boys suppress all their
feelings except anger. However, even though boys are taught to maintain emotional
control, measuring their heart rate or skin conductance (sweaty palms) in emotionally
arousing situations demonstrates that there is no difference between boys’ and girls’
responses. Boys have the same human needs as girls. For example, a kindergarten
teacher who welcomes her students each day with hugs has a calming effect on the most
disruptive boys since all boys have a basic need to be loved, cared for, and respected.
Violent male behavior may stem from the perpetrator’s fear that they aren’t behaving
aggressively enough and may be thought of as feminine. However, the behavior that is
associated with females (actions that demonstrate empathy, sensitivity, compassion, and
so on) are also natural male traits—they are simply not recognized as such in many
societies. Anthropologists have demonstrated that in certain cultures violent male
behavior is nonexistent, such as in the Semoi of Malaysia. Likewise, the Hutterite
Brethen, the largest and most successful Christian communal group in the United States,
has enjoyed more than 350 years without a murder. We may infer then that violence isn’t
natural for males but is a learned behavior.

What Is Masculinity?

Many males become uncomfortable in discussions of male sensitivity, since this trait has
been interpreted as feminine. In the common duality that strictly separates what is
masculine and what is feminine in our culture, being compared too closely with the
feminine will likely threaten a man’s constructed sense of manhood.

Many males who are destroying their lives to feel “manly” are not acting like real men;
rather, they are performing a distortion of a cultural stereotype. By disowning their
sensitive side, many males become half a person. The aggressive, nonemotional male
needs to learn to emulate the behavior of the compassionate, emotionally sensitive male
to become a fully functioning human being—acknowledging and honoring each of their
human qualities instead of segregating most and aggrandizing a few.

One of the most distressing aspects of being put into an “act like a man” box is that
males should never cry or express fear. The devastating effect of repressing emotions is
demonstrated in the high male depression and suicide rates. For example, Susan Nolen-
Hoeksema at Stanford University found that boys were significantly more depressed
than girls. Even sensitive males avoid crying. While the research of Dr. Elaine Aron,
author of The Highly Sensitive Person, shows that men and women are equally divided
in having the trait of sensitivity, the only area where sensitive women scored
significantly higher than sensitive men was in the statement, “I cry easily.”

Males are also taught that it is a sign of weakness to ask for help. This follows logically
from the pressure to suppress negative emotions besides anger; after all, if you are not
supposed to have distressing emotions, why would you need help for them? The result is
many men who suffer in silence, which can have horrific effects for a man in his
relationships, career, and health. I recently read the following quote at my local Veterans
Administration hospital: “It takes the courage and strength of a warrior to ask for help. If
you are in emotional crisis, contact the V.A. hospital.” A real man needs to use his inner
strength to shed years of media, familial, and societal brainwashing in order to be able to
express his emotions and vulnerability.
Male Emotions and the Survival of the Planet

Repressing emotions and sensitivity have devastating effects on men and the people who
love them. But this expectation also has terrible consequences for the world at large.
Men who repress their emotions have created a planet on the brink of disaster, since
many male world leaders behave in a bellicose and combative manner rather than
exhibiting compassionate and cooperative behavior. We are at a turning point for the
planet in which our male political leaders can either continue acting in an insensitive,
belligerent manner, risking the destruction of humanity, or choose a new, collaborative,
understanding approach to foreign, economic, and environmental policy. By embracing
the diversity of human experience—including masculine sensitivity—we can usher in a
new era of world peace.

In order for a society to function at an optimal level, there has to be a balance between
the sensitive male and non-sensitive male styles. Most non-sensitive men will be found
among the soldiers and chief executive officers of large corporations, while sensitive
men will more often be counselors, artists, and healers. Societies that ultimately succeed
and flourish are the ones that honor both the aggressive warriors and the sensitive
advisers. The sensitive man has an important mission, which is to balance the aggressive
behavior of some nonsensitive males who treat humans, animals, and Mother Nature in a
callous fashion.

While sensitive males may not be warriors fighting on foreign battlefields, their battles
take just as much courage. Fighting to uphold righteousness in society, long the purview
of sensitive men, takes a strong backbone and much fortitude. Personal and global peace
can only be achieved through the resurrection of such masculine heroes as Jesus,
Buddha, the Dalai Lama, Mahatma Gandhi, and Martin Luther King, Jr. It takes a strong
man to speak the truth about morality, virtue and justice as these great spiritual leaders
have done.

The time has come to break the outdated, rigid male code that insists that all men should
be aggressive, thick-skinned, and unemotional. As sensitive males become more
confident and self-assured, sensitive men will be empowered to help make this world a
better place for everyone making a more peaceful, healthy planet where all males will
eventually become fully functioning human beings—exhibiting sensitivity, compassion,
and vulnerability.”