WHEN Limerick barber Pat Barry teamed up with some of his colleagues to tackle suicide awareness and mental health issues amongst young men, it would take him on a remarkable journey that included an appearance on a US television network. Pat talks to Andrew Carey.
CHICAGO
THE Limerick man who founded an initiative to help young men troubled by mental health issues has launched a suicide awareness training programme for barbers.
Pat Barry, who is himself an award-winning barber, co-foundered the Lions Barber Collective (LBC) that operates in Ireland, UK and Holland to support suicide awareness and prevention by encouraging young men to simply “talk to your barber”.
After accepting an invitation to the biggest male grooming expos in the US, Pat found himself on primetime network television discussing the work of the collective in Ireland and the UK.
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“I was in Chicago at B-Groomed, and was told that one of the television networks wanted to have a chat. I thought it was just a local gig and then I was told that it was Fox and their main morning show. That changed everything.
“The guys in the US are really keen on looking at our model and even some of the top barbers there want to take up ambassadorial roles with the collective.
“A number of off-shoots also talked to us about moulding the training and the whole initiative to suit different industries.”
Pat, who operates the Gentry barber shop in Raheen, says that a prostate cancer initiative is interested in adapting the concepts of the barber talk initiative for men’s cancer awareness programmes in the US.
#BARBERTALK
The original concept got under way when Pat joined forces with English barber Tom Chapman.
The buzzing barbering buddies set about promoting the message that there is hope for young men who feel they are unable to cope with life’s problems.
“While the idea of just talking to your barber is simplistic, we have developed and rolled out the barber talk training programme through Virtual Realty. The National Health Service in the UK have fully supported and certified the initiative.”
The #BarberTalk training programme helps barbers identify clients who may self-harm or have suicidal tendencies, so they can direct them to the relevant support.
“Men often share confidences with their barbers that they wouldn’t discuss with their friends, families or partners. Some of my clients trust me with the problems or troubles they are having in their life,” Pat explained.
“Linking with Virtual Reality developers has enabled us to get it off the ground in a short time by using the internet and the VR kits which are not that expensive. Once you have the website link on your phone, you’re in.”
With the training programme now live in the UK, Pat said that the initiative will hit Ireland early next year and will be supported by the leading barbers associations.
Earlier this year, Pat brought members of the collective to meet with Northern Ireland Health Minister Simon Hamilton to bring an All-Island approach to the training.
“I also met Professor John Barry of Queens University Belfast and we have partnered with them in rolling out our #BarberTalk Training programme and a live show tour of universities.
“He has given us access to the students to research mental illness analytics, and tackle the problem in Northern Ireland”, Pat explained.
Another aspect of the initiative, Pat said, will focus on students who have embarked on the first year of their college journey
“We want to target first year students and their coping mechanisms for depression and anxiety. We are incorporating each university’s music section to provide music with our show. It’s an interactive event, as we want engagement from the crowd.
The Collective has partnered with Pieta House in Ireland and Papyrus in the UK and their motto is; “Recognise, Listen, Talk and Advise”.
THE HISTORY
Having seen many young men finding it difficult to cope, Pat and Tom Chapman were determined to break the silence that enveloped the subject of suicide.
Young men were dying because there was no one there to listen or they didn’t know how to talk.
A barber may be responsible for trimming the locks and giving you that all important dapper look on top, but they are also in a unique position to encourage their clients to seek help and help them find it.
“We want to be able to recognise the signs. We want our fellow barbers to be able to recognise them too but, above all, we want to help where we can to stop the biggest killer of young men.
Pat said that the aim now is to roll-out their #BarberTalk Programme in Ireland and produce a documentary about the Collective and its work.
Tom, who is based in the UK, said that the collective’s theory is that by giving men an opportunity to talk and share their feelings, they can be led away from suicidal thoughts.
“It is not seen as unusual for a woman to tell her stylist about the bad day she has had, a terrible boss at work or relationship troubles. Men, on the other hand, may feel they need to put a brave face on it, go for the laughs – or stay schtum.”
The LBC believe that men will talk to their barbers about things they wouldn’t tell anybody else.
“With this, comes the responsibility to remain confidential, provide a safe haven for clients and help them where necessary.
The LBC has had a wide range of supporters including Stephen Manderson (aka Professor Green) whose father took his own life.
“Other people go through what my dad did and they don’t kill themselves. He had no one to talk to, no one to help him”, Stephen said.
Pat added that “Talking about suicide does not make it more likely to happen but by breaking the taboo and allowing conversation, we could save a life.”
“We don’t intend to become councillors. We just want to create an environment where we are more open to listening to those that need it most.
“It’s time to ‘man up’ and tackle this epidemic of suicide. We all have a social responsibility to help. After all, it could be our own son or daughters life that is saved” Pat explained.
So, why not talk to your barber?
For more, twitter: @thelionsbarbers or facebook.com/thelionsbarbercollective or at Pat’s Gentry Barber shop here