eLearning Courses for International Men’s Health Week

This week is International Men’s Health week, a time where everyone – not just men – are encouraged to raise awareness about the issues that affect male health and well-being. This week is all about encouraging your male friends, family, and colleagues to open up and share their unique experiences and advice on how to maintain and improve their physical and mental health.

The past year has been incredibly difficult for everyone, and it has brought to light a number of important issues affecting men. Since the COVID-19 pandemic and the enforced national lockdowns, the importance of monitoring and boosting your personal well-being has been at an all-time high.

That’s why this year, The Men’s Mental Health Forum have introduced, The CAN DO challenge, a five-day challenge for Men’s Health Week, inviting men from all over the world to devote five days to five ways to improve their physical and mental health.

The CAN DO challenge involves trying a different activity for each day of Men’s Health Week which boosts the physical and mental health of you and those around you.

The CAN DO stands for:
C onnect
A ctive
N otice
D iscover
O ffer

Everyone is invited to participate in an activity related to one of those well-being words all week. So, here at Litmos we thought we could be of assistance, drawing on our extensive eLearning content library. We have some recommendations for courses that will help you complete the challenge and boost your well-being this year!

Day 1 – C is for CONNECT

For the first day of Men’s Health Week, you are encouraged to connect with one another. Reach out to an old friend, relative, or work colleague you haven’t spoken to in a while and find out how they’ve managed their way through this tricky past year.

A course we recommend from the library for Connect day is Communicating Effectively. In it we show you how effective communication can help your personal well-being and lead to an altogether more satisfying, happy life. We explore why communication matters, the importance of body language, effective listening skills, and tips on effective questioning.

Day 2 – A is for ACTIVE

So, it’s not our fault we’ve been stuck at home for over a year but sure might’ve let the old exercise regime slip. Day 2 is the time to get back out there and get active again. Getting physical in one form or another each day has been proven to reduce stress, ward off serious illness, and help boost your mood.

In the Being Active course, we talk you through how to focus on daily active choices that will help your life become happier, healthier, and more productive. Topics include how to start your day right, the importance of walks, and making active journeys.

Day 3 – N is for Notice

For all the many wonderful things modern technology allows, it can strain our attention, forever drawing us closer to the bright white light emanating from our palms. But we need to know our limits when it comes to tech. Studies have shown that overuse of smartphones leads to increased stress as well as significantly higher levels of anxiety, depression, and disengagement.

In the Turn Away From Tech course, we explore why and how you can be far more present in your own life by limiting your time on technology. We offer advice and tips to break the addiction with tech and why it’s so vital to look up for your phone and notice the actual world and people around you!

Day 4 – D is for Discover

Day 4 of the CAN DO Challenge is all about teaching yourself something new – exploring a subject and enlightening yourself. Studies have shown how important it is for our mental wellbeing and happiness to improve our knowledge and discover new things. It boosts self-esteem and confidence, activates the release of dopamine in our brain, and helps us deal with stress and low energy.

Why not jump into the library and discover something about yourself by taking the Emotional Intelligence course. Have you ever wondered who is really in charge of your emotional responses? In this course, we break emotional intelligence down in to four different elements, provide insight into each of them, and discover tried and tested methods to boost your emotional intelligence to help you improve your overall well-being.

Day 5 – O is for Offer

On the final day of Men’s Health Week your task is to offer something back. The idea is to perform an activity which may well improve the mental well-being of someone else – it could be someone you know or even a complete stranger. It could be volunteering work at a local charity or even just a random act of kindness.

One course we think could assist you in offering something back is Mindfulness – Be Grateful. In it we give you performative tips you can use to offer something back to the people who have supported you along the way and how important gratitude can be for your mental well-being.

Hopefully these courses will provide useful ideas and inspiration to help you get out there and complete the CAN DO Challenge for this year’s Men’s Health Week!

For more information about the CAN DO challenge, visit the Men’s Health Forum at https://www.menshealthforum.org.uk/can-do-challenge.