Kevin Callan - Big Boy’s Don’t Cry

In the second part of our podcast series on Patriarchy we met with Kevin Callan Acupuncturist and Naturopath and one of Lydia's great friends.

As a member of the queer community who grew up in rural Ireland Kevin has a deep insight into the effects of patriarchy on men in regional communities in particular. Having spent a large part of his teens being labelled a ‘freak’ ( because he has style) and a ‘sissy’, he had reason to spend a significant amount of time wondering why traits that were seen to be ‘female’ were necessarily viewed as ‘less than’.

We discuss the powerful effects of traditional Male archetypes on the way that boys are taught to behave, think and feel. We discuss how fear manifests in the men that he sees on a daily basis in his clinic both at an emotional and physiological level and how as a society we have a lack of awareness around the reality of this and a lack of tools to deal with it because small town values have taught us that ‘real men don't cry’.

Join us as we dive deeper into the discussion around the term ‘toxic masculinity’ and ponder the possible solutions to the wounds we carry as both men and women from having grown up in society governed by Patriarchy.

If you want to find out more about Kevin or visit his clinic go to his website www.callanacupuncture.ie