**Men are just as affected by toxic masculinity because the dominant social ideas surrounding masculinity discourage empathy, emotion, and openness** * Both men and women are responsible for toxic masculinity. There is a disturbingly present idea in many societies that men should not cry, be affectionate with one another, or open up about their emotional state. These ideas are unfortunately encouraged by both men and women. * There is no one sex to blame because *both men and women are affected by toxic masculinity*. For women, they often are victims of abuse, manipulation, and are undermined in workplaces. For men, they often feel forced to perpetuate ideals of manliness that can harm their personal lives and relationships, and when they are victims of abuse, they may not report it for fear of being seen as weak. Toxic masculinity certainly is not an excuse for abuse or sexism, but it is a large contributor. * Terms such as [“grow a pair”](https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/grow+a+pair), [“man up”](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/man%20up), [“you throw like a girl”](https://sites.psu.edu/civicissueserb/2017/02/28/you-throw-like-a-girl/), and [“be a man”](https://www.yourdictionary.com/be-a-man) are tossed around in every day language that imply that men are meant to present masculine traits in their every day lives, lest they be compared to the inferior sex, women. These phrases also negatively affect men who do not wish to adhere to dominant male stereotypes. * However, while toxic masculinity is not a “man-only” problem, it will take an overwhelming social change largely led by men in order to change how masculinity is thought of. If more men definitively choose to be confident in their masculinity while practicing empathy and expressing emotion, and if more women who find themselves adhering to binary gender stereotypes can release their expectations for men, perhaps masculinity can become less dangerous and something to be celebrated instead.

**This is not the Oppression Olympics. To tackle the issue head on, we need to focus on the _quality_ of harm done to men and women rather than the _quantity_ of harm caused in comparison to each other.** This statement makes the mistake of comparing the quantity of harm that toxic masculinity does to men relative to women, a feat which is impossible to do. In my view, this detracts from the key issue, which should be assessing the _type_ of harm caused to men and women so we can address the problem with more clarity. For example: • In the case of women, toxic masculinity affects them via the operation of the patriarchy. On a micro level, women may be [socialised](https://www.savethechildren.org/us/charity-stories/how-gender-norms-impact-boys-and-girls) to assume home-keeping and child-rearing roles, and may be subjected to [domestic abuse](https://www.verywellmind.com/the-dangerous-mental-health-effects-of-toxic-masculinity-5073957). On a macro level, toxic masculinity may affect the state’s response to sexual harassment in public places and female access to certain educational fields such as [STEM](https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01053/full); • In the case of men, toxic masculinity mainly causes men to [suppress their emotions](https://www.verywellmind.com/the-dangerous-mental-health-effects-of-toxic-masculinity-5073957), which has a negative impact on their mental health and can lead to [suicide](https://www.verywellmind.com/men-and-suicide-2328492). Moreover, toxic masculinity can cause males to be bullied or shamed for exhibiting a weak form of stereotypically masculine traits, for example being ungifted at sports. Yes, it is necessary to acknowledge that men and women both suffer from the impact of toxic masculinity. However, focusing on the type of harm caused rather than comparing the amount of harm caused provides the necessary nuance to the conversation that will allow for more targeted solutions.

Toxic Masculinity is only Toxic to those that deny Biological Essentialism, Men and Women have different roles to fulfil and today's society is constantly pushing these to different roles together for the sake of 'equality' a goal that is not achievable as it actually hurts us as a whole, while pretending to fix things. Societal breakdown can trace its roots back to the beginning of Gender roll breakdown

It harms men even more than women. It's regrettable that so many men lie to themselves & claim it doesn't exist while they are the victims & perpetrators of it. Toxic masculinity stigmatizes men taking care of their body, taking care of their mind, and doing anything that other men might consider "feminine". Positive masculinity, on the other hand, is great. Men checking up on other men. Men kindly encouraging each other to work out. Men encouraging other men to take care of their mental health. All these things are great for men and women.