“I had no safe space.” Painful childhood experiences in the lives of men who are suicidal: A qualitative thematic analysis

In almost every country, more men die by suicide than women. While early-life adversity is a well-established suicide risk factor, much existing research is derived from female-dominated samples and based on quantitative work. This study addresses a critical gap in the literature by examining the relationship between childhood harms and long-term suicide risk in men. 710 men worldwide who reported suicidal ideation or attempts in the past week or year. Using a qualitative thematic analysis of open-text survey responses, participants described childhood experiences that negatively shaped their adult lives. Findings suggest that men experience a diverse range of childhood challenges including bullying, sexual abuse, emotional neglect, as well as underexplored challenges including isolation, neurodiversity, body-image, witnessing abuse, sibling abuse, and structural challenges such as community violence, poverty, and gender discrimination. We propose that these early-life experiences may similarly disrupt men's sense of psychological safety, leading to insecure attachments to self and others. These findings highlight overlooked forms of childhood adversity relevant to safeguarding boys and suggest the importance of early intervention and gender-sensitive approaches that attend to attachment processes and the impact of restrictive masculine norms.