Chris Forbes hasn't lived a long life but he's already seen many men lost to suicide.
Husbands and brothers, fathers and friends.
More often than not, young men who should have had long lives.
Sometimes, he wonders if he could have done more.
"How come I didn't say anything?" he said.
"How come I didn't pick it up?"
Hidden within the walls of Aboriginal town camps in Mparntwe — Alice Springs — is an all-too-silent crisis.
But a group of men in these communities is speaking up to stop it.
"We've got to break that barrier and stereotype and say it's alright to cry, it's alright to reach out, it's alright to say, 'I need help'," Chris said.
"It's just about starting the conversation."
Video series sheds light on mental health
Chris is the coordinator of the Tangentyere Men's Family Safety Group — town camp leaders focused on improving safety and wellbeing in their communities.
Right now, male suicide is one of the biggest issues.
So the men have worked together to create videos featuring their personal mental health stories, in an effort to encourage others to break the silence.
The project has been funded by the Northern Territory government, and created in conjunction with the Mental Health Association of Central Australia.
And this week, as part of Mental Health Week in the Northern Territory, it was released to the public.
Chris said it was a highly vulnerable experience.
"From a young age, as men we get told to hide our emotions. But it's that stereotype that we need to break down as a whole community," he said.
"You're not any less of man. If anything, it makes you more of a man for showing your emotions."
Suicide a growing crisis
Mparntwe town camps aren't the only First Nations communities rocked by this issue.
Across the nation, Indigenous men are dying by suicide at twice the rate of non-Indigenous men.
Suicide is the second leading cause of death for Indigenous males, behind heart disease.
Evidence shows this is due to a complex range of interrelated factors.
These include socioeconomic disadvantage, transgenerational trauma from colonisation and poorer overall health outcomes.
High rates of incarceration, domestic violence and alcohol and drug abuse are also added risk factors.
First Nations men aged 25 to 34 are particularly at risk, dying by suicide at three times the rate of non-Indigenous men.
For young men like Graham Malbunka, this is more than just statistics.
This is real life.
"I grew up in the rough life, you know. No shirt, no shoes, no nothing. I was sniffing petrol at the age of five," he said.
At first, speaking up about his mental health struggles seemed too big a barrier to conquer.
"But I overcame my fear and started talking out to people," he said.
"And they were there to help me."
'I've got to stand up'
Patrick Nandy has been just one of those community leaders helping younger men like Graham.
He's had his own battle with mental illness — when his wife died, he didn't know if he wanted to keep living.
"I didn't want to talk to anyone, not even my brothers, not even my mum and dad," he said.
"I just went into my room and just sat there and cried."
He said it was the love of his family that brought him back from the brink.
And now, he wants to do the same for others.
"I've got to stand up and say something about the suicide," he said.
"Because too many young people are dying."
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