Apologies that this isn't directly a mens rights issue, but it is a mens issue: how to express your vulnerability as a man when you are going thru problems.

I'm an avid follower of the YouTube channel 74 gear, and Kelsey just posted a new video talking about the midlife crisis he is currently experiencing. His life is a bit of a mess and his hobby has turned into a time consuming job. Now that the world is returning back to normal after covid lockdowns, he realized he no longer has the time to do the things he actually enjoys and it is draining him.

If we take a step back from the video: as a man, you are valued for what you give, not what you take. When you are on a positive trajectory in life and you are giving more than you are taking, the people around you are more likely going to join you for the ride because they are getting something out of it.
However, if you are down, and you are taking more than you are giving, that's when people are more likely to abandon you because you are no longer offering any value to them.

In an ideal world, that wouldn't be the case, but we don't live in that world. So when you are going through a rough patch, it makes it very difficult as a man to talk about your situation, and still get support from the people you would hope still care for you. It's a difficult balancing act. I'm sure everyone here has a story of how they got burnt when they got this wrong.

Back to the video: Kelsey in my opinion does a wonderful job of handling this. He talks us through what he is experiencing, and even though he hasn't gotten it all figure out yet, he is also explaining the steps he is actively taking to fix the issues in his life that are within his control.
That last part is really important. He's a 'gentleman' in distress as it were, but rather than waiting for someone to save him, he is taking action to improve his situation. To the people around him, it doesn't feel like he is trying to take anything from them, and ironically, that's why they are also more likely going to want to lend their support and give something back.

Another way of looking at it is failure and vulnerability isn't generally perceived as a weakness by others. Incompetence is. Even if you fail, most of the time, people are willing to give you a second chance. But if you are not able to stand up and dust yourself off on your own after a failure, that's when people are more likely to perceive you as weak and choose to abandon you. Put another way: failing in life is a good thing, it's what helps you grow. Failure at life isn't.

To summarize: Don't just explain what you are going thru. also offer at least some steps on how you are going to tackle the issues you are facing, and then follow through on it. At the end of the day, we are judged by our actions.