When I first held my newborn brother in my arms as a young teen, I was very apprehensive and delicate with him and I always remember my Mum saying "he won't break".

While that didn't mean he was ready to go in the backyard and play tackle football with his older brothers, it has served as a reminder to me ever since that people can be so much tougher than we ever give ourselves credit for.

But that doesn't mean even the strongest people don't ever fall down, so this is a timely reminder for anyone going through anxiety or depression that the tough thing to do is open up about it, to start a conversation.

I did a story this week with a man who is completing a loop of Australia on a postie bike to help prevent veteran suicide and something he said resonated.

"You're not weak if you're suffering depression and it's not weak to seek professional help, that's a sign of strength. Start a conversation, to chat with someone, that's the single most important thing you can do."

Men's mental health week is nearing a close, but it's never a bad time for anyone to seek help if you need it.

Everyone needs a good support network around them and professional help can be the start to building that network.

Because then, much like my baby brother, with the right people holding you up, you won't break either.

Jacob McMaster, Bega District News Deputy Editor

This month, 22 ACM journalists and editors (including myself) began a new journey with the Digital News Academy.

It's an Australian-first venture between media outlets, Google and the Melbourne Business School to expand digital storytelling.

You can expect some new and challenging stories from ACM as we continue to expand our digital-first publishing mantra.

Understanding that we are not at the pinnacle of media and communications is vital to improving how we deliver news to the Wimmera.

While our role in the community remains as important as ever, the idea of newspapers being an infallible institution is behind us.

How we consume information is different; the one-way communication approaches of old media is replaced with polylateral communication.

Today is not the first time, nor the last time, I have written about vulnerability, and rightfully so.

Because the more we talk about it, the easier it is to create change.

When I was a boy, we would chastise someone for being 'sensitive', whereas today, it could be called 'emotionally intelligent'.

That change won't bring back a school friend, a cricket teammate, or my cousin, who were each told to 'be a man' when they faced a mental health crisis, but how we address mental health may help thousands of other men in the future.

Ben Fraser, The Wimmera Mail-Times Editor