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The Importance of Recognising Mental Health in the Workplace

Nearly 1 in 7 people experience mental health problems in the workplace, and this can be for a number of reasons. Outside influences can impact your work, as well as bullying in the workplace and pressure to meet deadlines. Whatever the cause of an employees mental stress, depression or anxiety, it's something that you, as a leader and manager in the workplace, need to address. Mental health can impact someone’s productivity, happiness, relationships and even physical health. All of these influence how well your business works and runs; if one cog drops out due to mental health issues, the whole system can be shifted. And, it's not just an obligation as a leader to look after employees mental health, but a moral obligation too.Keep reading to learn more about how mental health impacts a business, as well as my advice on addressing these issues at the first chance you get. If you leave an employee to try and tackle their mental stress on their own, they could end up leaving their job or even facing worse mental health struggles.

Decreased Productivity

Productivity rules all; you need people churning out content, speaking to consumers, solving problems and coming up with great new ideas to ensure that the business runs well. The more work you can get done in a day, the more clients you can take on, products you can sell and money that you can make. But, if you have an employee suffering from mental health issues, their productivity can decrease, and cause this process to come to a halt.If you suffer from mental health issues like depression or anxiety, you can be zapped of all your motivation and energy. The last thing that you want to do is drag yourself to work and spend eight hours behind a desk; while you might have loved your job previously, it can become to feel like a chore. By recognising decreased productivity, you could be recognising a potential sign of a mental health issue.

Lost Work Relationships

One way that you can increase productivity and have a happy workplace is by building on your relationships with your employees. If employees get on with each other, they make the workplace a fun place to be in and the business will run smoothly. Tasks and projects will have more creative outcomes and they will be completed quicker.However, if an employee is suffering from mental health struggles then these relationships can be lost or broken. People suffering from depression or anxiety might cut themselves off from others, meaning they are less likely to work well in a team and converse in the office. You can try and repair these relationships and boost employee happiness by having events which encourage employee interaction and socialisation; such as pizza Fridays or team-building games (in or out of the office).

Increased Days Off

Mental health illnesses are not always physically seen. They are internal struggles which most outsiders might not be able to recognise. However, sometimes our mental health can impact our physical health; we can suffer from insomnia, eating issues and even get physically ill. These can all affect our working life, as illness and tiredness force us to stay in bed rather than go to work. An employees physical and mental health, however, should come before everything; but, if we have the chance to help improve their mental health before it gets to this point, we should.Try and recognise the signs of mental health issues before your employees are rarely in the office or have to leave work for good. Look for irritability, tiredness and isolation as these are all signs of various mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. One way of giving your employees the opportunity to address their mental health is by having a therapist available for them if they need extra support.

Therapy for Employees

As a therapist, I make myself available to companies who want to be more aware of mental health at work and to provide support for their employees. Effective leaders in the workplace want to look after their employees and their mental health, and having a therapist on stand by is a great way to support this. As a therapist, I can help your employees understand their thoughts and emotions and get to the root of the issues which are plaguing their minds. Once they know why they think or feel a certain way, they can work with me on ways in fighting or even accepting these reasons so that they can put them behind them. With expert advice and experience, I can provide tips on how to manage a good home and work-life balance. I can help give them a sense of control and provide the tools that they need to start boosting their happiness and have a greater understanding of their mental health.Check out my website to learn more about the importance of mental health in the workplace and how therapy can benefit your workers. As a leader in the workplace, you have to ensure your employee's mental health is in tip-top shape if you want to get the most out of your working days.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]