World Mental Health Day 10 October 2024 – this year’s theme is “Workplace Mental Health”

  • World Mental Health Day 2024 is 10th October
  • This year’s theme is “Mental Health in the Workplace”
  • Workers are experiencing higher levels of exhaustion, stress and burnout, anxiety and insomnia
  • Prioritising events and specialist counselling in your workplace to celebrate World Mental Health Day key to setting the right tone

    October 10th is World Mental Health Day 2024.  This year the theme is “It is time to prioritise mental health in the workplace”, a much needed opportunity to focus our attention on the mental health challenges faced in the modern workplace.

    Unfortunately, the number of people experiencing mental health issues in the workplace remains high. A quarter of UK workers have reported being unable to cope with the stresses and pressures of the workplace, whilst last year, 1 in 5 employees took time off work because of mental health issues[i].  Shockingly, over 50% of all sick leave in the UK is a result of stress, depression or anxiety[ii].  Part of this is the mental health legacy of the pandemic, but there is much in the day-to-day demands of the workplace that is contributing to these issues.

    Long hours, being on-call for emails and messages outside work hours, the shifts in energy required by hybrid working, a lack of work-life balance and troubles with workplace relationships are all factors contributing to mental health pressures and if people do not have the support and tools to cope, then the workplace mental health crisis will continue.

    If you would like to put on some events in your workplace to celebrate World Mental Health Day and help support your employees, you have come to the right place.  Wellbeing Partners are workplace mental health specialists. We have a range of workshops and training services as well as a specialist workplace counselling service, all of which are available to support employee mental health.

    Workshops

    Central to the work of Wellbeing Partners is empowering people to support their own mental health through our wellbeing workshops. These 60-minute interactive sessions give your employees practical skills, and they cover a range of topics.  Some that you may want to run for World Mental Health Day include:

    How to Improve Your Mental Health – mental health a continuum and this session explores how certain behaviours and techniques help us move towards, and sustain, good mental health. Focusing on practical day-to-day changes and tips, this session provides a thorough overview of how we can take back control over our mental health and help ourselves be happier, engaged and productive.

    Overcoming Burnout – this session provides an overview of the condition, the underlying causes, signs and symptoms, and focuses primarily on a range of practical, evidence-based solutions to reduce the symptoms of burnout. 

    Finding the Right Work-life Balance – a lack of work-life balance is a key driver of workplace stress, and this workshop shows how we can ensure we are engaged and productive at work whilst also setting the necessary boundaries needed for rest and good mental wellbeing.

    Introduction to Mindfulness/Mindfulness for Stress Reduction – mindfulness is clinically proven to reduce stress, anxiety and depression.  These workshops demystify mindfulness, put it in its scientific context and show people how to use this powerful skill to support their mental health.

    Get Moving for Mental Health – a sedentary lifestyle will negatively impact your mental health, an increasingly bigger issue as many of us work from home and move less frequently. This session shows the importance of regular movement and how it can be incorporated into a busy working day.

    Managing Stress and Enhancing Resilience – the session provides participants with the knowledge and tools to reduce their stress and anxiety and increase their sense of mental wellbeing, and to improve and enhance their own resilience and mental health.

    Resilience: Taming the Inner Critic – utilising traditional resilience skills, growth mindset techniques and cutting-edge research into self-compassion and resilience, this session endows individuals with practical skills and a deep rooted sense of strength in the face of life’s challenges, both professional and personal.

    Neurodivergent Mental Health – neurodivergence is a risk factor for mental health issues and emotional dysregulation due to the slight differences in how the nervous system functions for those with ADHD, autism and other neurodivergences. This one-hour workshop provides a comprehensive range of self-care tips for your neurodivergent employees to effectively manage their mental health and wellbeing.

    Mental Health Training Services

    For World Mental Health Day, you might also consider using our training services that allow managers, people teams and employees to explore how they manage mental health challenges in the workplace and how to encourage psychologically safe and appropriate discussions on these issues.

    Mental Health Training for Managers – This two-hour course provides your managers with the confidence, knowledge, skills and boundaries to support a team member who maybe struggling with their mental health. The course teaches managers how to create a psychologically safe environment and how to signpost individuals onto the professional support services in an effective and appropriate way.

    Talking Mental Health – This 90-minute session for all employees focuses on mental health issues, the recovery model, plus the skills for supporting others and improving our own mental health. It covers a wide range of aspects around mental health and mental health issues and provides participants with practical steps and advice to enhance their own mental wellbeing.

    Workplace Counselling

    Wellbeing Partners are experts at providing specialist workplace counselling that is distinctly different to the EAP model. Our broad approach to workplace wellbeing means that smaller issues can be prevented from developing into crises and more complex issues.  Our counselling services focus on creating the framework and confidence that people need to maintain their mental health once the sessions are concluded, reducing likelihood of later relapses. In-House Workplace Counselling is not a luxury, but an intelligent, supportive and economical response to mental health issues. It offers both short and long-term gains for individuals and organisations.

    For further information on World Mental Health Day and any of the workshops and services we provide, please complete the form below.


    [i] https://mentalhealth-uk.org/burnout/#:~:text=91%25%20of%20adults%20in%20the,any%20other%20working%20status%20group.

    [ii] https://press.hse.gov.uk/2023/11/22/hse-publishes-annual-work-related-ill-health-and-injury-statistics-for-2022-23/

    Employee Counselling Update: The Rising Impact of Personal Relationship Difficulties on Workplace Mental Health and Performance

    In recent months, there has been a very sharp increase in the number of employees seeking workplace counselling support for personal relationship problems, including infidelities, abusive behaviours, separations and divorce. This represents a shift away from burnout as the primary reason for employees seeking workplace counselling, and highlights yet another legacy of the pandemic – the detrimental impact on intimate relationships.

    Experiencing difficulties and endings in our personal relationships often has a deeply emotional and distressing impact on all parts of our lives. Our intimate partners and our shared experiences with them are something we often rely on for permanence, stability and certainty.  When our relationships go through turbulence or come to an end, we can be left with feelings of loss, anger, guilt, anxiety and despair.

    Whilst these issues have traditionally been seen as the preserve of the “personal” rather than “professional” sphere, there is increasing understanding that it is very difficult to separate from such emotionally overwhelming matters when we are trying to work.  

    Employees who are going through relationship breakdown are more likely to experience symptoms of stress, anxiety, insomnia and clinical depression, in addition to financial worries and the impact of relationship breakdown on children and other family members.  This is burden enough to manage, on top of professional and workplace responsibilities which can be even more challenging in the midst of crisis.  A lack of focus and concentration, low self-esteem and emotional swings make it hard for people to engage in their work, creating a vicious circle that can contribute to overwhelm, exhaustion and mental health issues.

    This is where our specialist workplace counselling service can offer your employees a safety net and support structure for their mental wellbeing and provide tools to improve their ability to focus and be effective at work, boosting their self-esteem and confidence.

    Whilst many EAPs are turning away employees who are struggling with important issues such as relationship breakdown, our specialist workplace counselling service is well-equipped to support all employees and their wide range of issues and needs.  

    Our Workplace Counselling Team are fully qualified counselling psychotherapists – with at least 10 years post-qualification experience in supporting employee mental health and wellbeing.

    Our Workplace Counselling Services are available on a regular or ad hoc basis. For further information see https://wellbeing.partners/employee-counselling/ or complete the form below:

    What is Employee Mental Health?

    When it comes to the workplace, there has been a high degree of focus on physical wellbeing for employees, with many companies laying on gym memberships, yoga sessions and massage sessions for staff. But what about employee mental health?

    Employee mental health in the workplace is becoming a hot topic and with good reason. Mental wellbeing is vital for us as individuals and also vital for us as employees. Good mental health contributes to productivity, concentration, creativity, complex decision-making, communication and satisfaction.

    Reduced mental health diminishes all these facets within us and as a consequence, our work suffers.

    Workplace stress and the resulting anxiety may be a cause of mental health issues or there may be other causes outside work. Either way, there will be an impact on an individual’s ability to work. Stress, anxiety and depression can also result in a wide range of unhealthy coping strategies, such as an over-reliance on alcohol or other substances, excessive gambling, OCD, eating disorders or even self harm.

    If your company is interested in the issue of employee mental health, improving your employees’ mental wellbeing and providing a duty of care for those who are suffering, we can provide a range of awareness, preventative and remedial services.

    Our 60 minute “Managing Stress & Anxiety Workshop” is the perfect introduction to raising awareness and reducing stress-related mental health issues in your workplace. The one hour workshop is for groups of up to 20 people per session. It educates and enables all levels of staff around the issues of stress and anxiety, what the signs are that stress is becoming a problem, and how to effectively manage and reduce their own stress with our evidence-based programme.

    We also provide confidential one-to-one Wellness Sessions in your workplace, which give employees a change to “offload” about their work or personal life stresses, or discuss anything that might be troubling them. These one-to-one Wellness Sessions take place in a quiet meeting room or office in your workplace, with a fully qualified counsellor, and are a great way for employees to talk to someone independent, trustworthy and experienced in helping employees with their workplace stress. The Wellness Sessions might be used by employees who have a very stressful job and who otherwise wouldn’t have time or the critical need to seek professional support, or the Wellness Sessions might be used by employees who are having anxiety or panic issues, are drinking too much or using other unhealthy coping strategies to deal with their stress.

    Wellbeing Partners can also provide your company with a Mental Health First Aid training programme – the internationally-recognised training programme which provides a group of your employees with the training in how to spot the signs of mental health problems in the workplace, and what to do about it.

    If your company would like to start a conversation around creating a mentally health workplace, or to book one of our fantastic employee mental health workshops or services, please get in touch. Call Nick Winfield on 07773 767248 or email [email protected]

    www.mindfulnessintheworkplace.org

     

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