- 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/