Mental Health

Mental health encompasses a range of unseen difficulties from mild anxiety to more serious and enduring conditions that are managed by medication and therapy.

Some conditions are temporary, triggered by external circumstances including stress, anxiety and depression. Others are genetic such as psychosis which leads to a temporary altered perception of reality, obsessive compulsive disorder, paranoia, phobias, eating disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Mental health refers to the way we think, feel and act. Everybody has mental health, the same way everybody has physical health, and we need to look after it. If you go through a period of poor mental health, you might find that the ways you’re frequently thinking, feeling or reacting can become difficult, or even impossible, to cope with.

1 in 4 adults and 1 in 8 people experience a mental health problem. If you are concerned about a person’s wellbeing, try to stay calm and have a conversation with them.

The signs and symptoms

As an employer you are not responsible for diagnosing mental health problems or expected to be a mental health expert, but you might notice behaviours or signs that an employee is struggling. These might include:

• Tearful or frequently upset
• Avoiding friends or social events
• Not enjoying activities that they enjoyed before
• Unable to carry out normal tasks or handle daily stresses
• Restless
• Changing their eating habits
• Abusing alcohol or drugs
• Angry for prolonged periods of time
• Having paranoid thoughts
• Self-harming
• Talking about suicide

Ideas for supporting inclusion

• Facilitate trust in your working relationship
• Be patient, consistent and resilient, and demonstrate empathy as a lack of understanding can lead to isolation, compounding the problem
• Encourage realistic individual steps to build self-esteem
• Use mind mapping and weekly diary management to set small and long-term goals
• Allow ‘Time Out’ option to self-manage mood and anxiety
• Avoid putting them under the spotlight and allow presentations to smaller teams
• Negotiate deadlines
• Be alert to individual strengths and capitalise on them to build confidence
• Constantly reinforce a positive vision of their future
• Be aware of professional boundaries
• Watch out for destructive behaviours. Low self-esteem can unravel previous development and progress.

Create a safe space for them to open up: This should be somewhere they feel comfortable, and you are unlikely to be distracted.

Listen: Let them know that this time is for them to talk, and you are there for them. Try not to offer solutions right away and ask what they think could help.

Be open: Some people find it difficult to talk about mental health and wellbeing. Being open and gently encouraging conversations helps mental health to become an everyday topic that people are more comfortable to talk about.

Be honest: They may have questions about mental health and wellbeing, and you may not have all of the answers. Be honest about not knowing and agree how you will follow up.

If an employee is in crisis:

• Suicide risk assessment
• Give them The Samaritans number. Call 116 123 24hrs a day.

Encourage the employee to speak to their family or carers, or to a GP, about how they are feeling. You might also signpost them to support in your local area. Inform the employee where possible that you are required to pass any concerns on