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Suffering in Silence 

Mental Health Awareness 

It seems that everywhere you turn there’s more bad news. Between layoffs, changing political landscapes and economic downturn, it’s difficult to find the positives. Over the years post COVID, companies have made it a point to highlight mental health in the workplace. While this is a step in the right direction, I can’t help but wonder if companies are acknowledging their role in the need for mental health programs. 

 Most of us spend 8 hours or more working. or some of us, that’s more time than we spend with our family (factor in sleep and other commitments, so it’s important to acknowledge the impact that work can have on your mental health, both inside and outside of work.

A few years ago I was one of the millions of people who suffered in silence. I’ve always been a high performer, and I grew up with family members who suffered from mental health issues such as anxiety, depression and ADHD, just to name a few, so I knew for sure I could spot all of the signs, at least I thought I could. Everything was going well, I was exceling in my position. I had gotten several company awards, a raise and a promotion. But I always felt on edge. I had just started practicing meditation to try to help with my growing anxiousness, but that wasn’t enough, so I made the decision to seek out a therapist. It was during one of my therapy appoinments that we began to explore what might be causing me to feel on edge. I thought I. knew what was going on, because I was dealing with a lot personally. My father was battling stage 4 prostate cancer, and I was one thousand miles away, and while yes, that was a part of it, that was not the main culprit. We explored many things and found that my job was a big part of my anxiety.  I explained to her that I was working 10 hours a day, often into the evening and felt burnt out. On top of that, I had a very demanding boss who would often text, email and Teams messages (all within minutes a part). I managed a large client portfolio spanning across the U.S. Which  meant occasionally I needed to be available after hours.My therapist said “it sounds like you have an issue setting boundaries.” It was then that I began to explore boundaries and take steps to set them. 

I wish my story were unique to me, but sadly it’s not. According to the World Health Organization 12 billion working days are lost annually due to depression and anxiety. That is equivalent to US$ 1 trillion per year in lost productivity. Knowing how mental health disorders such as Depression and Anxiety effect productivity, and costs companies money, it makes sense why more companies are including mental health resources in their compensation packages.

Even with Employee Assistance Programs (EAP), Telehealth, In house therapist, and company paid therapy sessions; it still seems that employees are suffering in silence. In order to understand why, we need to look at how our work environments contribute to our mental health because lets face it, we can work to control and manage the personal life stressors, but work stressors can be much more difficult to manage, control and identify.

The best way to manage your mental health at work is to know how to spot early signs that you may need to recalibrate. 

Recognizing Stress and Burnout 

Burnout are the body’s natural response to prolonged stress; and stress comes from things or scenarios in which we feel we lack control over. This makes it easier for the work environment to negatively impact your mental health. Here are some things to look out for.  

What are some causes of burnout?

Identifying burnout can be a little tricky, especially when you’re in a high stress moment. Here are a few ways to tell if you’re burnout or on your way to experiencing burnout.