Mental Health at Work

October 10th marks World Mental Health Day. This year’s theme is “Mental Health at Work” as created by the World Health Organization. Upon reflection, here are some ideas worth promoting.

Mental health matters at work

When we think about work in general it could include paid (or volunteer employment). Sometimes work is visible and other times it is not. The formal economy is what I will focus on in this post, however it is worth noting that many individuals survive in the informal economy out of necessity due to barriers faced within their daily lives as well as the social determinants of health.

Workplaces are often where we spend a significant amount of time, sometimes up to 12 hours per day if you work shift work. They can greatly influence your mental health, even if you are not attached to them (layoff, quit, getting fired, taking time off, on a leave of absence, maternity/paternity, sickness, etc). Accessing support during overwhelming or stressful times does not always need to involve a crisis. Our daily interactions at work can, over time, create the conditions of work. Depending on your workplace conditions, type of employment, quality of work and control at work, you might consider your workplace stress on a continuum of stress.

Stress influences our bodies

The biopsychosocial model includes examining precipitating, predisposing, perpetuating and protective factors of health beyond a purely medical model. If you look at work and its conditions, one could experience workplace risks which contribute to stress and the body’s overall capacity to regulate the biological, social and psychological processes to achieve homeostasis. Our bodies are trying to regulate ourselves constantly via sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. When we experience stress it might be compared to revving an engine, preparing our bodies for potential movement/change/decision making. Is the body-mind-connection experiencing too much stress, not enough or having difficulty regulating itself?

Mindfulness & space for reflection

When you are stressed to the point of getting overwhelmed what helps you? Perhaps, recognizing when your body is signalling this change is the first step. However, what happens when your body misses cues or pushes past the point of no return and becomes desensitized to stress. A cascading effect and requiring further stimulation could become worrisome especially if underlying mental health is not adequately addressed, for example in the context of addictions. Addictions are excess cycles of responding to demands for homeostasis that have become unbalanced and require reflection. Are your addictions being rationalized or minimized? If you do not have any, then is your life’s domains adequately being addressed (for example, physical, social, psychological, spiritual, etc).

Preparing our systems

When the body has undergone a push past its limits, it needs to rest. Rest can come in the form of a ‘tune up’ and adjustment to slowing down and decreasing the stimulation that was built up and came to depend upon for so long. If you are always on “go” mode, then slowing down might feel very abnormal even for some. However, what you are trying to do, might be to run away from the self, the very object that requires acceptance and nurturing. When we are constantly responding to external demands, people, places and job responsibilities, our bodies are taking the hit. If you are aware that your system needs a ‘tune up’, what are you going to do to support that process?

Today’s workplaces

Many workplaces today are toxic. They don’t intend to be, however due to the demands by capitalistic societies that are always justifying why money should be spent and expecting progress updates on that investment, it is part of the game of life. However, humans are not robots nor should we treat our bodies like machines in a dehumanizing way. Labour and especially the invisible labour of work that has traditionally been gendered as “women’s work”, has now been deemed essential in many ways during the COVID era. Work involving care that often has gone under appreciated and devalued, came to the forefront when the healthcare system collapsed and society to some extent was hanging on by a thread. At one point, specific labour groups begun to show great upset at their access to work being impeded upon. This is because having access to work and the implications of not having opportunities to work, can negatively impact one psychologically.

Work today involves teams of people

Even if you work from home, you will work in a team at some point in your life. Having worked in many different types of teams over my career, (and into the future) I can safely say that they are indeed their own beast. Teams within the healthcare sector can involve public-private partnerships as well as inter-sectoral collaborations. Teams - especially ones that can integrate the social determinants of health, value for money as well as social justice principles are the ones that will be the healthiest and most valuable for society I would argue.

As our healthcare system evolves and the workplace demands continue, prioritizing mental health will also change. It is not enough today to have Employee Assistance Programs that respond after the fact to crisis. Upstream mental health promotion programs need to be built into workplaces as part of reducing risk to employee health. Recognizing risk to employee health should also incorporate evaluations of workplace mental health indicators and how employers are addressing evidence-based operations as well as accessibility for all. Social Workers can help to lead this process as they are aware of the importance of the social determinants of health and its impact on groups including those trained in the mental health field. We need to adapt the workplace for health and not at the expense of our incomes or bodies.

Ask yourself the following questions before you are applying for jobs:

*why do I want to work here?

*what are the most valuable parts of my work experiences to date? What are the least valuable parts?

*What parts of my day has/would excite me or do I look forward to the most? Why? The least? Why?

*Do I think I am being fairly compensated (if applicable)? If not, whom is the best person to speak to about the company compensation processes?

*Do I need to increase my skill set in order to expand what I can offer? Are my skills being fully utilized?

*Do I have a voice at work when it comes to aspects of my role that impact me the most?

If your workplace poses any risks to your health, it is very important that the you feel empowered to speak to someone who will genuinely listen to those concerns. All workplaces should be places where our mental health is supported. We have a lot of work to do to improve working conditions and reduce risks to employees, however having frank discussions about ways to improve our mental health at work is a start.