Mental Health in the Workplace

Did you know that more than 50% of people in the United States will be diagnosed with a mental illness at some point in their lives? There are many types of mental illnesses and some are more common than others. The problem with mental illnesses is that they don't have cures and some of them are very hard to treat. 

Mental health in the workplace can be especially hard to deal with. You might have to focus on your work but instead, find that the symptoms of your mental illness are distracting you. But what can you do about mental disorders in the workplace?

What can be done to increase employee happiness or job depression? Keep reading and learn more about mental illness in the workplace below.

What You Need to Know About Mental Health

Mental health is not a static concept. Your mental health might be in great shape for many years. But then something might happen that ruins your mental health. 

It might then be difficult to function as you did before. Some people might develop mental illnesses later in life. Others may find helpful treatments for their symptoms. 

Mental health is a very fluid thing that changes throughout a person's life. A constant factor in most people's lives is work. You might work in an office, a school, or elsewhere. 

The point is that you have to go to work every day and do a specific job. This is not a problem for most people. They focus on the task at hand and do it. 

They can then go home and relax at the end of the day. They might not think much about their job or their tasks at work. But this is a more difficult process for people with mental health issues. 

Depression and anxiety are two of the most common mental health issues in the United States. Suppose that a person suffers from depression. Symptoms of depression include feelings of fatigue, worthlessness, hopelessness, and more. 

Severe depression can make it difficult to get out of bed or perform basic tasks like taking a shower. Mild depression allows a person to be more functional. They may shower, go to work, interact with their coworkers, and so on. 

But this does not mean that their depression doesn't affect them. They may feel distracted or slow while at work. Their depression may keep them from being motivated.

It may also harm a person's interactions and relationships with others.

Different Mental Illnesses

A person's depression may get so bad that they aren't able to perform well at work. They may know they have an important task in front of them. 

But they may be unable to do it. Their depression may make them too tired or make them feel too worthless to do a task. They instead give up and risk their job performance. 

Certain jobs may make a person's depression worse. If their boss yells at them or if they have a big task ahead of them, they may spiral deeper into their depression. This may compel them to stay home instead of going to work. 

This may also lead to being terminated from their role if their performance drops low enough. Statistics show that those with depression are more likely to be unemployed. Similar problems can be seen with other mental health problems. 

Consider anxiety and ADHD. These are two very common mental illnesses. ADHD is characterized by an inability to focus or sit still. 

People with ADHD may also be talkative or not have the motivation to focus on a single task. They may pick up many tasks at once and not finish any of them. This can ruin a person's job performance. 

It can also make it difficult to complete basic work tasks as they're supposed to. They may get distracted by their coworkers, a text, and so on. Anxiety is similar. 

Anxious people may focus on a thought so intensely that they can't think about anything else. This is known as overthinking. Their coworker may have said something ordinary to them, but an anxious person may overanalyze what they said for hours. 

This can also make it difficult to focus on their work.

Symptoms of Anxiety

Anxious people may also be more likely to have panic attacks at work. A panic attack is an acute experience of anxiety. 

They are characterized by heart palpitations, hyperventilation, and a feeling of panic or doom. Panic attacks can happen if a person feels overwhelmed at work. They may be assigned a big project that they aren't confident they can do. 

Instead of staying calm and trying to figure it out, they may panic instead. This can also ruin their performance. Knowing that their anxiety may ruin their performance may cause the person to panic more. 

Anxiety is a never-ending spiral that is hard to treat. There are also different types of anxiety. Generalized anxiety disorder is a common type. 

It is characterized by constant anxiety. The anxiety might not be caused by anything in particular. The person with this condition may be anxious about everything around them.

They may think that the things around them are more frightening or threatening than they are.

The Details

Social anxiety disorder is another common variant. This is a more specific type where it is difficult for a person to interact with others. 

This is a very hard mental illness to have in a work environment. This is because most work environments require a person to talk and interact with others. It may be necessary to share ideas with your coworkers or work as a team. 

A person with social anxiety may dread this. They may try anything to avoid talking to others. Talking to others may also lead to a panic attack if their anxiety is severe enough. 

This can make it difficult for them to work in such an environment. There are also more intense mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and more. These also make it difficult to work in a normal workplace. 

But some people without mental illnesses can suffer from bad mental health in the workplace too. You might be mentally healthy before you start your new job. But once you enter the workplace, you may find that you are always stressed and frustrated. 

You may be overworked and unhappy with your boss. You may dislike your tasks at work and may even dread them. These constant feelings can have a very negative toll on your mental health. 

They may make you depressed or anxious. Some people are so unhappy with their jobs that they may become more isolated or quiet. But what can be done to help improve mental health at work?

Mental Health in the Workplace

Many companies are starting to realize that mental health in the workplace is very important. This is why many companies have started to take action and make their workplaces more positive environments. This is important because a negative work environment will have a negative impact on all its employees.

High levels of negativity and depression will reduce a business's work efficiency. A good way to improve the workplace is by having more open communication. Programs to support those with mental health problems are important too.

Some companies have offered mental health assessments for their employees. This can help employees determine whether they might have a mental health issue that they don't know about. Diagnosing such an issue is important. 

This is because a diagnosis might explain why a person behaves in a certain way or has a hard time completing tasks. Some companies may also offer free mental health screenings. This allows a person to get an official diagnosis instead of a self-assessment.

The person can then get a referral to a mental health professional if they feel that they need one. Talking with a professional therapist is a great way for people to manage the symptoms of their mental illness. A therapist can teach a person new ways to cope and new ways to view the world.

A person can also learn how to focus and how to complete tasks more efficiently without getting distracted. All this may increase a person's work performance. Many companies are also working to reduce job depression. 

Many people can't stand their jobs. They may hate going to work and dread every second they're at work. They can't wait to get home and relax. 

But this is not a great way to promote mental health in the workplace. If many workers are unhappy, the company should do something to fix the problem. This is because unhappy workers may not reach their maximum potential. 

They may also quit in favor of a more favorable job. Many companies have come up with many different solutions to this problem. Some companies have solved this problem by giving their employees more time off. 

This is important if the employees are overworked. Overworked employees will become stressed, unhappy, and sluggish. They may be more likely to make mistakes as well.

But giving them more time off will help them relax and gather themselves. Some companies allow their employees to work four instead of five days a week. This gives them more time to rest at home, interact with loved ones, and improve their skills.

Some workplaces also have seminars that address mental health issues. These are brief talks that go over the symptoms of common disorders like depression and anxiety. These seminars often focus on how to manage these symptoms if they start to get too intense. 

Mindfulness and breathing exercises are two common management options. Breathing exercises are especially important for soothing anxiety and panic attacks. A person having a panic attack may start breathing quickly and vertically. 

But taking slow deep breaths can calm a person down and prevent an all-out panic attack. Breathing techniques can also help soothe a person's anger. A person might get angry at their boss or coworker. 

Instead of holding it in or taking it out on others, breathing techniques can help a person calm down and expel that anger. Some workplaces also have a room dedicated to breaks. 

Employees can go to the room and relax when they need to collect themselves. Employees might also mingle with each other when they are on their lunch break. Talking with others can help people unwind and forget about their stresses.

It is also important that employees have the opportunity to speak up about certain factors in the workplace. Suppose that there is a problem in the workplace that could easily be fixed to boost positivity in the work environment. Employers need to hear what options their workers have available. 

It might then be possible to fix that problem and make the employees much happier. But a company that ignores its employees will never have happy employees. The workers might instead quit and go to a more supportive and positive job. 

Learning self-management techniques is important for keeping yourself calm at work too. This will keep you from spiraling into depression or anxiety. All these techniques can help keep a person's mental health in good shape while at work.

All About Mental Health in the Workplace

Mental health in the workplace is important for work efficiency. People with ADHD or depression might get distracted and not get their jobs done. A negative work environment can also have a bad effect on people's mental health. 

This is why it is important to prioritize mental wellness while at work. To learn more about career resources, check out what we offer.