It has been well documented that although mental wellbeing is not the taboo as it was 5 years ago, it is still a subject that many people don’t want to talk about at work. From personal experience and from talking to other people, this is down to a number of factors. Firstly we are fearful of showing weaknesses at work. Secondly we are worried about how it could reflect on our abilities and impact career progression and thirdly we are sometimes unsure of whether it is actually something we should just deal with ourselves. We might say to ourselves ‘what can work do anyway?’
One thing we know for sure is that talking about your mental wellbeing is a key part of the recovery process. But it isn’t always easy and takes a lot of courage to open up. So the question is, how can we get more comfortable with opening up about our mental wellbeing at work?
There isn’t a silver bullet answer to this question and in fact it really does depend on personal circumstances, company culture and our own mental wellbeing conditions. However, there are some useful points to consider that might help.
1.Realise we aren’t alone
According to MIND, 1 in 4 people in England suffer from mental health problems every year. That’s a lot of people. There is a really good chance if we have the courage to open up to colleagues at work about our mental health, we may well find that others follow suit and do the same. Showing your vulnerabilities at work can be daunting at first but being able to show vulnerabilities and be open is an important behaviour to learn. In fact, it is now widely regarded as a key leadership skill to develop. It is worth keeping in mind that opening up is usually greeted with appreciation and support from others and more often than not reciprocal behaviour. If we keep this in mind, it might well help us speak more freely with those we trust at work.
2. Find the right people to speak to
Depending on the culture and environment you work in you will need to decide on who it is best to open up to in the first instance. It might be a trusted work colleague/friend. It might be a caring and empathetic manager or may even be an HR or Wellbeing representative. There is no right and wrong here – it is about who you feel comfortable having an open and honest conversation with.
3.Being clear on what we need
Every organisation is different,, but there is usually a plethora of mental wellbeing support that can be offered. At one end of the spectrum this could include free of charge counselling and medical support from external partners and internal mental first aid advice and guidance. It could also include simple tactics that a manager can put in place for a period of time such as additional time off, reduction in workload and regular one-to-one wellbeing conversations. Spend some time thinking through what your specific needs are and what might be helpful for you.
4. Plan and practice what you might say
With any difficult conversation, it might help your confidence if you think about what you are going to say – particularly your ‘opener’. A simple and straight forward opener could be something such as ‘I have something I’d like your help with’ or ‘Can we talk about something that is really impacting on my work at the moment’. Find an opener that feels right for you and practice it, along with some of the key points you want to get across in the conversation.
5. Breaking down the stigma
The final point that might help make us more comfortable opening up about mental wellbeing at work is remembering that every individual who does, helps to break down the stigma around the subject. We can all play a part in making a real difference by sharing our stories and showing that talking about our experiences isn’t a weakness, it is a remarkable strength.