Hope Virgo
Author & PR Manager
Shaw Mind Foundation
Why do you feel it is important to discuss mental health problems in the workplace?
1 in 4 people will have a mental health problem but we all have mental health and it is essential that business support their employees. Employers must stop waiting until their employees hit crisis but instead invest in practical steps to support their employees early on.
I developed anorexia when I was 12, and was eventually hospitalised when I was 17 after my heart nearly stopped. A year later I was discharged from hospital, went to university and then began my career. I had to learn to navigate having a career whilst still having a few days when life got on top of me.
In March 2016 I had a relapse, having managed my recovery from anorexia for nine years. The battle in my head had come back and it knocked me for six. Instead of talking about it I began to isolate myself. I shut myself off from the world and ended up being prescribed anti-depressants. The thing was, I didn’t know how to talk about this at work. Yes, I had a few people close to me who knew but the people who could have changed my working life didn’t know. I was ashamed to open up and afraid work would get taken off me. So instead of coming up with some agreement about my working pattern I battled on. The first two weeks of medication involved sleepless nights, empty feelings inside. I was shattered and didn’t know how I was going to keep going. It got easier for me but just a few modest changes at work would make this so much more bearable for people with mental illness and will promote ongoing wellbeing which will benefit the employees and the employer.
Since sharing my story of recovery it has been shocking the amount of people who have come forward to share their stories from work. The way they are treated for having a mental health problem or the fact they feel unable to talk about it.
Employees must get to grips with supporting employees with their mental health.
What advice would you give our readers in supporting colleagues wellbeing?
Everyone has mental health, yes to varying degrees but they all still have them.
It is important that businesses educate their organisation so that there is a non-judgemental understanding of mental health.
Listen when people come to you with a problem and don’t judge them. Just because someone has a mental health problem does not mean they are not able to do their job. It is important that mental health is talked about in an open way to prevent people developing mental illnesses.
Finally, a simple one, look out for each other!
How do you see the role of the HR professional changing over the next year?
HR Professionals need to start taking in to account mental wellbeing of their employees. We cannot longer sit by and wait until people hit a crisis point but there needs to be a focus in preventing the mental health problem developing in the first place. I believe that there is also a place for HR Professionals in normalising conversations around mental health.At HR Vision Event.
Hope will share her harrowing yet completely inspiring story of recovery from anorexia and how she learnt to navigate the workplace living in recovery from a mental health problem. Hope will offer insight in to how we can improve the lives of people with mental health problems in our workplaces, give practical tips on how we can support those around us, and inspire all of us to feel confident that you too can speak out without it impacting your career.
You will leave this session with strategic ideas, practical processes and new ideas on how to support your staff with their wellbeing from day to day ideas to long term plans which can be easily incorporated in to all of your business plans.
