What is Mental and Emotional Health?
Mental health is also sometimes referred to as ‘emotional health’ or ‘well-being’ and it’s just as important as being physically healthy.
If you have good mental health, you can:
▪ Fulfil your potential
▪ Cope with the demands and distractions of life
▪ Play a positive role in your family, workplace, community and amongst friends.
How Does it Affect People?
Most mental health and emotional problems fall under the traditional term ‘Neurotic.’ These symptoms are severe forms of ‘normal’ emotional experiences such as depression, anxiety or panic. Conditions formerly referred to as ‘neuroses’ are now more frequently called ‘common mental health problems.’ The methodologies used by People Building practitioners are very effective at reducing the symptoms of or, very often, completely resolving these types of conditions.
Employers have a responsibility to support employees with mental and emotional problems in the workplace. Having appropriate provisions in place can help to increase productivity as your team feel better supported. You will be able to reduce stress-related illness in the workplace and the cost of sick leave associated with that. There will also be a better retention rate of existing staff as they are better able to cope with the challenge of balancing their work and personal lives.
Here are a few common problems that can affect our mental health; behaviours that might occur because of mental or emotional problems and conditions which can cause mental and emotional problems to worse
WHY SHOULD WE BE CONCERNED ABOUT IT?
The estimated annual cost of absenteeism, presenteeism (attending work whilst ill and underperforming) and labour turnover have increased by 20%since 2019 reaching an estimated annual turnover of £53-56 billion in 2020-2021. The high cost relates to staff turnover with more people leaving their jobs or intending to in the next12 months due to mental health and well-being reasons.
- Mental health problems are now the leading cause of sickness absence in the workplace.
- Mental health and behavioural problems (e.g Depression, Anxiety and Drug use) are reported to be the primary drivers of disability and disease worldwide.
- The average return for employers from measures such as screening training, promoting and targeted interventions or personal therapy is £5.30 for every £1 invested.
- It is estimated that 1 in 6 people in the past week experienced a common mental health problem.
About our programme
We offer one to one bespoke coaching sessions and personal development opportunities to suit the needs of your team. This ensures you are being proactive and reactive as an employer.
One to one sessions (reactive support)
Usually, someone will attend approximately 5 coaching sessions and return for ‘top-up’ sessions if and when required.
The methodologies we use come from a combination of different psychological interventions. As well as aspects of Coaching, Counselling, CBT, Hypnotherapy and Mindfulness our practitioners are predominantly trained in NLP (neuro-linguistic programming).
NLP is a newer form of psychotherapy that can be used to teach strategies that effectively help a person manage their thinking patterns and emotions. It is particularly useful for improving communication skills and creating successful behaviours.
The techniques we use are effective at helping people bypass the limiting beliefs, thought patterns and personal, emotional baggage that holds them back from being as productive and committed as they could be.
When people have mental and emotional challenges that go untreated, they are more prone to sickness, undesirable behaviours and more severe mental health problems.
Burnout is characterised by emotional exhaustion, cynicism, ineffectiveness in the workplace, and by negative responses to stressful workplace conditions.
Burnout is more likely to occur when employees:
• Expect too much of themselves.
• Never feel that their work is good enough.
• Feel inadequate or incompetent.
• Feel unappreciated for their work efforts.
• Feel high demands placed upon them.
• Are in roles that are not a good job fit.
Because it can be chronic in nature, affecting both the health and performance of employees at all levels of organisations, prevention strategies are considered the most effective approach for addressing workplace burnout. This prevention tactic carries significant financial benefits for the company by reducing sickness levels and improving staff retention levels.
Training (reactive support)
When you are part of the People Building programme, we offer discounted bespoke training sessions to meet the needs of your team. These may include topics such as:
• Rapport building & communication skills
• State management in stressful environments
• Conflict resolution
• Presentations skills
• Overcoming failure mindsets
• Reframing negative outcomes
Evidence of success
It’s as important to us as it is to you, that we demonstrate that our work is having a significant and meaningful impact upon your employee’s state of mind and productivity and that you are guided appropriately in how best to support them in the future.
That’s why we evaluate the work that we do using a 14 item scale that generates original, ordinal data to determine the levels of anxiety and depression a person is feeling prior to and after experiencing our coaching. Alongside our qualitative reporting, we are able to explain how the positive changes occurred or reasons why they didn’t,
for example when we need to make a referral to a more
specialised service.
Using the HADS scale (a unidimensional measure of psychological distress), it is possible to identify when anxiety and depression cause a person to experience physical health problems that may result in them taking time off of work with sickness.
With permission from employees, we can share data about the changes and improvements they are making in order to keep you in the loop.
Our evidence is summarised in a report which contains practical advice and solutions to help inspire and empower your workforce. This is a valuable tool for team leaders and managers who can then take the necessary steps or make reasonable adjustments that will re-engage your employees at their full potential.
We can also conduct personality profiling exercises to establish if employees are well placed in their current roles and what might suit them better.
Making proactive efforts to address the obstacles employees face will help to safeguard their reliability, resilience and commitment to your organisation. Coupled with your own HR teams and internal training programmes, you will be able to ensure that you are doing everything possible to motivate your staff to perform to their highest standards.
Mental health in the workplace
Case Study
SJ, a 26-year-old female, attended a consultation session on 30.06.2020 following a recommendation from a work colleague. She has been struggling with negative thoughts that caused her to feel anxious and depressed. Her mood fluctuated between “being on top of the world to struggling to get out of bed.” She had previously been medicated at the suggestion of her GP but had felt this was not the right option for her.
Good days lead to panic about whether they could be sustained, and she would then experience an emotional ‘crash’. Tiny things could make her day go wrong. She avoided social situations and felt her confidence had gone. She described herself as “a shell”.
She had consistent thoughts about what could go wrong in life. She often worried about what others would think of her and because of this was becoming increasingly more isolated.
She lacked motivation and felt unable to communicate what she wanted in life. This pattern had existed since she had been in secondary school. She felt that if it continued she would hold her partner back too.
SJ explained that there had been ‘something’ in childhood that only her parents knew about. Presently, her father is unwell and her time is split between work and home life (living with her parents). She plays computer games but found it difficult to define any more about her personality stating she didn’t know who she is now, only who she used to be.
Initial Data
The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) is a frequently used self-rating scale developed to assess psychological distress in non-psychiatric patients. It consists of two subscales, Anxiety and Depression.
A score of 7 and below constitutes a normal score. A score of 8 – 10 is a borderline abnormal score.
A score of 11 – 21 is an abnormal score
SJ scored 17 for depression and 16 for anxiety, meaning, she had abnormally high anxiety and depression.
Sessions
SJ attended 5 x 1-hour sessions with a People Building practitioner. Cognitive strategies from NLP (neuro-linguistic programming) were shared with SJ to help her to identify and challenge unwanted thoughts. She learned communication techniques and how to manage her emotions.
SJ was offered the opportunity to address the childhood trauma she had eluded to during her consultation. By session 4 she was ready to do so. At no point was SJ instructed to tell the practitioner what the trauma was. This was not required for the intervention to work. However, as SJ’s confidence grew she found herself more able to speak about what had happened and did so without prompting.
In the final, session SJ said she had pushed herself since the last session. She went on a long journey by herself to visit her partner. They went to a pub and she was not at all anxious. Her boyfriend had joked “What have you done with my girlfriend?!” as he was not used to seeing her being sociable.
She reported that the sessions had helped her to see that she didn’t need to be ashamed of herself and her doubts had receded. Her mother had remarked that she was calmer and had become better at making decisions. She is taking things to heart much less and seeking others approval less too.
She has found a better balance between home and work, is dealing with challenging situations better and having fewer arguments. She felt that before she was snappy and “a bit of a mess”, but now she can step back and take a breath before responding.
She no longer defaults to saying “I don’t know” when under pressure and instead says “Give me a second.”
Moving forward, SJ said she would remember that ‘down days’ are normal but to not overly focus on them when they happen. She has already had a few tough moments but didn’t let them ruin her day.
She feels more positive and capable. She now believes that communication is key and that opening up made her believe in herself.
SJ’s closing remarks about the sessions were “I have really benefitted. You’ve done brilliantly with me.”
HADS Before sessions
HADS After sessions
Depression
17
6
Anxiety
16
8
Included in our programme
One to one sessions and workshops are ideal for addressing mental health issues as and when they show up in your team. However, as is often the case in healthcare, prevention is better than cure.
Our goal is to take ‘managing mental health issues’ out of your day as an employer. Just as you may have an accountant or an HR team who are experts in supporting you in specific areas of your business, we will address the mental and emotional health needs of your employees.
Monthly Online Webinars (proactive support)
Our monthly webinars cover a variety of common mental health topics to offer your staff strategies to deal with the challenges more effectively and with greater levels of resilience. Examples of topics covered include:
• Overcoming anxiety
• Communication skills & Assertiveness • Managing stress
The monthly webinars are energised and interactive, with opportunities to get anonymously posted questions answered. They will always give you food for thought and new ways of dealing with old problems. If you can’t make it to the live session you can catch up on the recording in the secure online portal later.
Our programmes and resources have had over 500,000 downloads worldwide and our online forum received a Hertfordshire business award in 2016 for online innovation.
Our webinars allow employees to access help without committing to ‘therapy’. Instead, they are exposed to realistic reframes and simple thought strategies by listening in to help them cope better with challenging situations in the future.
When a member of staff is ready to address their issues in a focused and personalised session, they will feel more comfortable and inclined to do so having built trust and rapport with the content of the webinars.
Monitoring & Measuring
We have a portfolio of scientific measures that are used in the workplace to give leaders and managers a greater awareness of the mental health climate of their organisation. This data can be used to guide and inform training requirements or cultural changes required within organisations. We recommend bi-monthly – quarterly monitoring.
One to One sessions
Training | Coaching | Products
BUILDING BETTER PEOPLE
People Building will provide you with free consultation sessions, up to one per month per employee, to be booked at any time for initial assessment and a talk-through of a mental health- related problem.
Consultation bookings are offered as soon as one is available and usually within 2 days. Personal service is guaranteed with a commitment to your Company at all times. Your allocated practitioner, will be available to deliver any ongoing sessions as required. We will also undertake to ensure that session progress is tracked using evaluations and psychological scales. When we receive consent from the employee to do so, we will share this information with employers.
Beyond a consultation, if an employee wishes to attend further sessions to address the issues identified, these are at a fixed session fee of £80 per 1-hour session with our licenced practitioners or £200 per 1-hour session with the company director. The average number of sessions attended per employee is 5 but this can vary depending on the severity of the issue and the motivation of the individual. We will seek your permission for ‘paid-for’ sessions to commence from our point of contact in your Company, before confirming with the employee that sessions will begin and are being funded. We will endeavour to give an accurate prediction of the number of sessions required.
You may choose to only fund the first couple of sessions or to make a percentage contribution. This is completely flexible and entirely up to you.
Retainer Agreement
This includes
• Free consultations for every employee
• Monthly webinars (and a secure online portal to access recordings) • Company-wide measures and monitoring as required
1 – 10 employees £125
11 – 20 employees £175
21 – 30 employees £235
31 – 50 employees £315
50+ employees £425
(Excludes vat, minimum term 12 months.)
All of our practitioners have professional, public and malpractice liability of £5,000,000, are registered with the ICO for data protection and have an enhanced DBS check.
Bespoke training programmes are usually 3-4 hours and individual quotes are available based on the number of delegates. Prices start from £450.
spotting the warning signs
How many of the challenges below are present in your organisation?
Employees with stress
Employees with anxiety
Employees with depression
Employees with long term sickness
Employees with reoccurring sick leave
Employees with lack of motivation
Employees with low mood
Employees who are falling behind in their work
Bullying
Lateness
Employees with concentration issues
Employees taking too long to perform tasks
Employees with poor relationships with other colleagues
Employees with low levels of patience
Employees with frustration or anger
Employees who are withdrawn
Employees who avoid speaking up/taking the lead
Employees who avoid avoiding asking for help
Employees with unpredictable behaviours or emotions
Employees with poor communication skills
Employees who demonstrate a lack of sensitivity
Employees who seem to be isolated
Employees who are ineffective at planning
Employees with a frantic or negative attitude
Staff retention challenges
Score / 25
References
1Deloitte (2022) Mental health and employers The case for investment – pandemic and beyond.
pp. 8-10
2Vos, T., et al. (2013) Global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability for 301 acute and chronic diseases and injuries in 188 countries, 1990–2013: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study. The Lancet. 386 (9995). pp. 743-800.
3Lozano, R. et al. (2012) Global and regional mortality from 235 causes of death for 20 age groups in 1990 and 2010. a systematic analysis for the global burden of disease study 2010. The Lancet. 380(9859), pp. 2095–2128.
4Whiteford, H. A. et al. (2013) Global burden of disease attributable to mental and substance use disorders: findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010. The Lancet. 382 (9904). pp. 1575-1586.
5McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. (eds.) (2016) Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014. Leeds: NHS Digital. Available at: http:// content.digital.nhs.uk/catalogue/PUB21748/apms-2014-full-rpt.pdf [Accessed 5 October 2016]