Accessing Mental Health Support in the Workplace

Did you know that work-related stress, depression or anxiety accounts for 44% of work-related ill health? Ashley, who accessed TALKWORKS’ services for support, has shared with us how having a supportive Manager in the workplace has made a real difference to mental health and wellbeing. In passage below, he discusses the difficulties he has experienced, and the support that he has received from work since opening up about what he has been going through:

“I was offered an interview with Victory Digital Marketing, and my boss and co-worker were really understanding when I opened up about my struggles with mental health. Just over a week later, I had a phone call from my new boss to offer me a position at the new marketing agency. I was ecstatic. I had told them everything about what had happened to me in the interview, and I was still given a chance to prove my capabilities. If you’ve ever suffered from any mental health problems, low confidence, or self-esteem issues, you will know that being given a chance to prove yourself is an incredibly huge deal.

Ever since I started my career at the agency, I have had nothing but support. On the days when I’ve struggled on a personal level, I asked my boss if I could work from home. He didn’t even question it - he told me “Of course, you can. Your health is more important”. It was at that point, that I knew that I had an employer who understood.

Ever since then, I have felt so much better in myself, in my life, and everything else too. It’s so important to look after yourself and put your health and wellbeing first.”

It’s important to remember that if you are struggling with any element of your wellbeing in the workplace, that opening up to someone you trust can make such a difference. This may be a colleague you are close with, a Manager that you feel comfortable opening up to, or an external service like TALKWORKS.

Here at TALKWORKS, we work closely with a number of services that provide advice, information and support for work-related stress and managing sickness. We can offer treatment and support to help you manage your workload, and any anxiety you are experiencing around this, to help you feel more like yourself again. We also have Employment Support Coordinators (ESC) who sit within our clinical teams, providing employment information, support and guidance to people who are engaging with TALKWORKS. With the consent of your employer, our ESCs can also attend meetings with you and your employer, and provide independent and impartial advice to both parties.

If you are finding things hard and would like to find out more about the support that that TALKWORKS can offer, you can self-refer to our service either online through our website, or by calling 0300 555 3344. As part of the NHS, all of our services are available free of charge to anyone living in Devon, over the age of 18.