Those of you who are relatively new followers may not be aware that I originally set out to share my story of depression, in the hope that it might encourage others to recognise that if they were suffering too, then they weren’t alone. I have veered away from the mental health theme since then, but it is never far from my mind and you will have seen occasional posts from me on it. One of the constants for me has been to mark World Mental Health Day (WMHD), which takes place each year on 10th October – i.e. today. This is my tenth offering for this, and the seventh in successive years: the message is too important to be overlooked. I’m resharing some of what I wrote for this last year, on the ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it’ principle – sadly, the reminder is still very much needed, and I am adding in some updates.

So, what is WMHD about? It was initiated in 1992 by the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) and is given a theme each year. This year, the WFMH is running with “It is time to prioritise mental health in the workplace.” Their website tells you more, on their detailed page. Mental health has, in this country at least, always been the Cinderella of the health service: a relatively underfunded part of a service which successive governments have done their best to cut back. Since the pandemic hit us in 2020 that gap has, I think, widened. The understandable need to divert resources to treating the victims of COVID and all that goes with it has stretched funds even more than they were before. The underlying problem is that physical illnesses are easier to recognise and treat, whereas mental illness is somehow hidden from view.

Here in the UK the main campaign lead is taken by the Mental Health Foundation (MHF). Again, their website has a wealth of good information and resources to support the message, and I recommend you take a look if you’re interested. As they say:

They then give some frightening stats: 15% of UK workers are estimated to have an existing mental health condition, 875,000 workers suffered from work-related stress, depression and anxiety in 2022/23, making this the fifth most common reason for sickness absence in 2022. I’m assuming that 2023 figures aren’t available, but somehow I doubt that they would show any improvement on those stats.

Addressing this year’s theme they ask ‘what is a mentally healthy workplace?’ Their headline answer is

“There are many things that contribute to a mentally healthy workplace, from providing staff training on mental health to tackling discrimination and bullying. Importantly, a mentally healthy workplace supports open conversations about mental health.  

While talking about mental health in the workplace has become more common, many people still face stigma when it comes to severe mental health problems.  This means there’s more work to be done to tackle mental health stigma in the workplace.” 

They go on to give further details, and links to some of their resources. In particular they have a guide on how to support mental health in the workplace, which you can download from their page. It is a helpful document, and gives some useful advice. They pose the question of how we can look after our mental health, and say that we can all take steps to improve ours and build our resilience by learning self care: a skill that needs to be practised. As they say, this isn’t easy especially if we feel anxious, depressed or low in self-esteem, but you’ll find more about this on their website.

The most difficult part can be accepting that we – or someone we know – are in need of help. From my own experience I can look back on a period of around six months before I took the first step, and it resulted in my being off work for over nine months. We can’t change the past, but I do wonder how much shorter that period might have been if I had taken that first step sooner. The MHF has tips on how to talk about your own mental health or to open a conversation with someone you think might be struggling – these would have been very helpful for me and I encourage you to look at them if you think you or they might need help.

In previous years the MHF and other organisations have shared videos to support the WMHD message, but there don’t seem to be many this year. However, I did find one that the MHF made for the Royal Mail Group back in 2016, which I think is a very good introduction to the issues, so I’m sharing it with you. It’s only five minutes long, so it won’t take much out of your day – a small price to pay for something which might have a big impact for you or someone you know:

I’m very aware that I am concentrating on the UK – that is where I have always lived, so that is to be expected! But I know that there are similar organisations and resources in many countries around the world. so if you feel the need to find out more where you are a quick Google search for WMHD should give you some useful results.

Our mental health is precious, and we shouldn’t underestimate its importance for us – my own experience tells me that. We shouldn’t need to have a special day to be reminded of this but, sadly, I think we do, so please take a little time to consider this. If you need help, it is there if you look for it: just take that first step and ask. It may not be easy, but it is so worth it!