How to Talk to Your Employer About Your Mental Health

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It was too late when I revealed my general anxiety issue at work. It turned into a weakening depression and I couldn't even write a basic email any longer, much less execute my tough job. My previously outstanding performance had decreased quite markedly, causing me to disclose the facts uncomfortably and finally force me to leave.

In retrospect, a simple accommodation may have avoided all this early on, sparing me significant personal pain and the extra workload of my organization.

What I did not know at that time is that up to 80% of people, whether or not they know it, endure a diagnosable mental health issue throughout their lives. The prevalence of symptoms from C to individual contributors is the same, while over 60% of employees never talked to anybody about their mental health status at work. Many high performers, particularly worried performers like me, have strengths that often stem from these issues. I wasn't almost as alone as I was thinking.

Mental health is a spectrum that, like physical health, we all go back and forth. Most of us bounce between stress, breakdown, and diagnosable illnesses, such as depression or anxiety according to what happens in our lives. While bipolar disorder may feel harder to reveal than burnout, everyone should have a relationship at some level.

This was never more true than in the last 18 months with pandemic pressures, racial trauma, and more. Managers, direct reports, and colleagues are more vulnerable and authentic than ever because of common difficulties to society and the confusion of personal and professional people and remote work. We also had the courage of Simone Biles, Naomi Osaka, Prince Harry, and Meghan Markle. They chose not only to reveal in public their struggles of mental health but also to make difficult decisions that placed their well-being first.

However, the impacts of stigma may still be widespread. My self-stigma told me that my anxiety and depression were weak and I should be ashamed. Social stigma advised me that if I were to confess, I would be judged and professionally. But since in recent years I have widely revealed my condition, none of these things have happened. I have established Mind Share Partners, a not-for-profit organization that focuses on transforming the culture of mental health at work. Here is what we recommend if a mental health condition is being revealed at work.

Comprehension: Self-reflect

First of all, analyze what you are experiencing and how your work performance, your mood, and other things are affected. What is the impact duration? Is it a momentary blip, a longer but episodic issue, or a chronic disease in a few days' time? Think about the causes of your symptoms if they're not usually there. Was it related to work, something in your life, or a macro stressor?

For me, with minimal self-reflection these elements were evident. I started a new work many months earlier with a short team. For the first time in my life, I was unable to do what I requested of me. Besides that, due to my new commute, I had left my anxiety medications and could not see my therapist often. Given all, I should've seen her more regularly. I had gone from being a high-performance, happy coworker to an aloof, far from competent person. It didn't take me much to put everything together. That said, others may have complicated narratives that will benefit from conversations with their families, friends, or therapists.

Determination: Consider context and resources

I wish I had decided to share enough to acquire accommodation straight off the floor, or that my organization had fostered flexibility to prevent me from requiring one. All I needed was authorization from my employer to attend my therapist during the working day, which I found difficult considering my long journey. It would have meant that employees would only be allowed to come late once a week or work from home on Fridays only after their first six months. But I didn't follow this basic accommodation, given my own self-stigma and my false worry of what my manager may think. Sometimes I wonder how things would have turned out if I had linked my need to leave the office as a weekly allergy shot to physical health conditions.

At that time, mental health at work wasn't on anybody's radar. Nobody spoke freely about it or had workouts on how to traverse it. Now, indicators of whether your organization, the HR team, or the mental health manager supports are more likely.

First, analyze the culture of your firm. Did leaders talk about mental health? Does your firm offer mental health training in the workplace? Is there a resource group for mental health employees (ERG)?

Then think about your manager being a safe and supportive person. Have you discussed your own mental health or have you mentioned other personal challenges? This kind of sincerity fosters confidence and can tell. Consider whether your manager has psychologically healthy behaviors, including frequent exercise, sleep, and holidays. This might assist you to determine with whom and how much to communicate.

Then learn about the safeguards and advantages that you have a legal right to as an employee. For example, in the United States, companies with 15 or more employees have to provide reasonable accommodations by law. Resources and legal safeguards differ by region, so verify your local rules if feasible. In this way, if your manager or HR fails, you can argue for yourself.

Finally, consider the resources and support you need, whether it's access to mental health, official accommodation, or something easier. Who is this resource "owns?" It may be HR, your manager, or somebody else. Consider what your sharing goals are.

Preparation: Explore your degree of comfort

How comfortable are you sharing? How much do you have to share in order to attain your goal? If you are close to your manager, this might be as extensive as your diagnosis and history. Or it could be just as minimal as, "I had a pandemic time. Is it all OK if I take off Monday and Tuesday?"

As a new hire, still trying to establish me and frightened of my professional effects, I didn't want to talk about my anxiety diagnosis at the outset. However, I would very probably have achieved my aim of flexible working hours by disclosing considerably less in my therapy appointments.

If you don't talk to your manager comfortably, you could want to talk to HR or another management. It is crucial to have a sense of psychological security with anyone you choose. Note that your Direct Manager is generally expected not to be punitive, but to guarantee consistency among managers and access to the entire range of services to communicate information about employee health effects with HR.

Consider in greater detail what specific tools or solutions you think are most helpful for flexible work. Maybe you want them in your discourse ready to be named. Examples include everything from routine sessions for therapy to more frequent checks to "offline hours" or protected working time.

You will also want to turn to safe input spaces if you're like me. Since when I decided to reveal, I was already in the throes of anxiety and depression, my cognition did not permit me to resolve problems or make decisions like normal. So, alongside my husband, parents, and therapist, I brainstormed it all. Others may seek guidance from a trustworthy coworker, friend, mental health, neurodiversity, or ERG.

Sharing: Start the talk

Once you have agreed to share your story, set up a private time to communicate with each other. Budget more time than you think you're going to need so the chat isn't short. Be transparent about the influence your issues in mental health have on your work. If the cause is relevant to employment, share it as well.

Come with suggestions as far as feasible for how your manager or HR can help you. Have ideas on what adjustments or resources you might find useful. These can be widespread. Examples include: "I am okay now, but it would be useful if I ever need them to know what resources are accessible," and "A discussion on working styles would assist to establish some clarity around our standards and to alleviate stress." This simple sharing habit is frequently all that is necessary for you and your team members to accomplish their best. Always feel free to propose to co-create a solution with your manager and HR ? it is not up to you to answer all the questions.

Just as you expect your manager or HR to have empathy with you, attempt to have empathy for them. While you may have thought very carefully about this, this is probably news for them. You may not be all right in the conversation, but you probably have good intentions. Give them grace and let them spend some time with the next moves. Ensure that you have a follow-up time.

As many of us are coming back to work, I hope that we will not fall back into all of our old patterns of work. I hope that firms and managers will facilitate the disclosure of employees' mental health difficulties and the co-creating of solutions to make them prosper. I hope that we will take the chance to remain vulnerable and real, as recent developments have required. Let's provide a thorough, honest answer to "How are you, rather than answering, "I'm okay?" We are all suffering from something, large or small. We merely have to inform each other.