Every October 10 is recognized as World Mental Health Day. The purpose of this day is to raise awareness about mental health and improve support offered to people who struggle with mental wellness. At Palms Behavioral Health in Harlingen, Texas, we encourage you to learn as much as possible about mental health, so that you can take the best possible care of your own mental health and offer help to people you encounter.
World Mental Health Day 2024
Every year, there is a different theme for World Mental Health Day. In 2024, the theme is “Mental Health at Work.” Work is a way that people:
- Avoid isolation
- Increase independence
- Expand support systems
- Find joy and purpose in life
- Find structure and routine
- Earn the resources required to provide for themselves and their families
The focus of World Mental Health Day this year is on safe, healthy work environments and how they can support mental health by addressing issues that impact mental well-being of workers:
- Stigma
- Inequality
- Discrimination
- Harassment
- Unsupportive colleagues or management
- Excessive workloads and understaffing
- Poor working conditions overall
Ways Work Can Undermine Mental Health
An unhealthy work environment can be detrimental to the well-being of workers:
- People with mental health conditions are often excluded from work they could perform with accommodations
- Unequal treatment to colleagues is a common experience for people with mental illness
- People who struggle with mental illness may lose their jobs for taking time off to address their mental health
- Unemployment, job security, financial struggles, and recent job loss are all risk factors for suicidal thoughts and attempts
How Employers Can Enhance Mental Health in the Workforce
The World Health Organization has recommended that employers:
- Train managers about mental health, including how they should respond to employees in emotional distress, how to build interpersonal skills in their staff, and how to recognize potential job stressors and their effect on mental health.
- Train workers on mental health, in order to reduce stigma and improve understanding.
- Provide opportunities for fun physical activities and stress management techniques, both of which reduce mental health symptoms.
- Giving workers the opportunity to provide input regarding company policies that impact them.
- Provide reasonable accommodations as available, such as:
- Flexible working hours
- Added time for task completion
- Modified assignments
- Time off for appointments
- Phased re-entry to work for employees who are off work to receive clinical care
How You Can Support Mental Health
If you have a friend, colleague or family member who is struggling with their mental health, you may sometimes wonder what else you can do to help them. There are several steps you can take to be an ally for people with mental illness:
- Learn about mental health conditions:
- Take a class like Mental Health First Aid or NAMI Family-to-Family
- Read books on mental health
- Ask the person how their condition impacts them
- Attend a support group by and for people who care about someone with a mental illness
- Separate the condition from the person – recognize that when someone is in the midst of a mental health struggle, they may engage in behavior that is out of character and even out of their control. They are not “trying to be difficult,” even if it is difficult to navigate this situation with them.
- Take care of yourself – take breaks, get enough rest, find a therapist you can talk to, or do whatever else you need to ensure that you stay well. You cannot be the best support for your loved one if you’re struggling too.
- Encourage them to follow their treatment plan – this can be tricky, especially if the person you care about has been prevented from making decisions about their care. Ask the person directly what support you can offer to help them stay on track with their treatment. While some people may welcome medication or appointment reminders, other people might prefer to just know you’re available to talk to about barriers that may come up.
- Listen – Your loved one may not feel like anyone is hearing them. Although they may say things that hurt your feelings or that you don’t relate to, try to hear the emotion behind their words and connect to their feelings, rather than focusing too heavily on the exact statements they make.
- Include them – After they have had time to recover from acute episodes, help them return to normal life. Feeling left out and isolated from other people is universally bad for mental well-being. Whether it’s household tasks or leisure time, include people with mental health concerns, so that they feel like they belong and they are contributing.
- Ensure they have adequate support – caregiver burnout is real and takes a toll on the person with a mental health condition and their support people. Ensure that the person you care about has lots of support people who can create a strong network for them. This may include friends, family members, a therapist, a peer-led support group, a faith community, and more.
At Palms Behavioral Health, we offer inpatient and outpatient care for adolescents, adults, and seniors who are facing mental and behavioral health challenges. We also engage their support systems in their care whenever it is appropriate to do so.
