As it is mental health awareness week, I thought I'd shed some light on how to be aware of mental health issues when it's hidden in plain sight. I hope I can give a 'behind the scenes’ view of this as someone that masked their way through years of life.
The first thing I would say is don't take everything at face value, people that know me would say I had a 'big personality' one of the main mistakes I feel people make is associating mental health issues with introverted behaviours, its why you often hear individuals shocked when a celebrity with a large personality has MH issues or even worse suicide, what is projected might be totally opposite to what's being felt.
If your colleague is late to work / meetings, isn't finishing things on time or generally underperforming, reach out before dishing out punishment or thinking negatively about them. If your mind is racing with MH issues you sometimes have no capacity left for anything else. Speak to them.
This one is hard to call in the age of WFH but are you noticing someone trying to round people up for after-work drinks a lot, or just going to the pub alone if no one commits this could be a sign they don't want to either be left alone with their own thoughts or go back home for another reason. I worked with someone who did this all the time before he finally sought out help.
Do they look tired at work? Yawning a lot and staring into space, as mentioned could be due to insomnia issues more often caused by anxiety. I cannot tell you how painful it is going into an office with 100s of people when you haven't had a single second of sleep, my ADHD means shutting my brain off at night is a real struggle and then the 'I've got to be up in X hours' anxiety kicks in to increase the 'enjoyment'. Don’t take this as laziness or lack of interest in their job it could be out of their control.
Now we have listed some of the 'traits' or 'behaviours' let's look into how we can offer support.
Firstly and most importantly you have to value mental health on the same level as physical health. Most people would say they do, but let if someone calls up to say they are suffering from MH issues (most don't btw) they don't get anywhere near the same respect as if they have food poisoning. I can also assure you if you are going to pull a sickie MH issues will be one of the last on the list, take these comms seriously, it could be their final straw or a cry for help.
Make sure your culture is one that respects everyone and is open to people discussing how they feel with you. A problem shared is a problem halved but most don't have the courage to do so due to fear of repercussions. By instilling this you can sort issues before they become a problem. On my weekly check-ins with the team 1-1 I always ask how they are feeling both personally and professionally, more often than not you will get 'all good' but sometimes you have to have a longer chat than expected, make sure you are giving the option. Also, have a clear path for discussing mental health that's removed from the team, you never know if you're in fact the trigger.
Understand that everyone is different and that what might work for someone won't for the person next to them. Of course, in a large organisation, it would be near on impossible to have a bespoke way of working for everyone but try and find out if certain changes would really benefit someone. Flexi hours are a prime example of this.
I'd like to caveat this by saying I am in no way trained in mental health but feel with relevant personal experience and tactics that work for my colleagues at Mattr I'm not a bad person to take advice from. The above may also not be related to MH issues at all but the only way you will ever find out is by asking.
If any of the issues I have discussed above have resonated with you, my DMs are always open, free of judgement, unless you suffering from Chelsea FC depression of which I am a victim too and cannot help!