Hannah writes: “Food for thought: We say “I’m fine” 14 times a week and yet we mean it only 19% of the time.
On 18th May, in conjunction with Mental Health Awareness Week, Carpmaels & Ransford hosted an IP Inclusive event focused on well-being at work.
The event began with a Mindfulness Pause, facilitated by Tamzin Muir, which provided an opportunity for the attendees to gather their thoughts for a few moments. Following this moment of quiet, Stacy Thomson of Thrive in the City facilitated a discussion between 3 panellists, Sarah Sparks, Richard Martin and Tamzin Muir, all of whom had been high-flyers in the corporate world and were frank in sharing their own experiences of struggling to maintain their own mental wellbeing under the pressures of the corporate environment.
The wide ranging discussion highlighted the importance of sleep, the necessity of recognising the pressure we put ourselves under, the recognition of chronic stress symptoms, and the importance of actively listening to those around us so that the next time a colleague responds to a question about their well-being with “I’m fine”, we are alert to the fact that it in fact could well mean: “I’m…Freaked out, Insecure, Neurotic and, Emotional.”
There are many things which organisations can undertake to support the mental well-being of employees. Whether that be making reasonable adjustments to working arrangements such as flexible hours; asking employees what works best for them; and providing supportive management structures to support staff and teams in a way which is appropriate. One of the most important things however, is that we are kind to ourselves and understand our own responses to situations and what these might mean for our well-being.
For any readers feeling fine, and for anyone wondering how they can support themselves/their colleagues, sources of support and further resources are available here:
- Thrive in the City
- LawCare
- CIPA
- Mind
- the IP Inclusive web page on mental health and wellbeing.“
Thank you Hannah for writing this article. If you would like to write a blog article for IP Inclusive, on anything diversity related, please email Emily Teesdale of Abel & Imray. Guest bloggers are always very welcome!