How to keep your workforce happy on Blue Monday
Blue Monday—the third Monday in January—is often the year’s most depressing day due to post-holiday letdown and mounting pressure. HR can boost workforce morale through practical strategies like encouraging praise, promoting self-kindness, and building in recovery time and rewards.
OCD at work: how to spot the signs and offer support
People with OCD face significant workplace challenges, from concentration difficulties to avoidance behaviors, but reasonable adjustments can help them succeed. Recognizing signs like increased lateness, reassurance-seeking, or task avoidance allows managers to offer timely support for this often-hidden mental health condition.
Quick overview on OCD in the workplace
Obsessive-compulsive disorder is a serious anxiety condition often misunderstood in the workplace. OCD involves unwelcome thoughts and repetitive behaviors that can significantly impact work productivity and relationships. Creating an open, stigma-free workplace culture supports employees with OCD and improves overall mental wellbeing.
Quick overview on depression in the workplace
One in six workers experience mental health problems, with depression affecting one in ten people. Workplace pressures can both cause and worsen depression, making it essential for employers to create supportive environments and implement clear mental health support processes.
Quick overview on anxiety in the workplace
One in six workers experience symptoms of common mental health problems, with anxiety being the most prevalent. Learn what causes workplace anxiety and how HR can support employees through open communication, flexibility, and practical management strategies.
Thriving at work: a review on mental health
Discover how employers can support staff mental health and improve workplace wellbeing. This review explores Mind’s mental health standards for creating psychologically healthy workplaces and the significant impact of mental health on workforce productivity and the economy.
Quarter of women “forced to take time off due to period pain.”
A UK study found that 23% of women have taken time off work due to period pain, with 36% lying about their reasons for absence. Nearly half of women feel uncomfortable discussing menstruation with their employers, particularly male managers.
Why adult learning is so good for wellbeing
Adult learning boosts wellbeing through social connection, sense of purpose, and skill development. Research shows these benefits extend beyond workplace training to community-based learning programs, with participants gaining improved life satisfaction, self-confidence, and stronger social networks.
Do you get the ‘silent terror’ of Pure OCD?
Pure OCD involves intrusive, unwanted thoughts that feel terrifying to sufferers because they contradict their values. Without visible physical compulsions like other OCD variants, it’s considered the hardest form to treat and requires exposure to distressing thoughts rather than avoidance behaviors.
How to replace mental health stigma and silence with support and openness
Mental health stigma remains a significant issue in workplaces, with many employees afraid to disclose struggles to managers. Creating a supportive culture through clear policies, leadership commitment, and trained managers can reduce stigma, improve staff wellbeing, and decrease costly sickness absence.
Physical exercise: what are the benefits for work?
Regular physical exercise boosts mood, cognition, and work performance while improving focus and resilience. However, UK workers face barriers including lack of confidence and time management challenges. Both individuals and HR can promote exercise habits through enjoyable activities, team sports, and financial commitment.
Are you in the dark about the health risks of shift work?
Shift work poses significant occupational health risks including musculoskeletal problems, stress, anxiety, and depression. HR managers must address these challenges, as shift workers experience disrupted sleep cycles, fatigue, and increased sickness absence rates that impact workplace performance and safety.
Turn your culture into a mental wellbeing oasis
Long working hours and workplace stress significantly increase the risk of mental health issues like anxiety. Employers can create a supportive culture through wellness programs, accessible mental health resources, and fostering open conversations between managers and staff about mental wellbeing.
Three strategies for managing anxiety in the workplace
Workplace anxiety affects over half a million people in Great Britain, causing millions of lost workdays annually. This article explores three practical strategies—avoiding multitasking, nourishing your body with healthy foods, and maintaining resilience—to manage stress and anxiety at work.
5 common subtypes of Pure OCD
Pure OCD attaches to a person’s deepest fears through intrusive, obsessive thoughts that intensify with mental effort. This article explores five common Pure OCD subtypes, including relationship OCD (ROCD), sexual orientation obsessions (HOCD), and others that cause sufferers to seek constant reassurance and engage in compulsive behaviors.
Pure OCD: Why don’t we know about it?
Pure OCD affects over 50% of people with obsessive-compulsive disorder but remains largely unknown because sufferers experience mental compulsions rather than visible behaviors like checking or washing. Limited media coverage and sufferers’ reluctance to discuss intrusive thoughts contribute to widespread misunderstanding of this debilitating condition.
Dynamic working: Flexibility for the next generation of worker
Flexible working is no longer just a perk for parents—it’s now a standard expectation for younger workers. Generation FL-X (millennials and Gen Z) increasingly demand flexible policies as a prerequisite for employment, making it essential for UK businesses to embrace dynamic working to attract and retain top talent.
Should I tell my boss I have OCD?
Deciding whether to tell your boss about OCD depends on your individual circumstances and how the condition affects your work performance. Consider whether your compulsions impact your job and what specific support you need from your employer before disclosing.
My journey from IT to wellbeing with Parkinson’s disease
Paul Heywood achieved his lifelong goal of becoming an IT Director at a FTSE100 company, only to be diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson’s disease at 48. He shares his journey through the diagnosis, recovery, and his transition to founding Halcyon Life, a corporate wellbeing and resilience programme.
Book review: Enhancing Employee Engagement: An Evidence-Based Approach
This book review examines an evidence-based guide to enhancing employee engagement, evaluating its practical value for HR directors and business professionals. The 137-page volume presents a nuanced engagement model centered on meaningfulness, HR practices, and performance management, though the reviewer notes it combines valuable actionable insights with repetitive narrative and problematic elements.
