When it comes to public relations, mental health at the workplace is a top priority. One in five adult Americans suffers from a mental illness, which translates to more than 51 million people. No matter how good your product is, a team that experiences mental health issues is never good PR.
Among the biggest sources of illnesses are workplaces, especially high-stress, high-pressure environments. PR professionals need to know how to deal with these if they want to connect with their audience and employees.
At work, it’s easy to brush off fatigue as a physical symptom rather than something mental. However, stress and depression can be the source of fatigue. Most mental illnesses have physical counterparts, and vice versa, since your body affects your mind.
For example, depression causes fatigue, while anxiety can cause gastrointestinal issues. Depression is also characterized by a lack of motivation, while lacking sleep and fatigue cause lack of motivation and mental fog. The same is true for other issues like ADHD, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia.
As PR professionals know the workload level in the industry, they need to see the warning signs early. Long public relations campaigns can be more mentally taxing than other office work types. Monitoring the team’s wellness and your own can pay dividends in long-term productivity.
Doomscrolling can be a problem among employees, especially for jobs exposed to hostile media all the time. These employees feel negative emotions about a goal or project and will try to spread that negativity.
If you’ve noticed your team is still anxious despite having had a “good talk,” see if they’re doomscrolling. Negative news, bad social media information, and the like can affect their motivation. They bring everyone down with them, causing low morale.
If they’re new to the team, they’re likely having a rough time adjusting to the environment. Have a little chat with them to make them feel more comfortable. See how you can help them cope with the needs of the job.
Workplace stress is one of the biggest causes of ill-health. It can be caused by deadlines, workloads, and the pressure to deliver results. Stress can manifest physically by creating headaches, body pain, high blood pressure, and insomnia.
Whatever the reason, you should establish stress relief programs. These can be anything from creating a 15-minute break to taking an hour or two off to go to a park. Whatever you choose, it should be something that gives people a “getaway” from their desks.
You should also talk to your HR partner to create a better environment. Many companies encourage a healthier, stress-free work environment, especially after recent worker movements.
Since being mindful of your employees' mental health and needs can earn you an excellent reputation, treat your workforce with respect. You want to ensure everyone is happy, motivated, and ready to fight another battle.
This also means catering to people who need medical assistance, including sick leaves and provisions for healthcare. If a specific employee has a medical leave, do what they can until the person returns. If it’s long-term, they may have to reassign the employee to another department.
Mental health is a vital part of any company. As a PR professional, your job is one of the most stressful. You should ensure your team is healthy enough to perform their duties, or you may experience problems with your company culture.
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