Wintertime can be incredibly busy with Christmas and the whole build-up, yet it’s important to note that a lot of people can have increased feelings of loneliness due to the darker, colder weather making them feel sluggish, uninterested in exercise and engaging in social activities, compared to the way they do in the summer.
Not to mention, Christmas can increase feelings of loneliness too due to everyone’s different circumstances; someone can be experiencing bereavement, divorce, someone might be grappling with being single, pressure for having the perfect family, social media and comparisons- the list can go on. Yes, Christmas and December can be thrilling and a happy time, but it can increase poor mental health, even for small moments.
It’s important for people to remember, especially employers, that people can be alone or surrounded by friends and family but feel moments of loneliness.
This can have an impact on employees in the workplace because they might start to feel unmotivated, stressed, disengaged or even a little agitated. We all know that mental health can affect how people go about their day-to-day lives. If someone has positive mental wellbeing, they’re more likely to be engaged, happy, focussed, and healthy physically. For those experiencing poor mental health, it can really take a toll on someone’s physical and mental health, causing an array of symptoms such as fatigue, burnout, nausea, headaches, and a real struggle to go about their day.
This in turn has big impacts on work. Staff experiencing loneliness or poor mental health won’t be as productive so there’ll be increases in presenteeism. It can also cause a lot more absences as people will be off due to their mental health, whether it’s short-term or long-term. Poor mental health can also cause employees to disrupt their working relationships with other members of staff; for instance, irritability and ‘snapping’ can weaken teams, or a lack of productivity can annoy other members as they might have to pick up some extra work. The longer this is all not addressed, it can cause other team members to develop higher levels of stress and so the cycle of poor mental health can begin again…
How can occupational health help?
With services such as counselling, employee assistance programs (EAPs), wellbeing strategies, healthy living workshops, case/ absence management plus clinical escalation, there’s support available for any mental health issue that an employee may be experiencing. The support and guidance can help employees feel better- as they say, a problem shared is a problem halved…
Talking to others who aren’t directly involved in their work might make them feel at ease as many might not want to share their struggles with managers. The strategies and help can make employees feel better by giving them more control over their mental health, coping techniques, and schedules. This can help staff remain in work, keep up their good working standards, or even aid people in their return to work comfortably.
