Maintaining Your Mental Health

One in five Americans continue to be affected by mental health conditions (2020).

According to a 2024 mental health at work fact sheet by the World Health Organization, discrimination and inequality, excessive workloads, low job control and job insecurity all pose a risk to mental health globally. Other key takeaways about the correlation between a healthy work environment and mental health include:

• 15% of working-age adults were estimated to have a mental disorder in 2019.
• Globally, an estimated 12 billion working days are lost every year to depression and anxiety at a cost of $1 trillion per year in lost productivity.
• There are effective actions to prevent mental health risks at work, protect and promote mental health at work and support workers with mental health conditions.

That last point—There are effective actions—may be one of the most important. More on that later.

Risks to mental health caused by work “may be related to job content or work schedule, specific characteristics of the workplace or opportunities for career development among other things.” It’s not surprising that feeling unappreciated or under-utilized for the skills you bring to an organization, being overwhelmed by the workloads placed upon you due to understaffing, having long or inflexible hours, or working for an organizational culture that discriminates or excludes can all contribute to a growing need for mental health services in—and out of—the workplace.

Tack on “job insecurity, inadequate pay, poor investment in career development and conflicting home/work demands” and a mental health situation may be in development for either an employer or an affected employee.

In our April 2024 podcast The Future of Work: Mental Health Matters, host Jill Finlayson interviewed Sylvia Doss, a strategic adviser and educator who designs solutions for better health and well-being in work environments and communities. Sylvia points out that “70 percent of the employers rank mental health and substance use disorder services as their number two emerging area of concern.”

“Stressors come from different sides,” Jill adds. “How do you manage stressors that come from inside the workplace—work-related stress, that work-life balance? Then there's the family-relationship stresses. But there's another level, which is the world. So we're getting it from all sides. And so as we think about the company and their opportunity to be supportive, they have to look at all three of those buckets.”

Related: Mental Health Matters

So how are you or your organization working on mitigating the effects of this truly global epidemic?

Your Mental Health Might Need Better Behavioral Health

Although often used interchangeably with mental health, it is behavioral health—in and out of work—that you have more initial control over.

“Mental health is about how your psychological state affects your well-being, while behavioral health is about how actions affectyour well-being,” states Healthline contributor Hope Gillette.

Your mental health is made up of your “identity, perceptions, emotions, resilience and personality,” among other factors, including any mental health disorders. “Behavioral health is interlinked with mental health, but behavioral health looks at everyday behaviors and how they influence both physical and mental well-being,” Hope continues.

That is, your reactions, habits, lifestyle, interactions, cultural practices and coping strategies. Your actions influence your mental and physical health, and to help maintain it you have to realize the importance of your behavioral health in making the impact you want—and need.

Despite the increased stress and anxiety, lower self-esteem, disrupted sleep or relationship strain that may be contributing to a reduced life satisfaction, there are ways you can overcome these challenges—in your career path, in your education and in your personal life.

Step 1: Practice Mindfulness

By being mindful, you are becoming more keenly aware of your thoughts, emotions and experiences. You can recognize the signs of when you’re about to tip over into the stress zone. 

Tired before the work day even begins? Stay hydrated and make sure you get enough restful sleep by limiting caffeine and screen time before bed. And step away from the cookies. One of the negative effects of stress is that it can trigger over-eating or other addictive behaviors. By incorporating an experiential exercise such as mindful eating into your day, you can focus on choices that promote your well-being. 

Feeling burnt out? Here are some signs that you are disengaged. Time to reset your brain and rejuvenate your spirit. Practice coping mechanisms that support your physical health, such as meditation, breathing exercises and self-care. The Guided Meditation Site recommends taking a mental step back to observe your thoughts and assess their rationality before reacting to situations on autopilot. Focus on your interpersonal and communication skills: Be a better listener, be respectful of others, and express gratitude and empathy.

Overwhelmed? Whether you set a micro-goal of getting out of your comfort zone for five minutes or a big goal of changing careers, make your timeline one that you can stick to. And establish boundaries along with a routine!

Write it down. Journaling your feelings can help you battle ongoing anxiety and be mindful of what is going on in your life. Or try simple notes to yourself: What are you thankful for? What is your goal for the day? What is causing you to feel anxious in the first place?

Listen to your inner self. A study by Case Western Reserve University found that “mindfulness has been shown to improve three qualities of attention—stability, control and efficiency. The human mind is estimated to wander roughly half of our waking hours, but mindfulness can stabilize attention in the present. Individuals who completed mindfulness training were shown to remain vigilant longer on both visual and listening tasks.”

Step 2: Breathe

One of the easiest things to do is to simply breathe slowly.

There are multiple approaches to cathartic breathing. One way is to make it a meditative practice. Dan Harris at Time magazine suggests five to 10 minutes a day to start, but even a minute can count toward reducing stress. 

Navy SEALS use box breathing, which calms the nervous system and lowers blood pressure. It is said to also help with managing pain, battling insomnia and treating various mental health disorders. 

Too fidgety? Try some yoga postures and mindful walking around your office or neighborhood.

Up the ante with Jon Kabat-Zinn’s Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) techniques. You practice with a group for at least two and a half hours per session for a certain number of weeks. This technique is structured with activities that include “meditation practice, yoga postures and mindfulness during stressful situations and social interactions” and requires daily “homework assignments.” 

Step 3: Get Organized

Clutter can happen in your mind, in your home, on your desk or even on your calendar. Getting organized is another way to reduce your stress level.

• Don’t start your day with a messy workspace. Over the course of the day, tools might get taken out or papers placed on your desk for review. By the end of the day, pens get left out on a notepad, Post-Its get attached to the monitor with to-dos, a project sits not quite finished on a work surface. What should you do to reduce anxiety? Organize the Post-Its in order of importance to reduce chaos, and put everything back where it belongs before you leave the desk, office or studio at the end of your work day.
• Do keep a calendar of what you need to get done. But don’t overschedule yourself. In The Elusive Work-Life-Study Balance post, we recommend scheduling out your time, but don’t forget to schedule in “me time.” A daily routine also provides structure that helps create a sense of control. Remember to schedule short breaks, too. 

Step 4: Ask for Help or Seek Like Minds

Recognizing what makes you anxious, nervous or depressed is an important first step in maintaining your mental health. It’s okay to seek additional help from your instructor, mentor, boss, colleague or a mental health professional to help achieve inner balance. Recognition of that need is itself mindful. 

So here are some reflections from our community:

• Be kind to yourself and others. “While taking the courses, I experienced a personal loss with the passing of my mother. My instructor was incredibly understanding and supportive, allowing me to submit my assignment at a later date. That kindness and flexibility made a significant difference during a difficult time, and I truly appreciated the support from the program staff,” says graduate Shaina Qureshi.
• Manage expectations. “Set short-term goals that are realistic for you as an individual to achieve. Then write down the steps you plan to take that will lead you to achieve each short-term goal,” recommends CLS Preparatory Program graduate Jasmin Martinez. “After some time of working toward these goals, check-in with yourself: Do you have the capabilities to complete these steps or do you need to re-evaluate your goals?”
• Find a creative release. “I loved the class, and found myself continuing to write poems over the next two years, including while caring for my father in his last months of life. I learned that beyond the satisfaction of making new language objects out of scraps, feelings, images and ideas, poetry could help me survive emotional milestones in my life. I wanted to learn more about how poetry works and how to make mine better,” says student Edith Friedman, of what she gained from enrolling in our Poetry Workshop.
• Know the company culture beforehand to avoid disappointment. Business Administration certificate graduate Mark Freeman says that the company mission of his current workplace, Catalyte, instills the makings of a healthier workplace. “My immediate goals are to see Catalyte succeed at bringing opportunity to those who have the ability to learn but haven’t had the opportunity to prove it. It’s wonderful working for a company that has a strong mission-driven culture and the chance to make a real change in people’s lives.”
• Make time for things (and people) you love. In 2010, Facilities Management graduate Justine Manaid, along with a few other key people within her community, began a group called Vallejo Together. “As a member of the group, I advocated for seniors, the unhoused and victims of domestic violence; wrote grant applications that enabled funding for a navigation center; and partnered with other groups to open up nomadic shelters for the unhoused when temperatures go up or down. We would also, occasionally, receive phone calls from victims of domestic violence seeking to immediately leave their current situation. All of this volunteer work aligned with my value system and deep desire to help my community. These things came so naturally to me that I felt fulfilled both professionally and personally,” Justine says of volunteering for something that is meaningful to her.
• You are not alone in this. “Don’t be scared to reach out to your instructors. They are very welcoming and will try to guide you. Stay focused and resilient throughout the duration of the course, and your hard work will pay off,” graduate Amna Yousuf reminds us.

Step 5: Take Action Today

There is no time like the present to begin a self-care routine. Not only will having a mindfulness process help you maintain your health, it can “improve your mood, boost immune function, promote longevity and allow you to be more productive.” 

Because your mental health and behavioral health are closely linked, by improving your behavioral health actions you can see how they affect your overall well-being. Not sure where to start? Speaking with a mental health professional or a trusted friend can be a helpful resource for taking that first step.

• Discover what it means to be “Mindful in May”: https://www.mindfulinmay.org/meditation-workshop/
• Cultivate moment-by-moment awareness of your environment with “6 Mindfulness Exercises You Can Try Today”: https://www.pocketmindfulness.com/6-mindfulness-exercises-you-can-try-today/
• Commit to finding your harmony and gain “The Elusive Work/Life/Study Balance”: https://voices.berkeley.edu/elusive-work-life-study-balance