I don’t want to keep banging on about mental health issues but it seems to be either on the rise or perhaps there’s been a lot of suffering in silence. Jessy Nelson of Little Mix presented the most thought-provoking documentary on BBC Three about how social media affected her so much she actually took an overdose. Danny Cipriani, English rugby player put up a haunting Instagram post last week about wanting to end it all, and then there’s Caroline Flack….
Last year just before I joined Smooth I was asked to take part in a project called Let’s Reset the brainchild of Suki Thompson and photographer Rankin. It’s quite timely and falls in line with the social awareness project #BeKind. We should be kind to each other and our selves.
Then there’s FOMO (fear of missing out), this is a big one in the workplace and if you’re not strong enough to deal with not being part of the click it can play havoc with your mind.
Right now there is somebody in your workplace who’s probably internalising feelings about the way somebody speaks to them or treats them at work, internalising feelings about what’s happening at home and is bringing those feelings to work.
If there’s anyone that you think is acting strange or appears to be on the edge, speak out, give them a hug, don’t wait until it’s too late and say ‘I wish I had’. The workplace regardless of the industry can be a very very stressful place, whether you enjoy your work or not. We all have experiences that can piss us off, and if we continuously internalise these experiences it will be to our detriment.
Whether harsh words, being ignored or fear of missing out, speak up to avoid a mental and emotional explosion.
Be kind to yourself and be kind to others. Just practice being a bit more kind overall.
