I recently read last Saurday’s Los Angeles times

To read the full article go to the news section of www.IamBackFromTheBrink.com

It provides some pretty startling results from a recent survey:

• 70% of US residents are experiencing significant stress due to the current state of the economy
• 49% say they have regular anxiety
• 48% are sad or depressed
• 33% are experiencing insomnia

A 2007 Medicare Private funded research study showed:

Absenteeism costs the Australian economy $7 billion whilst presenteeism (where workers are not fully engaged due to distress or illness) accounts for $25billion. They found that the greatest contributor to this lost productivity was depression.

An estimate of the cost of depression in Australia is $6.3billion.

A 2007 report ”How to improve the behavoural health of an organisation” by the global consulting firm Sibson showed:

• Mental health issues (of which depression and anxiety contribute the vast majority) account for 47% of all lost productivity compared to 26% for physical illnesses.

So how comfortable are people with depression talking with work colleagues about it?

With the level of stress faced by the workforce highlighted above, you would hope that employees would feel comfortable dsicussing their depression with work colleagues. In research I did for my first book I found the disturbing result that only 9% could discuss this situation with confidence it would not adversely affect how their peers viewed them.

I have recently been asked to be a judge for a writing competition by the Black Dog Institute called “Tackling mood disorders in the workplace”. The 100+ essays I read revealed the sad situation where people with mood disorders are on the whole, terrified of revealing their conditon to fellow employees for fear it will jeopardise their career prospects.

This situation is untenable, and on April 1st I will be speaking at a forum for 100 HR professional hosted by the outplacement, and career planning organisation www.Directioneering.com  to highlight the absurdity of this.

I will also be outlining what I believe is an achieveable path forward to make the workplace as friendly to those with mental illness as it is to people with cancer, a broken leg, blindness or any other physical disability.

In my next blog entry I will address this way forward. If you have any comments regarding what has been outlined, please respond to this blog.

Kind Regards

Graeme

Tags: anxiety, burnt out, depression, work stress

I was very surprised when I did my original research for BFTB, that fulfilling work was rated as the fourth most effective strategy for overcoming/ managing depression. People with depression rated fulfilling work ahead of medication for example, which I’m sure would amaze many people.

FIFTEEN YEARS IN RECRUITMENT AND OUTPLACEMENT TOLD ME THIS WAS TRUE

When I reflected on the thousands of people I had tried to assist with their careers over those 15 years, I intuitively knew how important fulfilling work was to people’s mental health and self esteem.

If you look at the news section of my website - www.IamBackFromTheBrink.com - you’ll see that a number of stories have been published on this topic in the last week, due the the world financial crisis.

WHAT DO YOU DO IF YOU ARE 0-5 ON THE MOODOMETER

If you are depressed, and aren’t capable of working full time, I would strongly encourage you to consider voluntary work. When I was recovering I worked as a volunteer at Volunteering NSW (I know similar organisations exist everywhere).

One of my jobs was interviewing people to help identify which skills they would like to use and then finding charities near them, that would enable them to use those skills. I had the pleasure of watching how long term unemployed and people with a mental illness would grow in confidence when they had the opportunity to positively contribute to a charity. These roles aren’t nearly as pressurized as full time work, yet still offer the benefits of social contact and providing people with a sense of purpose.

Check out www.govolunteer.com.au and http://www.volunteer.com.au/?cid=sk:main:au:nav:vol  to get an idea of the wide array of roles available.

WHAT DO YOU DO IF YOU ARE 4-10 ON THE MOODOMETER BUT NOT ENJOYING YOUR WORK

My strong suggestion would be to do so form of assessment to help understand what skills you get most satisfaction out of using. There are many options out there but a really user friendly and practical one I have used myself is found at www.assessment.com- It is called a Motivational Appraisal of Personal Potential (MAPP) You are asked to go through a questionnaire (takes about 15 minutes) and then you receive your report. There is a free version, but I found the best value one to cost about $US40. This report really resonated with me and gave me a great sense of career direction.

The report identifies your top 10 innately motivating skills but then importantly it then tells you which roles allow you to utilise them. How you go about transitioning to these new roles is too much to cover now, but knowing where you want to head is half the issue.

BLACK DOG INSTITUTE “MOOD DISORDERS IN THE WORKPLACE” WRITING COMPETITION

I have just been asked to be one of 3 judges to help assess the winners in the above competition. It is great this topic is getting some deserved profile. A book will follow on this subject, so keep an eye out for that.

If you have any questions or comments regarding this topic, please respond to this blog.

Kind Regards

Graeme

Tags: anxiety in the workplace, black dog institute, depression, overcoming depression, stress, voluntary work, workplace stress

I was fortunate enough to have recently visited Hong Kong.  Whilst there I caught up with some people from Jardine Matheson - one of Hong Kong’s oldest and largest companies. Like a lot of organisations, that had found that their charitable contributions in the past had been quite haphazard.

The launch of Mindset

After some research, they decided to focus their attention on the area of mental health and launched Mindset in 2002. Mindset’s objectives are to change people’s attitudes by raising awareness and understanding of mental health issues, and to provide direct assistance to individuals, families, and organisations in need of help.

Involving some high achievers

Each year 50 Ambassadors are chosen from across the Jardine Companies, who are able to take time out from their normal roles to guide Mindset activities. This group contributed 30,000 hours and are  typically aged 25-30 and are regarded as future leaders within the group.

Mindset Initiatives

Current initiatives include:

1. Education and prevention in schools through the “Health in Mind” program.
2. Re-intergrations - supporting mental health agencies through patient support activities and the promotion of a job training program within the Jardine Matheson Group companies.
3. Financial Support - to fund direct services for the mentally ill such as case managers etc.
4. Community Awareness - to undertake a range of initiatives that enhance awareness of mental health related issues.

Two of the most notable community initiatives are the “Mindset Ratrace” - a community fun run around downtown Hong Kong and “Walk up Jardine House” which both served to raise funds for activities.

Highlights

• More than 25,000 school students reached by the “Health in Mind” program.
• 135 training and placement opportunities offered to ex mentally ill in Group businesses.
• The funding of six programs in support of carers and families and direct services for the mentally ill.
• 19 patient support actvities organized.
• $5HKmillion ($A1 million) Cash contributed
• 30,000 hours by 50 Jardine Ambassadors

It was interesting hearing their experiences in job placement. They initially sought openings in their group and then tried to place appropriate people. Eventually they found that they were best off starting with the candidate and then determining what type of role would suit. The referrals for these candidates come from community mental health organisations.

The company employs a part time administrator whose role it is to co-ordinate activities.

About half the people who have gone through Jardine’s re-integration initiatives remain in full time employment.

Jardine’s are to be applauded for pioneering help in an area of community need that has typically been overlooked by most of the corporate world.

If you have any questions or comments about this initiative I would love to hear them.

Kind Regards

Graeme

Tags: anxiety, charity, depression, mental health, work

I would like to tell you a story about Brian Egan. Brian was a veteran and farmer who was featured in “Back from the Brink” (see www.OvercomingYourDepression.com) He was tortured by his experiences of war and had the added pain of enduring year of drought on the land. Eventually he and his wife Nerida were forced off the land with nothing. He went into a catatonic depression where he couldn’t even talk for six months.

The lowest ebb is the turn of the tide

A psychologist he was seeing suggested that he get involved in helping others worse off than himself. At first he thought he was joking because he couldn’t think of anyone worse off than him. Eventually he started working for a charity but realised that his true interest lay in directly helping farmers who are doing it tough.

The birth of Aussie Helpers

He and Nerida decided to start Aussie Helpers (www.aussiehelpers.org.au)   in 2002. Since then they have helped thousands of farming families with groceries, food, personal hygiene goods, and feed for stock. They work 6 days a week and are passionate about helping others and are now operating in Queensland, NSW, Victoria, South Australia, and Tasmania. Brian has adopted Mother Theresa’s motto that “giving is receiving”.

If you want to help yourself help others

Not content to just “rebuild the bush” Brian and Nerida have now launched another initiative which is endeavouring to kill two birds with the one stone. There is a chronic shortage of labour in farming communities so Aussie Helpers is launching “The Wall of Hope” which will bring homeless people from the cities and train them in how work on a farm.  Donations can be sent to Aussie Helpers, PO Box 405, Charleville, Qld 4470. Brian credits Aussie Helpers as the reason he recovered. I know in my own experience and in talking with many people that have overcome depression that it is often helping others that gets us outside our own head. There are many options to volunteer. If you have a story about how volunteering has helped you I would love to hear it.

Kind Regards

Graeme

Tags: depression, farming, helping, PTSD, rural

New research from the UK shows that returning to work can aid depression. The study looked at 500 people who were on sick leave and examined how returning to work impacted their mood. The full story can be found at www.IamBackFromTheBrink.com in the news section.

Back from the Brink Research

Thes findings are congruent with the Ultrafeedback study which was done for BFTB which showed that “fulfilling work” was the 4th most effective strategy for overcoming/managing depression. The role of work in lifting ones wellbeing cannot be underestimated and is a strategy often forgotten by doctors and psychologists.

Voluntary Work

I know through personal experience how detrimental it can be have too much time on your hands when you are depressed. This is the exact problem you face when you are on sick leave. When I was recovering I had a voluntary position as a counsellor helping people find voluntary work that met their interests and capacities. I saw first hand how much getting back in the workforce really helped people. If you have a story about how work helped your recovery I would love to hear from you.

Kind Regards

Graeme

Tags:

In an article today from the US (see News section of www.IamBackFromTheBrink.com ) several employers from Minnesota have banded together to try to address the high cost of depression in their workforce. Called the “Bridges to Excellence” program, their health insurance companies are asking doctors to be accountable for their results. Patients will be asked to fill out a 9 question survey at the start to assess the severity of their depression. They will then have to redo the survey at 6 months and 12 months. If the patient is recovered after 12 months, the doctor will receive a $100 bonus for their treatment. They then plan to review results after two years with a view to directing patients to the more successful doctors.

This action is a direct result of the cost of depression in the workplace. Although the structure of health delivery in Australia is quite different, I think it is inevitable (and healthy) to have doctors accountable for their treatment. There would then be a much higher motivation to instigate evidence based treatment. In talking recently with Professor Gordon Parker from the Blackdog Institute, I know that he believes that many doctors currently treat depression via an outdated model. Measuring outcomes along the recovery path (or lack of it is a good thing)

May the best in life and love and happiness be ahead of you.

Graeme

Tags: , anxiety, depression, workplace depression, workplace stress

I have just released a free ebook called “Best Practice in Managing Mental Health in the Workplace”. It can be found at www.IamBackFromTheBrink.com/work It details how how the time has passed to pretend that depression and anxiety disorder don’t exist in the workplace. We must start talking about these issues if we are going to confront this epidemic.

The World Health Organisation says that depression is going to be the second most disabling illness in the world by 2020 yet only 9% of those living with depression feel comfortable discussing their condition with work colleagues.

The ebook contains a summary of a global literature search undertaken by VicHealth to find the most successful programs that meets the needs of both the individual and the organisations. It also contains a comprehensive outline of Telstra’s world leading “Mental Health and Resilience Program” and advice on how similar programs should be presented to the leadership team.

Full details can be found at: www.IamBackFromTheBrink.com/work

Kind Regards

Graeme¼/p>

Tags:

In Australia we have made considerable progress in increasing awareness of depression in society which is fantastic. I remember when I had my first really bad bout of depression 20 years ago I had no idea what depression was. I had been to university but never knew that this was a clinical condition. I felt such shame going to a psychiatric hospital that I insisted my wife tell work that I had a really bad “virus”. That whole episode was kept a close family secret for so long because of my shame.

Fast forward to today, and as highlighted previously, there has been some progress. Unfortunately, the discussion of mental illness at work is still largely taboo. When doing research for my book “Back From The Brink” I asked people if they had personally experienced depression. Sixty five percent said they had experienced strong or very strong stigma. To try and find out where that stigma occurred I asked people how comfortable they were discussing their depression with various people. 61% said they were comfortable talking with their General Practitioner, 50% with their partner, 41% with their close friends, 28% with family, and 9% yes 9% with work colleagues. So 9 out of 10 people with depression don’t feel comfortable discussing it with work colleagues.

With the World Health Organisation saying that depression is going to be the second most disabling condition facing the world by 2020 pretending that mental illness doesn’t happen at work in absolute lunacy for both individuals and the organisation.

I am in the final stages of preparing a free ebook called “Best Practice in Managing Mental Illness in the Workplace” where I have pulled together information from around the world and looked at some of the recent successes in this area. It will be launched on Wednesday when John Brogden speaks at an AIM forum about mental health in the workplace. It will also be discussed the same day at a forum for Equal Employment Opportunity professionals.

We have to start standing up and talking about these issues openly. I look forward to any comments.

Kind Regards

Graeme

Tags: , anxiety, depression, hospital, mental health at work, overcoming depression, psychiatric, stigma, stress