Impacts on our mental health
In the last few years, we have seen our whole worlds turned upside down in every conceivable way. Lockdowns and restrictions, without a shadow of a doubt, impacted everyone’s mental health. The environment created during this period has shaped people’s behaviour in ways we have never seen before. Add in the recent price rises it’s no wonder people feel so isolated and alone in their struggles and money worries.
Humans are social beings and want to be with other people. They desire social acceptance and support. But unfortunately, the lockdowns created a divide where people couldn’t be with their families and friends as they normally would. Nor could they access the support they needed.
There is a difference between being lonely and social isolation. But social isolation can and did create increased feelings of loneliness during the pandemic. But even though the pandemic is a distant memory, the aftereffects live on. People have become more introverted and still cannot access the help and support they so vitally need.
According to Mental Health Foundation | Good mental health for all At the beginning of the pandemic, loneliness levels were much the same as in 2016-17, with 5% of adults in Great Britain saying they were often or always lonely. By February 2021, however, this had increased to 7.2% - 3.7 million adults.
Anyone can feel lonely at times. You have probably had moments when you felt this way. While feeling lonely or alone is not a mental health problem, but it can lead to mental health problems. Research shows that a negative consequence of poor mental health is isolation. So it’s a bit of a catch-22.
Social Connections
The power of social connections is a determinant in preventing many physical and psychological health complications. For example, people with lower levels of social support are more likely to have high blood pressure, suffer from obesity, and have a poorer quality of life.
The Campaign To End Loneliness tells states loneliness and social isolation are associated with an increased risk of coronary heart disease and stroke. Armed with this, we can begin to understand how this can impact lives and businesses.
Why does this matter?
Staggeringly 12.5 % of men in the UK currently suffer from one of the common mental health disorders (Source Men’s health forum). Around 1 in 8 men suffer from depression, panic disorders, or obsessive-compulsive disorder. Yet many suffer in silence (Source Men’s health forum).
Social support would have helped many mitigate mental health problems associated with loneliness. Social support is vital in preventing mental health disorders in the first place.
What can be done?
How do we identify people struggling with loneliness and mental ill-health, and how do we facilitate meaningful conversations with them?
Awareness is the first step. We all need a better understanding of mental ill-health and its implications; we need conversations around the subject to be normalised.
If you or you know of anyone struggling, please reach out and offer some help. There are some fantastic organisations that can help, like the Samaritans, Mind, Mental Health UK, Young Minds, and CALM.
Look around your work environment. Is there anyone struggling or who seems to have isolated themselves? Perhaps you can invite them for a coffee and a casual chat?
Have you noticed a colleague who’s withdrawn and unusually quiet, then why not just ask them, ‘Is everything ok?’
Support
Introducing social support from friends, colleagues, and family will help meet people’s physical and emotional demands and reduce that isolation. Therefore, reducing symptoms of the most common mental health conditions and enabling the person to rebalance that shift towards better mental health.
At Ligtas, we have commissioned an online course designed to help with that awareness and available supporting mechanisms. The Mental Health Awareness Course covers the main types of mental ill health along with typical symptoms, relief, and coping strategies. The course is fully online and presented engagingly, with a wealth of information.
Course bookings for the mental health awareness course are made online, via the telephone at 02922 800 000 or enquiries@ligtas.co.uk
Being a part of a learning community is a great way to meet people. Social support is a vital component of our identity and helps us feel connected and supported. Therefore, we must never underestimate the power of social connections. We navigate this earth alone, but we are connected by that need for social support and interactions.
We are proud to offer a whole array of Ligtas certified, accredited, and non-accredited training. Like the NEBOSH HSE certificate in managing stress at work. The course provides a broad understanding of construction-related health & safety issues and is an essential qualification for anyone with health & safety responsibilities in the construction industry. Concerning ILO standards, the qualification focuses on industry best practices. The course can be completed fully online.
Key topics
The NEBOSH HSE Certificate in Managing Stress at Work consists of one unit which must be successfully completed within six months to achieve the qualification.
The course covers:
For information on this or any of our courses please contact Ligtas at 02922 800 000 or enquiries@ligtas.co.uk
- Key Principles - Common terms
- Understanding the prevalence of work-related stress
- Signs and Responsibilities of Employers Identification of Risk - Understand Causes
- Apply HSE’s Management Standards Implementing Interventions - Develop options to reduce stressors and manage the effects of stress. Build ways to continually improve the workplace
Nowadays, we are connected in every conceivable way via social media and our phones, but yet we are still so distant. Even walking down a street, you’re greeted by a sea of people just glued to their phones. People have stopped connecting and are more disconnected than ever before.
We all should feel we matter and that someone cares, so why not today show someone you do via a small act of kindness? It doesn’t have to be much of a smile to someone or a message or call a friend to check-in.
This compassion for others has the added benefit of making others happy and you. You will literally never know the power of the spoken word, and a few words may save someone’s life on that day.
Remember the 5 r’s:
- Reach out for help
- Rest
- Rejuvenate with some self-care
- Run or walk outdoors
- Remember you are not alone
We all need to remember we are not alone.
