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Mental Health In The Workplace

Posted by archifCLICarchive from National - Published on 24/07/2012 at 16:09
2 comments » - Tagged as Health, Topical, Work & Training

  • Mental Health

Watching Ruby Wax’s Mad Confessions last night on Channel 4, in which three brave individuals with mental health conditions found the courage to share their problems with work colleagues, a number of questions were raised for me.

As a student mental health nurse, how would my peers, tutors and fellow professionals feel about me if they knew that I had previously suffered with bulimia, depression, and episodes of self-harm? How would their current opinions change? Would my current role be jeopardised if others knew about the problems I had experienced as a teenager, even if it was many years ago? And how do my experiences influence my attitude towards others with mental health problems?

I know the answers I would like to these questions. It would be great if my peers, as future mental health professionals, respected my outpouring of personal issues, and my tutors viewed from afar how I was able to draw on my experiences to help some people, whilst remembering that my own problems did not relate to everybody else’s (as I feel I am able to do). In my own version of fantasy land, people would continue to recognise my abilities and strengths, but at the same time have a deeper level of understanding and respect for how and why I am the person I am today. It would be fantastic if my work colleagues could see how the aspects of my work they often praise (such as my ability to communicate, listen and emphasise) are drawn from how others helped me through darker times.

So why don’t I share my experiences? Mainly because I feel that as a professional, and more specifically as a student, I need to at least try to show others my best side. Over the past year I have achieved well both academically and on placement, and have been praised at every turn for how well I am doing. Deep down, I’m not sure telling others I used to spend days in bed or occasionally starved myself reflects well on me, which is sad and slightly hypocritical because I’ve never judged others for divulging this sort of thing to me. I suppose it links to something I read once about being a student nurse on placement, which encouraged us to always treat our time on wards or in the community as one long job interview, which it sometimes can be. And in job interviews, one doesn’t generally launch into anything too personal, or anything that makes us look anything less than perfection personified. Slightly unrealistic, particularly on a twelve week placement, but we can only try!

I like to think that all experiences, bad or good, help to shape people and allow them to learn from their mistakes and triumphs. As an extension of this, I like to think that my own experiences will allow me to become a better mental health nurse in the future. That isn’t to say that all mental health nurses need to have a tragic story and their own mental health problems to enable them to care for and understand others. Rather, I like to think that we all have a story of some description, and maybe we shouldn’t be ashamed to share them when the moment calls for it. We are all so scared of how any whisper of mental health problems in connection with ourselves will taint us forever. But look at the statistics; according to Mind, one-in-six workers are currently experiencing stress, anxiety or depression. I wonder how many people working in the NHS, and specifically in mental health, have had or are experiencing some of these problems?

Perhaps sadly, or perhaps not, depending on what you think, I plan for now to keep my past to myself, and concentrate on my future...

News  Categories  Health

Organisations  Cardiff Mind

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Organisations  Mental Health Matters

Info  Health  Emotional and Mental Health

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2 CommentsPost a comment

Tyezer

Tyezer

Commented 46 months ago - 26th July 2012 - 14:12pm

I saw a programme on TV last night where a group of people went for a mock job interview- some of them had suffered from mental health issues, others hadn't. The employers were given information on the different illnesses, but they weren't told which people had suffered in the past and which hadn't. On the basis of just reading about the various conditions, the employers were saying that they would have reservations about employing some of the people. One had suffered from really bad OCD episodes in the past and hadn't left the house for six months at one point.

The interviewees had to conduct a number of tasks and be interviewed. The top three people chosen had all suffered from mental health issues, and the top candidate was the girl who'd suffered from OCD. The employers were really shocked.

It can set a bad impression, telling people that you have suffered from mental health problems in an interview/ before you start a job, but I think that once they've met you- you have proved who you are and got rid of many of the stereotypes. You sound like you are doing well at work- that is hopefully all the proof they need.

Opal_Eyes

Commented 46 months ago - 27th July 2012 - 08:41am

Hi Tyezer, thanks for your comment. I haven't watched that programme yet, I think that's part of the series Channel Four have been showing this week about mental health - it sounds great and I will give it a watch.

The reality is I probably wouldn't share my experiences whilst I am a student nurse because of the worry it may change the way people view me, however maybe one day when I am a fully fledged mental health nurse it won't seem like such a big deal.

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