Discussing Mental Health in the Workplace

Discussing mental health has never been easy, especially in the workplace. After two years living under the weight of a deadly pandemic, it’s more important than ever. In this episode of Messaging on a Mission we speak with Workplace Mental Health Strategist Michelle Dickinson about how organizations create and promote psychological safety within their workplaces.  

 

Episode Guest(s):

Michelle E. Dickinson is a Workplace Mental Health Strategist and passionate mental health advocate. She is also a TEDx speaker and a published author of a memoir entitled​ Breaking Into My Life​. Michelle goes first and sees herself as the bridge that helps people get comfortable with their mental health so that they reach out and get the support they need before they hit a crisis. She makes it ok to not be ok and thrives on making a real difference in the lives of others – especially around their wellbeing. 

 

After years of playing the role of child-caregiver to her bipolar mother, Michelle embarked on her own healing journey of self-discovery. She went on to spend years working to eradicate the mental health stigma within her own workplace by elevating empathy and compassion, causing more open conversations, and leading real change in how mental illness is understood. She was instrumental in building the largest and fastest-growing employee mental health resource group while at her fortune 500 company. 

 

She also knows first-hand what it feels like to struggle with a mental illness after experiencing my own depression due to her divorce. This has provided her with a rich perspective. 

 

She partners with innovative organizations that really care about their people to recenter their staff through her powerful people leader resilience programs that provide tangible daily strategies to preserve well-being. She believes that every organization can have a culture of compassion. Her signature Resilience workshop has made a positive impact on thousands of employees throughout COVID-19.

 

Key Takeaways:

 

The pandemic and social isolation are negatively impacting employee mental health, creativity, problem-solving, and productivity.

 

Organizations can eliminate the stigma by normalizing the mental health and wellbeing conversation within the workplace.

 

It is incumbent upon organizational leaders to drive the conversation around mental health in the workplace. 

Useful Links:

www.careforyourpeople.com 

www.michelleedickinson.com

www.breakingintomylife.com 

 

Mental Health Series “Michelle’s Conversations that Matter” on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn6Yaq3AqLUebGmfZoRdB4Q

 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelle-e-dickinson-mm-%F0%9F%A7%A0%E2%99%A5%EF%B8%8F-7882013/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mdickinson13

Free chapter of her book: http://breakingintomylife.com/excerpt/

From the Center for Disease Control:

 

Helplines

If you are in crisis, get immediate help:

 

• Call 911
• National Suicide Prevention Lifelineexternal icon: 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for English, 1-888-628-9454 for Spanish, or Lifeline Crisis Chat
• Crisis Text Line: Text SIGNS to 741741 for 24/7, anonymous, free crisis counseling
• Disaster Distress Helpline: CALL or TEXT 1-800-985-5990 (press 2 for Spanish)