Mental health wellbeing worklife balance for DIT Faye

Mental health & well-being & work-life balance for DIT Faye Conway January 2019

Today’s workshop Overview

Overview Understanding mental health and well-being Stress Work-life balance Tips & techniques for boosting personal well–being Power of mindfulness 3

But first… 4

Today’s workshop • Your hopes & expectations for today?

Mental health & well-being 6

Personal well-being? ? 7

Our mental health How is your physical health? How is your mental health? ?

Health Continuum (healthy to unwell) • We all have mental health • Our mental health may be located at any point along the mental health–illness continuum • The majority of mental health difficulties (stress, anxiety, depression) fall into the mild-moderate category. 9

Mental Health Continuum HEALTHY MILD TO MODERATE DISTRESS ILLNESS 10

Mental well-being • Refers to how we are feeling within ourselves and experiencing our lives. • Our mental health influences: o how we think, feel, and act. o how we see ourselves, our lives and others in our lives. o our interactions with others o our ability to cope with everyday stresses, to work productively, our decision making. o our ability to realise our potential & abilities.

Some statistics…. • 1 in 4 people experience a mental health difficulty • Half of us will have a family member who has depression at one point in their lives. • According to the WHO; o Stress is ‘the health epidemic of the 21 st century, ’ and the driver of many chronic diseases. o Depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide 12

Mental health problems • Common mental health problems: • • Stress Anxiety, OCD Panic attacks Depression Eating disorders Self harm Suicidal thoughts 13

Depression – the blues or something more? • Some common symptoms o Depressed mood most of the day (feelings of sadness, emptiness, hopelessness), tearful. o Diminished interest in almost all activities o Loss of energy and vitality, tired and fatigued with no physical cause o Sleep disturbance / insomnia / unrestful sleep o Changes in appetite o Difficulty concentrating, indecisive, slowed thinking o Low self-worth, guilt o Suicidal thoughts • Symptoms causing significant distress/ impairment • Present for 2 weeks or more 14

Anxiety disorders • Anxiety becomes a disorder when symptoms become chronic & interfere with our ability to function and our daily lives • Generalised anxiety disorder o (chronic and exaggerated worry & tension, even though nothing seems to provoke it) • • • Panic disorder Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) Phobias Social phobias Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) 15

Stress 16

Stress • Experienced when we perceive that demands made on us exceed our resources • Threat vs challenge • Different for us all • Stress tolerance 17

Pressure or stressed out? 18

Signs of stress • Different for us all • How do I know when I am stressed? – Physical (How do I feel it in my body? ) – Emotions (What emotions do I feel? ) – Behavioural (What do I do? ) – Thoughts (What do I tell myself? ) • Creating an ‘early warning’ system 19

Key ways to managing stress • External: identify and manage the external stressors: o What are they? In what way can they be reduced? • Personal: take steps to look after our mental health o Identifying helpful coping mechanisms and behaviours. 20

Work-life balance 21

Balance • What do mean by ‘out of balance’? • How do we feel? • No one size fits all….

Balance – wheel of life 23

How boost personal well-being 24

Life’s up’s and down’s 25

Power of our thoughts 26

Power of our thoughts 27

Power of our thoughts 28

Unhelpful thinking styles • Examples of unhelpful self-talk: o Over-generalising o Disqualifying the positive o Catastrophising o Should/ Must o Personalising o Labelling 29

Power of our thoughts • Call to mind recent worry / setback…. . o What did you tell yourself about this situation? o Can you identify any of the unhelpful thinking styles? o How did you feel?

Combating negative thinking – how? • Key is to catch negative thinking patterns and dispute them. • Ask yourself: is what I am telling myself true / helpful / logical? • What is the evidence for that belief ? • Am I being overly harsh on myself ? • Would my peers/ friends/ family agree with it ? • Replace: the unhelpful thought with a more helpful one… 31

Replace the unhelpful self-talk Ø More rational thought / positive affirmation o I’ve always coped before. I am adaptable and well-resourced. I am good enough, there is more to me than this, I am well trained for my role, I have the experience, tools and resources to cope, I am well respected by my peers/managers, I can do this!. . . . 32

Replace the unhelpful self-talk Ø Words of advice/ support would your best friend offer you about this situation? Ø Words of advice of support would your older self offer you? 33

Remember. . . • Our thoughts are not facts…. “Our thoughts are like rumours in the mind. They might be true, but then again, they might not be” (Prof Williams & Dr Penman- Mindfulness) 34

Watch out for perfectionism • Perfectionists are driven to get everything right in a world in which that is almost impossible to achieve • Practice self-compassion o Be a friend to the person you are today o ‘This doesn’t define me’ o ‘I am enough’ o ‘There is more to me than this’ 35

Recognise our common humanity • You are not alone in how you are feeling • Self-criticism isolates o “Why am I the only one who is finding this hard, struggling, not coping, feeling like a fraud, leaving things to the last minute. . ? ” o Drop the concept that we are in some way different. . . 36

Keep things in perspective. . . • Think of a typical stressful event. . . • Traffic, deadline, someone being rude, losing work on computer, partner on phone, someone not doing something they promised, house left untidy. . • Ask yourself. . • On a scale of 0 -10 how awful was it? • How will I feel about this in a week, month, year? • How big a deal is this really in terms of bigger picture of my life? • Is this truly impt or a ‘side’ issue • Can I learn anything from this?

Focus on what you can control • When we put our efforts where it can have the most impact we feel empowered & confident. . . • When worry about the uncontrollable – lost, helpless, frustrated, angry & powerless. . . 38

When the going gets tough. . • Where is my focus? • Unhelpful thoughts? (I don’t want to be doing this, this is too challenging, blaming circumstances. . . . ) • Re-focus • What are the long-term benefits of persevering • Why is this meaningful? 39

What else? 40

Weekly well-being check-up • Where’s my mental health today? (0 -10) • • • Am I drinking enough water? Am I eating a balanced diet? Exercise? Take time to rest? How’s my sleep? Did I feel rested when I woke up? • What is one thing I can do to this week to help my well-being?

Re-balance • Do more of what makes you happy • What are things you enjoy doing? o (e. g; cycling, catching up with friends, reading, taking leisurely bath, cinema, watching favourite programme, hiking, gardening, socialising, time spent with children……. . ) • Can you find time this week to do one / two?

Take a break & re-charge • Take a break during your working day • Be mindful of how you use your ‘downtime’ o ‘No problem–solving’ breaks o Find 5 minutes ‘Quiet Time’ • When at home – unplug & switch off • Digital detox? • How? o Disable alerts/ notifications o No device zone o No device ‘time’

Prioritise & plan • Begin by mapping out the week ahead – What do you want to achieve this week? (personal & professional goals) • Categorise ‘To-Do’ list …… • Schedule based on importance & urgency The Eisenhower Matrix 44

Give yourself permission • To say ‘no’ – we don’t need to meet every request life throw us • To stop trying to do it all / set boundaries • To voice your needs & wants confidently • To ask for support 45

Remind yourself of your strengths • Identify your signature strengths • Think back to a recent setback/challenge that you overcame: o What strengths did you draw on during that time? o In what way did your strengths help you? • When was the last time you felt proud of yourself? . . . why?

Practice gratitude Gratitude is the happiness holy grail • How cultivate gratitude? – Gratitude jar / Gratitude journal / team gratitude board/ ‘thank-you’ letter or text Exercise: (choose one to reflect on) o What are three positive experiences you have had this week? o Think of three things that you have done this week that have had a positive influence on someone else o What are three things you are grateful for? 47

Celebrate success! Goal orientated culture: ‘I’ll be happy when. . . . ’ Exercise: • Instead of waiting until you reach the ‘goal’ ask yourself; o What am I proud of today? o What successes have I had today? 48

Lean into your relationships • Stay connected • Surround yourself with positive support networks • Recognise, ‘its ok to not be ok’ • Tell someone how you are feeling • ps: (chances are they have guessed you’re not feeling yourself!). 49

Create headspace with mindfulness

Final thoughts…. . • Stop • Start • Continue 51

What we covered Understanding mental health and well-being Stress Work-life balance Tips & techniques for boosting personal well–being Power of mindfulness 52

Mental health resources Employee Assistance Programme Helplines/ Supports o o o Aware: 1800 804848 GROW Ireland: 1890 474 Pieta House: 1800 247247 or text Help to 51444 Samaritans: 116 123 St Patrick’s University Hospital: 01 249 3333 Mental Health information: o o Your Mental Health. ie Mental Health Ireland. ie See Change. ie Time to Change. org. uk 53

Mindfulness Resources • Any mindfulness book by Padraig O’Morain • A Mindfulness Guide for the Frazzled: Ruby Waz • A year of Living Mindfully: Anna Black • Mindfulness: Finding Peace in a Frantic World: Prof M. Williams & Dr. D. Penman 54

Mindfulness App’s • • • Headspace Calm Whirl Buddhify Insight Timer • All available on i. Tunes and Google Play 55

Mindfulness Resources: Websites • www. freemindfulness. org • www. wildmind. org • www. pomorain. com • The Daily Bell – free daily mindfulness reminder from www. pomorain. com 56

Thank You 57