The mental health of our employees is really essential; but how has this all changed during COVID19?
At Ruella James, we understand that the mental health of our employees is really essential; and a fundamental part of what makes them successful and a happy team player. But how has this all changed during COVID19?
Over the last few months we have all had to adapt to working from home and our social lives have become completely virtual; leaving many people feeling isolated and left without support and someone to talk to.
Our philosophy has always been to encourage employees to feel comfortable to openly talk about their concerns and that employees' mental health issues are validated in the same way as their physical health issues. Talking about our emotions isn’t a taboo subject and is actively encouraged, on that note The Blurt Foundation and Mind are great organisation that is helping to increase awareness and understanding of depression.
So what’s changed - we have regular team zoom meetings and 1 on 1 catch ups, which has been really beneficial in keeping our dialog flowing. It is also a good time to ‘visually check in’, as one of the first signs that there is something wrong with a person is that they will let their appearance slip. It helps that we’ve all worked together for 10 years, so we feel comfortable about being open and honest about our feelings.
Our ‘self care’ strategy has helped maintain our mental health over the last couple months;
Sticking to a healthy eating, exercise and sleep routine
Don’t be too hard on yourself ‘be kind to your mind’, good Meditation practice techniques can be found at Headspace.
Listening to your body (I know this sounds strange but bear with me), when we feel uneasy and tense, our body is telling us we might be angry, stressed and / or unwell. This is when we need to take notice of what our body is telling us
Learning new things via webinars, Ted Talks, podcasts
Take breaks away from the screen (make a cup of tea or jump on the kid’s trampoline!)
Find a way to help at least one other person a day
Before making a decision I ask myself if it’s kind for me
We have to keep on reminding each other ‘this current time will pass’; and ‘this time will come to an end’.
