State of Mind: In the Workplace

Ah, the workplace: it's how we for exchange our time for money; it's where we establish many of our personal and professional connections; and, in a lot of cases, it's also a source of stress and anxiety.

But regardless of whether or not you enjoy your job at this specific moment, we spend a large percentage of our lives there in total: somewhere around 20-30% of the average American's waking life takes place at work [1], so shouldn't we all strive to make something positive of it? A boss I greatly respect once told me that "we are with our coworkers for 40 or more hours per week, arguably more time than with our own families", which may be true for a lot of folks, and that message put an important emphasis on how I viewed my work friendships from then onward.

Despite being a place where we spend a large portion of our time, it's not always easy to discuss anxiety or depression in work circumstances.

Someone recently shared these wise words with me: "Depression is about overly focusing on the past, and anxiety is about overly focusing on the future." Unfortunately, I've found that work can sometimes be an environment where we focus on both our past and future in unhealthy ways, and I'm no exception. This week, I'd like to offer my own experiences with depression and anxiety in the workplace, with a light smattering of worldly context, and hopefully that will provide some insight for other unhappy people out there.

Honestly, where do I begin? Some things I've encountered over my career that have struck me deeply would be: the passing away of a colleague and the void it left in our community; the unexpected departures of multiple coworkers that I felt very close to; the burden of stress that unemployment can put on a family; the unforeseen effects that emotions have on workplace relationships; the failed promise of a promotion and seeing another move up in my place; and the countless friends who have shared the same discontent I felt toward the work I performed every day. Each of these ordeals took time and a heap of self-awareness to overcome, but I feel I've grown both emotionally and professionally in so many ways as a result of these occurrences that I wouldn't sacrifice the gains I've made to take back the pain.

One mistake I've made on my own a number of times is letting my work define who I am entirely. At one point in a recent job I had, I would sometimes spend an hour or so of my personal time in a day just reading over customer service e-mails I had written, picking apart what I'd done well and what I could improve for next time. In a sense, reading over these messages I had written became so important to me that it was bordering on obsessive; I had convinced myself it was to improve my writing abilities, but it had also become a tool by which I judged my self-worth and caused myself great anxiety in the end. Furthermore, I began exaggerating every negative work-related experience in my mind, which only compounded with my over-analysis to create a constant state of dissatisfaction with my career and where I was headed in it.

Thankfully, I'm someone who has been lucky enough to work with individuals that are open to discussing many of these issues. That being said, sharing your deepest thoughts and feelings with those you know from work isn't always the most ideal option. Individuals aside, I've also been lucky to work for organizations that have provided me with other resources to deal with these troubles (whether or not I knew I had access to them at the time).

One such resource that I've utilized is an employee assistance program (or EAP), which is a great option if you're looking for life counseling or therapy for a traumatic incident. EAPs actually have origins all the way back in the 1930s, after the Alcoholics Anonymous movement began and employers saw an increase in worker production by addressing the rising concern of alcoholism in the workplace. Despite its beginnings long ago, as of 2010, only around 45% of private sector workers in the United States have access to an EAP program through their employer; that's a modest increase from about 40% in 2005 [2]. This tends to be a more popular benefit with mid- to large-sized companies, so that is something you unfortunately may be missing out on by working for a small or local business.

“Only around 45% of private sector workers in the United States have access to an EAP program.”

Personally, I used my EAP option to see a counselor about my depression and how it was affecting my life, at work and elsewhere. While it ultimately helped me at the time, the process was not without some awkward hoops to jump through: this required me to call a phone number and speak with a random person about my mental health in detail, coordinating a time with my boss during my work week when I could schedule the recurring appointments, introducing myself and opening up to a therapist for the first time, and figuring out that I was referred by the EAP program to a practice that wasn't covered by my employer's insurance. A friend of mine who also utilized an EAP program described how it can be like "going through the bureaucracy of choosing a mental health professional", which I have to agree is what my experience was like and probably wasn't the most appealing list of tasks for me when I was feeling down, despite how necessary it was. All criticisms of EAPs aside, some of these are issues that we simply need to face as a society in our attitudes toward depression and mental health, so I'm still glad I had that resource at my disposal.

Another work-related experience that can be just as (or more) stressful than having a job is not having one at all. To provide some background for this country, about 5% of the population in the U.S. seeking a job is out of work at the moment, but that's spiked as high as 10% in recent years [3], leaving a lot of people struggling to compete for roles that they're overqualified and underpaid for. At the longest interval, I spent about six months unemployed, so if you think it's easy to spiral downward in anxiety and depression with a job, then give that a shot! Similar to how I had taken an unhealthy investment in my personal performance at recent jobs, I spent many of my unemployed days imagining irrelevant reasons why nobody was hiring me and how I might need to change my expectations altogether. After submitting somewhere between 70 and 100 applications to a wide variety of employers, I had just about reached the limits of my sanity when I heard back about an interview for a wonderful opportunity. With some dedication and study, I got the job and never looked back!

I think what's most important to take away from my work-related ramblings is that you're always the one dictating your own perspective in these situations. Sure, we're all going to encounter bad times in our careers, but it's so important to establish a positive foundation for yourself and drive onward toward the goals you've made. If you're unemployed and already doing everything you can to look for work, then spend some time with a hobby you enjoy and take your mind off of the search for a while. Lastly, just utilize the people and resources at your disposal: they're here to help you!

Much Love,
Bryce

References:
[1] Thompson, Karl. "What percentage of your life will you spent at work?" Real Sociology (March 31, 2012). [link]
[2] Mayfield, Michelle. "Health, Wellness, and Employee Assistance: A Holistic Approach to Employee Benefits." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 25, 2011). [link]
[3] "Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (April 18, 2016). [link]