I didn't mean to offend - Mental Health Awareness

 Frankly Recruitment and a huge amount of companies are taking part in #wearitgreen week to raise awareness of Mental Health in the workplace.

As the person that creates content for the business, my blood ran cold thinking I had to create posts around the subject of mental health.

One of the problems with the subject is it is either taboo or controversial. The readers can hold their own opinions and to say it is a sensitive topic is an understatement. I would be lying if I said I haven’t avoided addressing it in marketing for years.

I read a post this morning that elaborates on my point. It was from a person who suffers from an anxiety disorder and was angry at the ease people were using the word “anxiety” as if it was something that was normal. Her colleague had said a project was giving her anxiety. She was offended and angry.

Whatever we do in business we never want to upset people. It’s even worse when it’s done with all good intentions.

So is it better to avoid the discussion or to address it and risk damage if you say something misconstrued?

I have very carefully found and created content and used language from support sites. I still fear my relating it to recruitment situations and using my understanding may somehow be an irritant but I do believe we should talk about it.

If you read something you disagree with or you find flippant or misuse of language then I think we should debate politely. We have gone for it this week and hope not to offend anyone with our posts. We are focussing on anxiety and that is a spectrum that everyone has the right to be on at any given time.

1 in 6 people in your workplace are dealing with anxiety. Let’s identify it, talk about it and simply acknowledge how it shows and how we, as employers can support them.

https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/

#tohelpmyanxiety #mentalhealthawareness