HelloSelf’s webinar on resilience: the Q&A

On March 3rd HelloSelf hosted a webinar on resilience, led by our Clinical Director Dr Annemarie O’Connor. A big thank you to all of those that attended, we hope you gained some useful information that can be shared with employees or used in your own day-to-day lives.

For anyone that wasn’t able to make it, you can watch it here. Short on time? We’ve included what was discussed in the Q&A below - if you have any questions about resilience building, particularly in the workplace, you may well find them here.

If not, feel free to drop us a message at hello@helloself.com and we’ll get back to you.

I’m considering getting Mental Health First Aider (MHFA) training for all of my line managers. Do you think this is a good idea?

I’m actually a MHFA trainer myself and this is definitely a good first step. MFHAs can be a really important first-point-of-contact for your employees and can do a great job in identifying issues early - prevention is, after all, so important.

A couple of things to bear in mind. Firstly, you may want to check that your line managers are all keen to do it, as becoming an MHFA is no small task. There’s a lot to take in and it wouldn’t be fair to put that kind of burden on someone that isn’t up for it.

I’d also recommend setting up a support group for your MHFAs so they can help each other. People who volunteer to become MHFAs are often approachable, kind-hearted people by nature, so when they have finished their training lots of staff members are comfortable going and talking to them. This is a good thing, but it can also be overwhelming for the MHFA, and it’s not fair to put that level of responsibility on them alongside doing their usual duties.

How do you know when it’s time to see a clinical psychologist?

The golden question! The truth is there is no set answer to this, but far too many people leave it later than they should. If you woke up one day and found yourself limping, would you wait a few months to see if it got better on its own? No! You’d go to the doctor and say something’s wrong and I need it to be sorted out.

This is why we need to view mental health as we view physical health. Things can be done to help, and most importantly, there’s no harm in trying it. If you see a psychologist and decide ‘actually I don’t think I need this right now’, you’ve gained clarity and perspective. You’re never obliged to a certain amount of sessions, why not give it a go?

How do you get colleagues/employees to be honest and open about their mental health, especially when we’re all working from home and it’s more difficult to spot signs?

The most important tip is to start with how you’re doing. As humans we naturally mirror others in conversation, so if you start by saying how you are coping mentally, the person you’re talking to will be much more willing to share.

This doesn’t mean that you have to share something private or say that you’re finding things hard when you’re not - just be honest. If that doesn’t work, I’d say that it’s better to risk irritating someone by repeatedly checking-in than miss when an employee could really use some help. When you’re demonstrating that you’re looking out for someone, even if their mental health is in a good place, they’ll most likely be appreciative.

Do you have any general tips on building resilience in your own life?

I think what’s most important is to put yourself out of your comfort zone from time to time. This doesn’t need to be bungee jumping or skydives, it’s about the little things. Put your hand up in a meeting, go out to eat somewhere you’ve never been before and don’t know much about.

Remember that you’re not showing bravery if you’re doing something which never made you scared in the first place. By doing these little challenges you’re teaching yourself that you can get through (and even excel in) challenging moments.

We hope that you find some of these useful, be sure to follow us on social media to hear about any upcoming webinars!