Explore & learn about Mental Health

1 in 5 of us experience a mental health issue every year. Mental Health Awareness Day/Week/Month is coming up in October and is an opportunity for us to advocate for and raise awareness of mental health. With the COVID pandemic still impacting the lives of our communities, it’s time to give mental health the focus and attention it deserves.

Organisations that create and harbour a culture of understanding, empathy and trust allow people to be open about the issues impacting their lives. And it is especially important for people with mental health conditions to feel safe and comfortable in discussing their experience and obtaining appropriate support.

As part of Mental Health Month in October, we have a range of support options available to you and your employees on Mental Health in the Workplace and supporting employees to maintain meaningful connections at work. 

To book in any of these options contact your Relationship Manager today.

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Tuning In means being present, being aware of what’s happening within you, and in the world around you.  
Tune In to your senses – what can you sense right now? What can you feel? 
Tune In to your communities – what’s happening that you can be part of, or that you can help others be part of? 
Tune In to stigma – how do attitudes and understandings of mental health and wellbeing impact people’s ability to live the lives they want? 

See more information here.

A common theme for many people this year has been isolation. It's unfortunate that one of our best defences against COVID-19 is something that can negatively impact on our mental health and wellbeing.

Part of the solution to this is to remain connected any way we can. Even when we are not seeing each other face to face as much, we can take active steps towards contacting friends, family and colleagues. In addition to our Internal Wellbeing Initiatives, every few months, I make a conscious effort to arrange virtual 'Afternoon Tea's' in small groups to connect with everyone. It's a chance to check-in and also for myself and others to connect with different teams within the organisation. At AccessEAP we know the importance of connecting with each other and asking R U OK? and this year, that simple question is taking on a deeper relevance. Asking people are they ok? can make a difference between despair and knowing someone cares.

If you have an employee or colleague you are worried about, reach out, it may feel scary to make the first move. They might be disengaged with those around them, unable to focus on work, asking what the point of going on is, or saying that they are a burden. We often feel just a bit flat. But if you sense there is more going on – and this year there are a lot of stresses people are dealing with – trust your gut instinct. Remember during this time its expected that people may not be ok. People will be like a roller coaster some days they are ok and some they may be struggling and feeling down. This is why the conversation and checking in is so important every day and not only once a year.

Some people fear that talking about suicide might make it worse. Could it make a person who is suicidal think about it more and therefore act on it? No, it won't. The opposite is true as it creates a window for people and allows them to talk about what they are going through.

When you are talking, stay calm, it's ok to let them know you don't know what to say. Tell them you want to be here for them and will support them through this difficult time. R U OK? is a simple, caring question and it could be a conversation that changes a life – and being with someone in distress can be exactly the right type of help in that moment. The conversation is really important now and needs to be every day if we are to make a difference. 

Published in MyBusiness 1st September 2020

It’s almost becoming a ritual at AccessEAP that we celebrate another week that we have successfully gotten through together, for our people and for your people. We’ve taken up the challenge to shake things up, call out and celebrate the good things that are happening around us. We actively seek the wins, no matter how big or small, to share with each other. We know we can do with some feel-good news.

How often are you taking time out to reflect on how you are actually doing? Are you taking the time to acknowledge what’s been happening in your life and the lives of those around you? Can you remember the last time you acknowledged you’re doing your best to get on with your life through the challenges of COVID-19? We’d like to invite you to take the opportunity, right now as you read this to remind yourself:

“You did the best you could today and that is good enough”

Life is a series of moments, and sometimes we are not great at taking the time and space to seek a different perspective on what is happening in our lives. It can be challenging to find the time, space or create a moment of clarity where we can stop, pause and reflect. Let’s take the time, right now, and give ourselves permission to acknowledge what we’ve been experiencing in these challenging times and reward ourselves with some personal encouragement that we’ve done the best we can.

This week we’re turning our spotlight onto the positivity and power of finding new perspectives.

We’ve created two new tools, Managing perspectives and Regaining perspective. Both of our new tools provide your leaders and your people with some simple tools to help find balance in our work and lives. It’s the power of perception, and we can make a conscious choice to adopt fresh perspectives to help us get through this, admittedly longer than expected moment, together. Find our wide range of Leader Tools and Personal Tools, in the Employer and Employee Login Areas of our website.

In the lead up towards R U OK? Day next month, remember that it’s not about one day of the year. We invite you to make it a part of your everyday organisational language. It is a profoundly human question to ask, and helps us as humans come together.

As always, our people are here to help support you and your people be their best in life and work. Contact AccessEAP on 1800 818 728. 

Coming Soon!

Put yourself in control of your mental health and wellbeing.

With our new app you will be able to:

• Make a booking to speak with one of our counsellors.
• Read tips, strategies and new ways to support your mental health and wellbeing journey.
• Choose your own wellbeing tools and resources based on your preferences, goals and interests. 

We’re here to help you be your best at life and work. Coming soon, watch this space!

#WomensHealthWeek 7-11 September 2020

With the stress COVID-19 has placed on everyone's lives, it’s now more important than ever to look after your overall health and wellbeing. This September, Women’s Health Week will be a great reminder to take time out to check in on your health and to keep making positive changes that can last a lifetime.

For more information and free resources visit the Jean Hailes' Women's Health Week Website. It's time to put your health first.

With so many competing demands and expectations, the struggle to keep up with both work and home commitments can be extremely stressful. When stress persists to a point that a person feels they aren’t coping, it can affect the functioning of their day-to-day life as well as their overall wellbeing. The stressors of too much ‘juggling’ together with trying to do things well and be ‘good’ at everything is impacting on women and their ability to sleep, think clearly and make decisions.

For more information about Women's Health and Wellbeing contact your Relationship Manager who can go through our Women's Wellbeing Training and Webinar options.

Let's celebrate another week of getting through the pandemic together. It's been tough for many of us, let's take a moment to recognise how far we've come and perhaps more importantly, how we've come together.

We wanted to congratulate our friends, colleagues and loved ones in physical distancing in Victoria for getting over the hump – you're halfway there! We're cheering and willing you across the finish line. Likewise, for those of you in Auckland, we're in this together. Last week Kate McPhee, one of our experienced Psychologists from Melbourne, spoke about evicting COVID-19 from our minds, where it's taken up a permanent residence for many of us. We think enough is enough and we want to call out that regardless of COVID-19 there are still good things happening around us. It's easy to lose sight of this and keep a balanced perspective. This week we want to ask all of you to join with us in openly talking about hope, optimism and our resilience that is helping us get through this together.

This week we're turning a spotlight on the power of positivity.

As leaders, one of the core things that we can do for people is to create a sense of safety for our people and teams. How we create this feeling of safety in our workspaces has a profound impact on how our people shift their thinking and engage with their work as well as their personal lives. Now more than ever, our people need us to create, foster and nurture psychological safety in the workspace.

We’ve created two new tools, Authenticity as a leader and Fostering Hope through COVID-19. Your Leader Tool asks us how we can be a beacon for navigating uncertainty, negativity and anxiety by talking openly about optimism, hope and positivity. Your Personal Tool asks us to reflect on what we've been through and foster hope for ourselves and others. Find our wide range of Leader Tools and Personal Tools, in the Employer and Employee Login Areas of our website.

Let's create balance in the story our people, teams and organisations are living through. For many of us, we're not great at recognising or celebrating those small moments in life that contribute to our sense of wellbeing. So we're taking up a challenge for ourselves, and invite you to join with us. Find those small moments of joy, ways that build a sense of connection with others and those rituals that help bring a smile to someone else. Call it out and openly praise it – together we can help our people move through the pandemic and create with our people, a workspace culture we are proud to be a part of.

As always, our people are here to help support you and your people be their best in life and work. Contact AccessEAP on 1800 818 728. 

It feels like the second wave is already upon us with everything that's happening across the region – and this week we want to acknowledge the challenges now facing our friends, colleagues and family in New Zealand. While some of us may feel like we can successfully surf the second wave, how many people are really talking about being on the second wave right now? How many of our people are just trying to get through renewed physical distancing restrictions? How many are barely keeping their head above water?

We know that people cope in various ways. Some of these coping mechanisms may look and feel very different to how we would cope. Alcohol, gambling, or even just withdrawing from connecting with other people outside of their home, are all behaviours that are both natural and normal reactions. However, these aren't necessarily healthy over a long period of time. As leaders, how should you respond to your people who are coping in different ways? How can you help your people grow through COVID-19 so they can be their best in life and work?

This week we're turning our spotlight onto support for our people to engage in positive coping behaviours.

We're asking everyone to challenge themselves to call out and name what they're feeling. Being able to name something gives us the ability to do something about what we've identified. It helps our minds being able to see things clearly, and more importantly, think about what we can do about it. Our data shows an increased predominance of feelings of tiredness, exhaustion, feeling drained or deflated and also a 'bit over it all'. We've recognised that over the past couple of weeks its been tough to be our best in life and work, as people we know, work with and care for are impacted across Australia and this week even in New Zealand.

As a result, we've decided that enough is enough and we're calling out the continual domination of COVID-19 in our thoughts, conversations and media. We feel it's time to recognise that there are different ways for people to cope, and our focus is on helping our people adopt positive, healthy, long term behaviours. Let's celebrate the fact that we are in this together, and come together to have the conversations that let us know what someone else wants from us that will help support them towards being their best through the pandemic.

We’ve created two new tools, Identifying coping behaviours and Evicting the virus from your headspace. Your Leader Tool this week calls out coping behaviours, so your leaders understand how their people are coping and ways to help them support their people. Kate McPhee, one of our experienced Psychologists from Melbourne who is living in the heart of the renewed physical distancing, has created our Personal Tool, which calls out that COVID-19 has set up camp in our minds and it's time to clean it out. Find our wide range of Leader Tools and Personal Tools, in the Employer and Employee Login Areas of our website. 

We've seen an increase requests for support over the past five weeks, and we expect this trend to continue as this time round people know what to expect and are seeking support sooner rather than later. We'd encourage all of you to continue to find ways to be your best, and be the support and leader your people want you to be.

We are here to support you through this. As always, our people are here to help support you and your people be their best in life and work. Contact AccessEAP on 1800 818 728. 

Photo by Lisa Fotios from Pexels

Published in Human Resources Director 15th July 2020

This past week has reminded us of the truth that change is the only constant. Our thoughts go out to everyone in Victoria as they’ve started another round of physical distancing. We hope that you feel Australia’s support as we get through COVID-19 together. One of the traits often attributed to the Australian personality and character is that we come together through hard times to support one another. Remember to reach out and connect with those of your colleagues, family or friends in Victoria, build connections and relationships as it will help them through the next six weeks.

We’ve noticed some interesting trends in our conversations over the past week and wanted to call it out. A word that has seen an increased frequency in use is ‘deflated’. We’ve noticed that many people experience feeling deflated and described themselves as feeling flat. There is certainly a sense that the recent increase in community transmission has many of us looking at Victoria and asking if, or even when, this could happen to us. How can we provide the necessary support to our people or our peers when we ourselves feel challenged? How can we build our resilience skills to help pick ourselves up or recharge our psychological batteries?

This week we’re turning our spotlight on the importance of naming and normalising the range of emotions and responses.

Supporting your people inevitably requires your leaders to ensure they continue to engage in the right sorts of conversations that will keep your people engaged and feeling supported. What are some tips and strategies you can equip your leaders and your people with? How does your organisation harness the power of positive communication to lead your people through these challenging times? How can your leaders keep things on an even keel as we continue to be challenged to adapt by COVID-19?

Within AccessEAP, we continue to emphasise the importance of investing in self-care. One of the things we always try to do is ensure that we care for our people so they can care for yours. What does this look like? Each morning in our daily Executive Leadership Team huddle, we make it a core agenda item to check in with each other. “How are you doing?” is one of the most asked questions at AccessEAP. Our people leaders make it a daily priority to check in with various members of the team. We’re seeing the benefits of this approach as our people check in on each other. It’s become more than a core part of our culture, it’s just what we do on a regular basis – and we see the benefits in our internal employee Pulse Surveys.

We’ve created two new tools, Strategies for checking in with your people and Acknowledging and neutralising negative thoughts. Find our wide range of Leader Tools and Personal Tools, in the Employer and Employee Login Areas of our website. 

We are here to support you through this. As always, our people are here to help support you and your people be their best in life and work. Contact AccessEAP on 1800 818 728. 

Photo by Ekaterina Bolovtsova from Pexels

For many months we have been exceptionally conscious of our physical health. In response to COVID-19, we have modified and learnt new behaviours which have helped keep many of us safe from becoming infected, or indeed infecting others. Some of these behaviours have been to adopt physical distancing, frequent proper hand washing, use of hand sanitiser or in the case of Victoria compulsory wearing of masks. Our focus on physical wellbeing makes sense during a pandemic. These good physical hygiene habits have helped Australians avoid the scale of infections in other countries such as America. 

What are the good mental, emotional and psychological habits which we have developed alongside these new physical hygiene habits? For many leaders, we have been focused on leading through crisis and evolving our workspaces to meet the requirements of the new normal such as COVID-Safe Workplaces. As you know, we all have signs posted all around our physical workspaces reminding everyone of the importance of physical hygiene requirements. Does your workspace have signs posted everywhere with psychological, mental and emotional good habits? 

This week we’re turning our spotlight onto the critical need to promote positive psychological and emotional habits as much as we’re promoting physical habits.    

How can we equip our managers and leaders with the tools that will help them equip their people with the necessary coping skills? What are the psychological and emotional habit equivalents of handwashing and physical distancing? How can we help our managers and leaders help their people move from surviving the pandemic to thriving beyond the inevitable recovery? 

We’ve created two new tools, to provide some strategies and tips for creating, promoting and sustaining positive psychological habits. Find our wide range of Leader Tools and Personal Tools including this week's tools, Building positive mental and emotional skills in your people, in the Employer and Employee Login Areas of our website. 

It’s also important to recognise and call out that pointing fingers and blaming others can often be a way for us to try and feel in control or to make ourselves feel better. The underlying factors shaping our behaviours during a time of crisis are often fear and anxiety. It’s important as leaders to ensure we model the kinds of behaviours we would like to see in our people and teams, as this will help support and grow your organisational culture through these challenging times.  

As always, our people are here to help support you and your people be their best in life and work. Contact AccessEAP on 1800 818 728.

Photo by Ketut Subiyanto from Pexels

At AccessEAP we are committed to developing cultural competency across our business. For us, that means providing the best possible experience for our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander customers. By increasing our cultural awareness and knowledge of historical events impacting the nature of trauma experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees today, we offer the opportunity to develop more culturally appropriate EAP holistic support services. In order for us to authenticate our commitment, AccessEAP is investing in the ongoing development of cultural sensitivity within our workforce by offering online Cultural Competency Training for all employees.

We recognise a need to offer the opportunity to speak with an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Counsellor or a Culturally Sensitive Counsellor who has experience with individual, families and community and who understand the challenges.  By working together we aim to find the most appropriate support for you. Referral to other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander services can also be arranged.

At AccessEAP our Cultural Wellbeing Team includes both Culturally Sensitive Counsellors and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Counsellors. If appropriate our Cultural Co-Ordinator is able to assess and understand any individual circumstances and will work with you to identify the most culturally safe options for you or your organisation

Together we find ways to provide culturally appropriate support that works for you sharing knowledge in a respectful, confidential and safe space. Having a chat can help with the day to day challenges at home or in the workplace such as;

• Stress
• Anxiety
• Trauma
• Grief and Loss
• Addiction Issues
• Diet
• Financial

Our new Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples Dedicated Line is now live. Whatever the nature of your concern please feel free to call the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples Dedicated Line on:1800 861 085.

Boosting your overall health during the pandemic

Last month I wrote about adapting to the new normal. As I write in August, the goalposts have moved again, highlighting the importance of maintaining some stability during change and uncertainty. There's no single factor that works better than another or that will be the answer to all we are experiencing. When we talk about mental health and wellbeing we need a combination of strategies which are interconnected. Together they can make a difference. Let's look at food, exercise and environment.

Even though we are modern beings, half of our brain is still our evolutionary brain, keeping us alive when resources are in short supply. Wonder why we eat when stressed? It's our way of keeping fuelled up in case a sudden threat makes us need energy to flee. Why sugary or fatty foods? When our ancestors lived nomadic lives, fruit was our only source of sugar – if you came across a tree laden with fruit, you would eat as much as you could before competitors did. That urge to binge is still here even if we don't fear a shortage of fruit. Or Tim Tams. Likewise, greasy food converts into energy for fight-or-flight. That urge to prep our bodies is instinctual when stressed. (Unfortunately, knowing why your evolutionary brain tells you to eat chocolate or chips doesn't mean your modern body should, at least not daily!)

We all know it's essential to prioritise exercise and relaxation in this incredibly stressful year but never has the saying "easier said than done" been more true. A lack of exercise may be compounded by working from home. Routines which provide incidental exercise such as walking to the bus and leaving the building at lunchtime can easily slip away. Sitting at a laptop all day means your eyes get strained, your posture contracts and indeed your whole world can feel like it's shrinking.  

Fight-or-flight is activated in stressful times, so in a pandemic, we are operating at low-level, permanent fight-or-flight status. Feeling housebound, ongoing distressing news, feeling like you are always 'on' because "Working From Home" can feel like Working 24 Hours. This keeps our cortisol hormones elevated.

Getting out and moving works! Being in sunlight, just walking in nature has calming effects on our brain. If/when you can't currently go outside to exercise I practice Yoga daily and it can be done anywhere. Similarly getting up and walking around while on the phone (not all communication has to be via  Zoom) and setting regular intervals to stretch and drink water. In addition, exercise lowers stress and therefore reduces our tendency to want the unhealthy but tasty food.

As we continue to see the impact of rising cases in Victoria and with news of increased cases in Aged Care facilities, it is understandable that many of us may be feeling a range of heightened emotions. Concern for the residents, their families, and communities, as well as concern for the employees and managers at the front line, will challenge us all.

The media attention and increased scrutiny of the rise in cases has put additional pressure and stress on those in the aged care sector.  While it is important to address systematic issues, it is unhelpful to blame or point fingers. We all need to focus on addressing the situation and support those who have been impacted. This is time to focus on our learnings, not to start pointing fingers. Caring for some of the most vulnerable people in society during a pandemic and dealing with emotional issues such as deterioration in a resident’s health can be extremely challenging. Your people may feel themselves trapped, as they try and find ways to look after themselves and their loved ones against the needs of residents and their families.

In order to support staff so they can continue to do their job, we need to remind employees and managers that there is help available.  We know that at this stage getting through each day seems like all that we can manage, but it is important for staff to know support is at their fingertips. While we may not be able to control what is happening around us. We can help ourselves and each other by reaching out for support.  Counselling can be organised conveniently over the phone so it may be possible to get the support needed right now.

During this outbreak your managers and employees may be impacted in various ways and managers may require additional support, in their roles of leading or managing employees. We know that a key protective factor in organisations to reduce psychological risk is supportive management. A manager’s wellbeing is key so that they can support others. AccessEAP has a range of services to assist staff in managing stress, building resilience and keeping mentally fit through this challenging time. For more information about the support we can provide, please speak to your Relationship Manager who can connect you with our Clinical and Organisational Development teams.

Government support

Published in Human Resources Director 29th July 2020

Managing through uncertainty and crisis requires leaders to invest their time and energy in building and maintaining our people’s and our team’s resilience. We’re faced with new twists and challenges to leading in the new normal. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to demand flexibility and adaptability by all of us. How can we help equip our people with new ways of thinking and responding in their work lives?

We think it’s important to call it out – we need to develop our ability to engage with constant change and uncertainty and turn this into a strength. Adaptability is one of the elements which underpin resilience. Helping our people learn how to cope with challenges is important. Once this platform is solid, we can help turn these coping mechanisms into coping skills, and help our people use their strengths. One of the things leaders are expected to provide in today’s working environment is creating a psychologically safe environment. What does psychological safety in the workspace, given new blended work models, look like? How can we ensure that we are helping to provide feelings of safety and stability to our people?

This week we’re turning our spotlight on helping our leaders and our people lean into their strengths. In times of crisis, we can help ourselves and those around to ‘lift our eyes to the horizon’. Normal human reactions in any crisis is to focus the attention to what’s immediately in front of us and respond to perceived threats. While this is an incredibly useful evolutionary response, we can build additional ways for our people to adopt different perspectives and behaviours by identifying their strengths and know how to lean into these.

This week we have leaned into the strengths of our wellbeing skills, to bring to the forefront our blend of clinical and positive psychology tools to assist your leaders and your people. Find our wide range of Leader Tools and Personal Tools including this week's Harnessing Strengths tools in the Employer and Employee Login Areas of our website. 

As always, our people are here to help support you and your people be their best in life and work. Contact AccessEAP on 1800 818 728.

There’s an almost palpable sense of rising negative feelings about the resurgence of COVID-19 again this week. Our collective optimism that we crushed the first wave has been eroded as talk increasingly turns to the likelihood of an impending second wave and whether this is already upon us. We’re being challenged by events – how can we maintain our positive outlook on life? How are those of us who need to work really hard at being resilient coping with these constant challenges? Our data suggests that the personal impacts of living through the pandemic is increasingly challenging individual’s capacity to cope. How can we support our people to be their best in life and work?

Our resilience as Australians has been tested for over six months. Leaders need to maintain, build or reinvest in our own resilience. This can help us build the resilience of our people and teams. Some of the traits that comprise resilience are things that we can help our people learn and live in their day to day lives. As leaders, emotional intelligence and agility are two areas we have leaned into heavily through the pandemic. For our people, coping may require different sets of skills or traits.

As leaders, how can we better equip our people with the necessary skills and traits that help them cope better? How can we help them find perspective and keep as even a keel as is possible?

This week we’re turning our spotlight on resilience and particularly helping our people find ways to feel in control of their lives. COVID-19 is something that has happened to all of us. As Australians, we’ve chosen to come together to collectively try and flatten the curve. We’ve also chosen to, as much as possible, follow advice and implement new ways of living such as physical distancing. We’re making a choice to come together and do what’s necessary to try and prevent a broader second wave. Sometimes, we need to remind ourselves and each other that we’ve all been a part in making these choices.

Find our wide range of Leader Tools and our new Personal Tool - Finding and maintaining your sense of personal control in the Employer and Employee Login Areas of our website. 

Building resilience during these times can be challenging but it is something we can work on together. As always, as your EAP we are here to support your people whatever the nature of their concerns, please contact AccessEAP on 1800 818 728.

Learn how a conversation can change a life

Thursday, 10^th September is R U OK? Day and AccessEAP would like to support you and your people to feel confident asking “R U OK?”. 2020 has been a challenging year for everyone, and this year we are focused on helping people have these conversations and feel confident to respond if someone says they are not OK.

A common theme for many people this year has been isolation. It’s unfortunate that one of our best weapons against COVID-19 is something that can negatively impact on mental health and wellbeing. This year we would encourage you to consider the benefits of bringing people together for R U OK? Day. Examples could include our virtual group training session, a virtual morning tea or a lunch and learn session using our Webinar.