April marks Stress Awareness month, with this year’s theme #LittleByLittle all about highlighting how small, consistent positive actions can have a massive impact on our mental wellbeing.
At Gateshead we’re committed to supporting colleagues by providing them with the tools and support needed to manage stress, whether through peer support routes, psychological support offers, wellbeing toolkits or otherwise. Here, we shine a spotlight on some of what is available to support you – as well as some of the most basic steps you can try be consistent with to help boost your mental health.
Stress Management Tools
Stress can affect anyone but with the right tools, it can be managed effectively. Here are some resources available to you that can help:
- Stress Risk Assessments: These assessments help identify stressors in your environment and provide strategies to mitigate them.
- Health Passports: A personalized document that outlines your health needs and preferences, ensuring you receive appropriate support.
- Menopause Passports: Specifically designed to support individuals experiencing menopause, helping them manage symptoms and stress.
- Carer’s Passports: These documents recognize the unique challenges faced by carers and provide tailored support to reduce stress.
- Wellbeing Action Plans: A proactive approach to managing your mental health, these plans help you identify triggers and coping strategies.
Quick Tips for Wellbeing
In line with the theme “Little By Little,” here are some small steps you can take to improve your wellbeing:
- Practicing Gratitude: Our staff survey results suggest that we might not always show appreciate for the efforts each other are going to – and that is has a tangible impact on our experience at work. A simple thank you can make a huge difference – and with various ways to recognise others now highlighted through our new Reward & Recognition area, it’s never been easier to find out how to more formally thank a colleague. On a more personal level, keeping a journal and writing down three things you are grateful for and/or have achieved each day can be another great way to reflect on the progress you’re making.
- Stay Active: Even a short walk can boost your mood and reduce stress. To help you be more consistent with this, we’ll be relaunching our popular step count competition during National Walking Month in May – helping you get your steps in and enjoy the outdoors as the weather begins to brighten. Our pages for Cycling and Walking, Discounted Gym Memberships, Physical Activities and Digital Platforms all aim to help getting active that bit more accessible, too!
- Connect with Loved Ones: If you feel as though stress is impacting you, it is important to ensure you’re taking proactive steps to strengthen your resilience. Simply spending time with friends and family and leaning on your support network can have a massive impact – as can social connection. In that regard, it can also be useful to in touch with people who you might not know – but who can understand how work might be impacting your mental health. To that end, our Mental Health First Aiders provide a fantastic listening offer as well as a great opportunity to connect with colleagues, while the Occupational Health Counselling service might be an option for those who feel work is having a significant impact on their mental health.
- Mindfulness Meditation: Many find benefit in meditation, finding benefits including a reduction in feelings of anxiety. One offer that has proven particularly popular are the free online meditation sessions led by our own Rachel McCrate, which you can learn more about here. If you’d prefer to go it alone, you can also lean on free premium memberships with Unmind and Headspace – but move quickly as we’re hearing this offer may be withdrawn in the near future.
- Healthy Eating: And finally, it won’t come as much surprise to hear that fueling your body with more nutritious foods can help you to maintain energy and focus, better equipping you to take on day-to-day stressors. Our Healthy Eating page is home to useful resources to help you in your healthy eating journey, and colleagues looking to lose weight as part of their journey need look no further than the Digital Weight Management Programme for NHS Staff, a tailored 3-month programme targeted to you.
