3 ways to cultivate a restorative workplace

ALPHARETTA, Ga.– Have you experienced sleep difficulties, fatigue, poor concentration, less time with family, and a decrease in physical health? Does your work stress sound similar to the following phrases: I feel like I’m always working, or I wake up anxious about work. In a 2022 survey, a list of determinants that affect work well-being includes:

• Leadership- how leaders behave

• Design- how your work is organized

• Ways of working- how you get work done

Addressing mental health at work is a necessary component of the wellness mission because a large portion of an employee’s day is at work, oftentimes followed by bringing work home with them. A notable theme for the 2023 Workplace Wellness Conference was that a major healing has to happen. According to Zac Bush, the keynote speaker for this year, “The American health situation is in dire need of an immediate solution. We are one of the sickest countries in the world, and in terms of wellness, the United States is categorized as a developing country.”

Below are three steps from the conference’s thought leaders to help address mental health problems in the workplace.

1.) Normalize talking about mental health, avoid stigma and shame. Dana Reid, a double board psychiatrist, suggests implementing an open door policy and regular check-ins with employees to optimize the work environment. This type of communication allows employers to recognize signs associated with employees struggling to balance their health with their work. She encourages employers to assess the strengths and challenges of their workers leading to making appropriate accommodations. “Mental wellness does not equate solely to happiness, but work productivity, how we cope with stressors, and contribute to our community,” Reid said. The shift toward individual wellness begins with an outward look on the changes leaders and employers can enforce in a professional setting.

2.) Being seen makes you heal. Zac Bush, a physician focused on internal medicine, claimed we cannot heal in isolation or in disagreement with nature. The fact that the United States is considered a developing country in terms of health and wellness demonstrates the issue we face as a collective. Pills are not the solution. A more sustainable approach toward healing is reintroducing ourselves to nature so that we can acquire what Bush describes “root-cause solutions.” He mentioned it is when we are rooted in nature that we have a tight-knit understanding and awareness of our deep traumas and capacity to heal. “Wellness does not dictate farmers with solutions, but consumers with solutions,” Bush said.

3.) Employers and employees need to understand each other’s neurosignatures. Stephanie Sullivan, a doctor conducting an ergonomic research study, defines neurosignature as a mark showing the brain at work or pattern that details its activity. Each individual’s neurochemistry development is unique, and highly dependent on factors such as the person’s environment, choices and positive/ negative experiences. The four basic neurosignatures are: dopamine, serotonin, testosterone, and estrogen.

She mentioned that workplace environments are commonly set up from the perspective of leaders–often with a dopamine or testosterone-dominant neurosignature. This becomes an issue when these people, who thrive in fast-paced settings populated with high levels of intensity and stress, are making most of the decisions. For instance, they might say, “‘Ok I thrive in a fast-paced environment that means my employees do too,'” Sullivan said. The danger is written all over this close-minded mentality.

When a space is geared toward a specific group, it creates inconsistencies among the rest of the work demographic. Sullivan mentioned the benefit of closing the neurogap yields the ability to match employees’ strengths, and for individuals to leverage and unlock their unique capabilities.

“Know thyself… not everyone needs the same thing,” Sullivan said.

Open conversations, a collective consciousness and diverse neurosignatures in executive positions all help promote wellness in the workplace.