This week is Mental Health Awareness Week (14th – 20th May) in the UK. It’s a timely reminder of the need for some self-care in order to avoid burn-out in the office.
Here in Research and Innovation Services, alongside the basics of taking regular screen-breaks (often combined with making sure we hit our hourly step counts!) and leaving the office on time, we’ve been using our lunch breaks to get together, socialise and do something fun.
While some people chose to relax with reading, chatting or colouring, several members of staff have been bringing in games for us to play. On Monday we were introduced to Rhino Hero Super Battle, Tuesday saw us battle a global outbreak in Pandemic, and Wednesday was the very amusing exploding kittens.
Taking care of employee mental health is extremely important. Getting away from your desk at lunchtime helps productivity in the afternoon. The social aspect of these lunches also helps members of the department get to know each other better, improving working relationships.
(Karen Ward – Departmental Manager)
A new mental health display has gone up in one of the communal areas, with room for staff to add their own personal ideas on how their reduce stress in their lives.
If you would like to find out more about #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek, here are a few recommended sites:
If you have any suggestions for reducing stress in the workplace, please do share them in the comments!
Research and Innovation Services 