As we enter another year of remote work, it’s important to recognize that while some people have thrived in a work from home set-up, there are some whose mental health have taken a turn for the worse.
Working from home poses many challenges but its impact on mental health is not often talked about. A Qualtrics study has revealed that 41.6% of its respondents report a decline in their mental health since the COVID 19 outbreak.
Today we’ll be discussing how remote work affects mental health and what can be done to care for your team and yourself.
Psychological Effects of Working from Home
- Loneliness
A popular statistic of remote work has been the increase in productivity compared to having to come to an office. However the price is isolation and loneliness. Virtual workers complain that they miss having work friends and spending time together outside of work. Of course making friends with your remote colleagues isn’t impossible, but it can understandably be harder to form connections when communication is limited to chat and video calls.
A lack of connection with others and to the outside world, in addition to the knowledge that the outside world is also currently worrying, can lead to depression and anxiety.
- Burnout
When your home is also where your office is, the boundary between work and home life can get blurry. There’s the temptation to work longer hours and for some freelancers, this means managing your own time, making your own invoices, being the IT person, and more. These all amount to feelings of burnout.
Burnout isn’t just feeling exhausted. It’s also known to cause heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity, anxiety, and depression.
- Lack of motivation
Going into the third year of this pandemic with currently no end in sight, it’s hard to find motivation and a reason to still be working a job at all. You and your team might be left asking what is even the point of work and responsibilities.
But with remote work, all that is made even more complicated by physical distance from and a lack of connection with colleagues making communication difficult and trust weak. There is also a feeling of no longer having a purpose. This can lead to bare minimum performances and confusion over the company’s mission.
Taking Care of Your Mental Health at Home
In order to make sure your team is coping well with these challenges, you too need to be on top of your own mental health. Here’s what you and your team can do as individuals to try and alleviate them.
- Take breaks
Sitting down and staring at screens all day can really take a toll on one’s mental health, not to mention it can make your muscles tight and your eyes strained. Taking small breaks throughout the day can really loosen those tight joints and improve your concentration when you get back to it.
Make your breaks preferably ones with no screens involved. If you have pets, you can take the time to play with them. If you have a garden, you can sit outside and enjoy the fresh air. You can also take a quick walk around your neighborhood to get the body moving, blood flowing, and heart thumping. Or just take a quick power nap to rest your eyes!
Breaks are important as they can give you that energy boost and increased motivation to finish the day strong.
- Organize your day
Working from home takes away the sense of routine we were used to when we all went to an office. Now, getting up from bed and literally walking to the next room to work can blur the boundaries between home and work.
A lot of people have said that the flexible schedule is their favorite part of remote work but what works for them may not be the same for the rest. If you need to follow a routine, set one! Organizing your tasks and goals by priority can help you mentally prepare for the day, instead of getting overwhelmed with what needs to be done. This also helps you stop when you’re done with what you scheduled for the day, instead of continuing tasks that could be put off to tomorrow, preventing burnout.
- Exercise
A sedentary lifestyle is up there on the things that contribute to heart disease and obesity. It’s easy to stay seated all day hunched over a laptop, not realizing you have poor posture and are tightening your poor joints. Making sure to exercise regularly doesn’t just improve physical health though, it releases endorphins and boosts your serotonin levels to help lower anxiety and bring your mood up.
Set a time every day to remind you to get up and workout. Even a ten minute yoga session done every day can do wonders in the long run.
What Managers Can Do to Support their Team
As managers, you have the opportunity to create a culture of employee care by being supportive and empathic when talking to your team about performance and productivity.
- Check in without pressuring
Let your team know that they can approach you anytime if they want to talk or are having a hard time without putting any of them on the spot or prying too much about their health. Not only is it illegal to directly ask employees about health status or other medical information, it can make them feel uncomfortable or embarrassed and may worsen their feelings.
Instead of calling attention to an employee taking a lot of sick days or if they seem to be withdrawn, just create an atmosphere where they can feel comfortable initiating reaching out to you. You can do this by taking the lead and acknowledging that times are currently hard, that physical and mental health should be a top priority for everyone, and letting them know that concerns and questions are welcome.
- Communicate effectively
Sometimes what stresses employees out is an unclear understanding of what is expected of them. Let each individual team member know what their responsibilities are and give them access to resources so they can do their jobs effectively. Be clear about what you expect out of a project and provide constructive feedback across all updates. Finally, acknowledge when they have done a good job, whether privately or during a team call to boost morale.
- Promote well-being
Share articles that give advice or tips on self-care. Offer access to apps that help reduce stress or improve sleep habits. Encourage your team to use their vacation leaves. Create opportunities for the team to relax and have fun together through social events via Zoom, which also helps build connections and camaraderie.
Hire a Workmate through us
If you find your team is currently taking on more work, perhaps it’s time to add another member to help spread tasks and relieve stress.
When you hire from Remote Workmate, you can leave the searching, vetting, and interviewing of candidates to us. And once you hire your Workmate, we also help with onboarding, payroll, and HR services.
Talk to us about your hiring needs today with an obligation-free discovery call by clicking the button below.
