Recognizing Mental Health Crises in the Workplace: How to Be A Supportive Coworker
It’s estimated that 15% of working-age adults have a mental health condition of some kind.1 Not only are these people more likely to experience discrimination in the workplace, but all workplaces pose potential risks to mental health. Heavy workloads, inflexible hours, and a lack of support are all factors that can create negative mental health outcomes.
Knowing the signs that someone at work is experiencing challenges with their mental health is the first step to supporting them. Then, there are several ways employers and managers can support those in crisis and protect against them happening in the future.
This article will explore these issues by discussing:
- How work and mental health can interact
- Signs of mental health crises in the workplace
- How employers can support employees during mental health crises
- Advice for employers supporting mental health long-term
Mental Health in the Workplace
Many of us spend the majority of our waking hours at work. As well as providing a livelihood, work can be a place to socialise and find meaning in life. In this way, the workplace can either promote or hinder good mental health.
Let’s look at how it can do so in more detail.
Work and Good Mental Health
A workplace can promote good mental health when it provides a livelihood, a sense of confidence and achievement, positive relationships and community, and a structured routine. Furthermore, when employees are supported in their workplace conditions, they are more likely to do their jobs well and have a reason to stay.1
81% of workers say that they consider how potential employers support mental health in their job-seeking decisions. Therefore, mental health initiatives could be a way to recruit and retain employees.2 So, it’s in the employer’s interest to pay attention to this issue.
Work and Poor Mental Health
The workplace can also be a harmful environment for mental health, with several psychosocial risks. These include:1
- Excessive workloads
- Antisocial, long, or inflexible hours
- Inadequate pay and benefits
- Work/life imbalance
- Social cultures that enable negative, bullying, exclusionary, or harassing behaviors
- Limited support or oppressive pressures from people in authority
- Under-use of skills, unclear job roles, and under- or over-promotions
Although these risks can be found in all sectors, some types of work are riskier for mental health than others. For example, those in health, emergency, and humanitarian sectors are more likely to encounter adverse events that can harm mental health.1
Further, when people with existing mental health conditions are employed, they’re more likely to experience inequality in their workplace, which can then exacerbate their symptoms. And facing inequalities and discrimination related to race, sex, sexuality, gender identity, age, religion, and disability can negatively impact mental health, whether or not someone has a diagnosed condition already.1
Understanding the ways work and mental health interact is a crucial basis for being a supportive and knowledgeable employer. From there, you can move on to identifying the signs of a mental health crisis and the strategies you can employ to be of help.
Signs of a Mental Health Crisis at Work
Mental health difficulties can arise in several ways at work, and the symptoms of these should be understood by managers and employers wanting to support their employees. These signs can also be helpful to know for professionals concerned about their colleagues or wondering if their own experiences indicate declining mental health.
A depression crisis in the workplace, severe anxiety at work, or other mental health conditions could be identified by the following signs:3
- A change in physical appearance, such as clothing or hygiene
- Shifts in energy levels and mood, such as nervousness, fatigue, excitability, or irritability
- A loss of interest in previous hobbies and leisure activities
- A sudden loss or gain of body weight
- Noticeably different social interaction patterns, whether they are unusually talkative or withdrawn
- Seemingly intoxicated or hungover
- Missing deadlines or handing in lower-quality work
- Frequent tateness or breaks
Suicide warning signs in the workplace might include things like talking about wanting to die, expressing hopelessness, or making preparations like giving away possessions. However, it’s not always this clear. The best way to know whether or not someone is feeling suicidal is to invite a direct but non-pressuring conversation about it.4 We’ll discuss this more in the next section.
How to Respond to an Employee Mental Health Crisis
Responding to workplace mental health crisis symptoms sensitively and effectively requires noticing, talking, and taking appropriate action. Sometimes, someone might be in great distress, but they may not need professional intervention. However, in other situations, they might.
Here’s what you can do in either situation:
1. If It’s an Emergency Crisis
A “crisis” is different from regular stress; people in crisis often find it hard to de-escalate and experience intense distress or confusion. Crisis intervention for workplace mental health might require calling emergency services or your company’s crisis response team.5
To gain an understanding of urgency, you could ask safeguarding questions like, “Are you having thoughts about hurting yourself?” Though it might feel intimidating to ask such a direct question, evidence shows that asking directly can protect people.4
Asking directly gives people permission to talk about their painful feelings. Even though you won’t be able (and shouldn’t try) to solve their problems, simply listening to their difficult feelings can be a big relief.4
Additionally, some people in crisis might be hearing or seeing things that aren’t real. You should not argue with them about these experiences or underestimate how real they feel.5
Before offering solutions, it’s important that you ask the person how you can support them. If you don’t have a crisis team or a qualified mental health first aider available, calling 988 will get you in touch with a professional.5
After the mental health crisis has passed, it’s a good idea to call HR. They’ll be able to put someone in touch with the available support, whether that’s in or outside of the company.5
2. If It’s a Non-Emergency Crisis
Find a quiet place to ask the person how they are and describe what you’ve noticed. Use the list of symptoms above, but be careful not to express yourself judgmentally. For example, rather than “Your work has gotten worse,” you can say, “I’m wondering if your workload has become difficult to manage.”3
Be careful to listen more than you talk, and express your care and concern for their well-being. Next, you can remind them of the available forms of support. For example, the company’s Employee Assistance Program (EAP) or HR department could help them review all possible next steps.3,5
When it’s not a mental health emergency, it’s still important to end the interaction with some next steps. As mentioned, this could be a referral to HR or an EAP, but it could also be giving them the afternoon off and checking back in with them in a few days.3
Having a protocol for mental health crises will support both you and the person in crisis. If you don’t have one, it’s a good idea for your HR department to collaborate with mental health professionals to develop one.
How Employers Can Handle Mental Health Crises Long-Term
When employers take long-term actions, they can protect employee mental health, support those with conditions to thrive, and even prevent work-related mental health difficulties.1 This can involve a range of strategies that provide training, outline procedures, or change job conditions, including:
Providing Manager Training
One long-term strategy recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) involves providing mental health training to managers and supervisors. This could include learning to:1
- Recognize and respond to people in emotional distress
- Develop interpersonal skills like open communication and active listening
- Understand how workplace stressors can impact mental health
Managers who are qualified as mental health first aiders in the workplace will be better equipped to help those in crisis and offer support at earlier stages.
Developing an Emergency Plan
A mental health crisis at work may reveal that the company lacks proper procedures and plans for this kind of event. For instance, in the case of an employee panic attack, help from the workplace might be unprepared or unnecessarily chaotic.
Developing an employee mental health emergency response can ensure that managers, supervisors, and HR teams know how to respond in the future.
Increasing Workplace Flexibility and Benefits
A survey conducted by the American Psychological Association finds that, among employees, the most popular forms of mental health support are:2
- Flexible hours
- A workplace culture that supports time off
- Remote working
- A four-day work week
If possible, implementing these changes to job conditions could have a very positive impact on employee mental health.
Furthermore, the same survey found that when employers offer health insurance that covers mental health support, 93% of employees find it effective.2 This suggests that insurance that includes mental health treatment coverage could be a powerful way to support employees in mental health crises.
Reducing Monitoring
53% of employees say that they are monitored at work through cameras, computers, software, and other technologies, with half of those saying they felt uncomfortable with it.2 Electronic monitoring is associated with a range of mental health concerns, with monitored employees being at higher risk for stress, tension, and emotional problems at work.2
This information might raise questions for employers wanting to protect workplace mental health who may also use monitoring technologies or be thinking of doing so in the future.
Mission Connection: Mental Health Support for Working Professionals
At Mission Connection, we understand how mental health conditions can affect life at work and how work can simultaneously impact psychological well-being. For this reason, we offer a wide range of therapies to suit different needs, including cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), psychodynamic therapy, and humanistic therapy.
If you’re a working professional finding it hard to cope with your mental health, or are an employer hoping to improve the ethos of your company, get in touch with us today to discuss treatment and prevention options.
References
- WHO. (2024, September 2). Mental Health at Work. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-health-at-work
- APA. (2022, July). Workers appreciate and seek mental health support in the workplace. American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/pubs/reports/work-well-being/2022-mental-health-support
- Center for Workplace Mental Health. (n.d.). Knowing the warning signs. American Psychiatric Association Foundation. https://www.workplacementalhealth.org/mental-health-topics/knowing-the-warning-signs
- Samaritans. (n.d.). Supporting someone with suicidal thoughts. Samaritans. https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/if-youre-worried-about-someone-else/supporting-someone-suicidal-thoughts/
- NAMI. (2024) Navigating a Mental Health Crisis at Work. A NAMI Resource Guide for Those Experiencing a Mental Health Emergency in the Workplace. https://www.nami.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Navigating-a-Mental-Health-Crisis-at-Work-1.pdf