Impaired psychological wellness can disrupt clear thinking, healthy decision-making and the ability to stave off chronic diseases. But did you know that psychological issues are risk factors for other serious illnesses? I’m talking about anxiety, depression and stress. According to the CDC, anxiety is the primary risk factor for heart disease and it also precipitates other known risk factors, such as substance abuse, obesity, a sedentary lifestyle, and depression. The CDC also pegs depression to other physical health issues, especially long-term (and largely preventable!) conditions like heart disease, stroke, and diabetes.

We don’t normally consider stress a mental health problem, but it connects to mental health in a number of ways. It can cause psychological issues and make existing issues worse. Compaies can’t afford to ignore it.

But when shaping your multigenerational employee wellbeing initiatives, don’t boil the ocean! Focus on risk factors that are the most prevalent within your population. You may find that cross-generationally there are plenty of similarities. For instance…

Anxiety, depression and stress are common to all generations
Consider these three signs of ill-health that all generations of employees report, from Gen-Z to Boomers. Each of these conditions significantly impacts your company’s productivity:

Anxiety and depression

Record numbers of employees report feeling anxious and depressed. Champion Health’s 2023 report lays bare the shocking statistics. A full 60% of employees experience anxiety, and 56% report depression symptoms, with 22% of them claiming they are ‘clinically depressed.’.

And although most workers won’t report a mental health diagnosis, one in four employees meet classic criteria for ‘clinically relevant’ anxiety and depression symptoms, suggesting they’d benefit from the support of mental health professionals.

Here’s the thing…

A recent survey by the American Psychiatric Association, indicates “more than four in ten employees are concerned about retaliation if they seek mental health care or take time off for their mental health.” And recent Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that 36% of US employees experience depression and anxiety on a daily basis. According to the American Psychiatric Association, untreated depression accounts for productivity reduction of a staggering 35%. And it contributes a $210.5 billion annual cost to the US economy in terms of reduced productivity, absenteeism and medical costs.

How can HR help?

First, it’s crucial to reduce any stigma associated with mental health issues. Openly address the commonness of suffering from them and provide easy access to education, resources, and support – especially your EAP and mental health services if you have them. Encourage your managers to promote and allow mental health days. Familiarize yourself with meditation apps and online stress-reduction classes, and make sure employees know about them. Remember that different generations prefer different modes of contact, so avail yourself of all communication channels.

Stress

Since the pandemic, 67% of workers report suffering from moderate to high stress levels, according to the 2023 Champion Health report. And employees are reporting catastrophically lower levels of productivity. Productivity and stress are closely linked. That’s why it pays to step up and invest significantly in workplace wellbeing strategies that support employees to prevail over the struggles they face. There are several steps companies can take to reverse this negative pattern.

How can HR help?

When you HR professionals feel fed up and worn down, how can you lead stressed-out teams yourself? HR leaders have faced this bugbear since the pandemic. But here is a tip that the Champion Health report reveals: employees are at their most energetic at 10:22 in the morning and most blah-feeling at 1:27 pm. How could you leverage that information to strategize some wellbeing plans? How about initiating a (healthy) afternoon snack break or schedule laid-back team chats at that time?

Reducing busywork is perhaps the easiest way to combat employee burnout. Consider which tasks are crucial to your company’s core goals and get rid of any nonessential tasks. Doing this will allow your employees to focus on their most requisite assignments.

Don’t forget – small steps like these can lead to sweeping organizational improvements for a company and all its generations. And remember, we are always here to help.

To your health!

Derek

The post All generations say 3 risk factors impact productivity and wellbeing appeared first on Corporate Health Coach Los Angeles - LifeUP Corporate Wellness.

Wellness matters to everyone in your organization. Should we be surprised? Wellbeing is vital to health and happiness. When we feel strong and well-adapted, we’re better able to prevail over adversity and achieve our goals. But wellbeing goes way beyond the absence of disease. In short, being well enables us to show up as the best version of ourselves every day. It fuels our bodies, engages our minds, and renews our spirits.

Psychologists identify as many as nine dimensions of wellbeing, but for today we’ll focus on the four most commonly addressed in a corporate culture of health: mental, physical, financial, and social.

1. Mental wellbeing

The World Health Organization’s concept of mental wellbeing is clear: “Mental health is not just the absence of mental disorder. It is defined as a state of wellbeing in which every individual realizes his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to her or his community.” Key to this is helping employees to de-stress, face addiction, and ease their workloads so that they can reach their full potential.

2. Physical wellbeing

Impaired physical wellbeing is typically easier to spot than impaired mental wellbeing – no matter whether this is ailing health, obesity, or experiencing physical pain. But sometimes employees don’t even know they are physically ill, so managers and HR teams need to grasp the wider picture in order for employees to achieve their optimal level of physical wellbeing. It’s also vital to address working environments that impede physical wellbeing – from the office to the warehouse.

3. Financial wellbeing

Recent research by The Hartford has determined that 63% of U.S. employees sense their financial stress worsened over 2022, and 56% of them say financial stress adversely impacts their mental health. This is true among all generations, but especially younger workers who often live paycheck to paycheck. Nearly half of Boomers (45%) worry that they have no retirement savings. And because many employees have difficulty discussing these kinds of issues, financial problems often go unaddressed. Isolating root causes of poor financial wellbeing can be thorny and complex for HR and management, but they need to address it for all generations.

4.Social wellbeing

The ways in which employees interact with each other impacts both mental and emotional wellbeing. Returning to the workplace after months of Covid furloughs or home office employment has led to frustration, soaring stress levels, and burnout. Employees may feel reluctant to have in-person interactions with colleagues that not long ago were over Teams or Zoom. The change can provoke anxiety and upset, as well as conflict. Supporting your employees’ social wellbeing fosters both their success and that of the larger organization. When you show employees that you value social wellness, you will encourage collaboration and conflict resolution.

Notice from the chart below that all four aspects of well-being (mental, physical, financial, and social) remain fairly even among all of the generations.

From Zoomers to Boomers, all rank social well-being as less important than mental, physical, and financial well-being. That doesn’t mean ignoring this aspect of wellness. In fact, researchers have found through examining multiple recent studies that loneliness is likely to reach epidemic proportions in the Western world by 2030 – outstripping obesity as the number one health crisis. Combating social isolation in the workplace should be a high priority for any wellness initiatives.

What other similarities do generations share?

50 years ago, young people entering the world of work were generally healthy. Today, given sedentary lifestyles and poor eating habits, Millennials and Zoomers increasingly join the workforce with chronic health conditions. Recent CDC data confirms that more than half of young adults (nearly 54%) now have at least one chronic medical issue, and more than one in four (27%) suffer from two or more chronic health conditions. The below isn’t an exhaustive list of chronic health conditions or their risk factors beyond genetics by any means, but these conditions are commonly found among employees:

Chronic Disease-Related Risk Factors Beyond Genetics

Will workplace wellbeing programs end all chronic diseases for any of your generations? Sadly, no. Many chronic health conditions are due to genetic factors. But here’s the thing…optimal sleep, stress reduction, diet, and exercise mitigate all these illnesses, genetic or not. And employees who feel better work smarter and harder and are absent less often. Plus, when you consider that all the risk factors for chronic disease outside of genetics are largely preventable, providing corporate wellness services to your workers is a no-brainer, regardless of what generation they fall into.

To your health!

Derek

The post Which top wellness dimensions do Zoomers to Boomers agree on? appeared first on Corporate Health Coach Los Angeles - LifeUP Corporate Wellness.