October is Mental Health Month

Picture_October is Mental Health Month

 

Article developed by Sunsuper (a valued partner of FFN) in collaboration with SuperFriend.

October 2020 is no ordinary Mental Health Month. All around Australia, the impacts of COVID-19 will be felt in many different ways. Now is a good time to pause and take a moment to think about how you can best support your family, friends, staff or colleagues and to practise your own self-care.

Over 3 million Australians are living with anxiety or depression and are navigating mental health challenges in any given year.[1] Sunsuper works closely with our workplace wellbeing partner, SuperFriend to provide Australians with access to mental health and wellbeing resources and to support employers build mentally healthy workplaces for their staff.

We spoke with SuperFriend’s Solutions Manager, Carly Webster, who delivers SuperFriend’s training to talk about how organisations can build positive, supportive environments where employees can be their best.

‘We are focused on building people’s communication skills, so that they can pick up on signs that someone may be in need of support, and step into those important conversations with confidence,’ says Carly.

‘One of the positive impacts of the pandemic has been how many employers have been putting the wellbeing of their workers front-of-mind. It has also normalised the fact that life does have ups and downs, whether you have a mental illness or not, and that we can be open about how we’re travelling with our colleagues.

‘Now begins the real work – maintaining this human-centred focus on employee wellbeing long-term, both inside and outside the workplace.

‘We’re hoping to see employers use Mental Health Month as an opportunity to look at their workplace’s wellbeing strategies. It’s important to invite employees to be a part of the process and to ensure their feedback is valued and incorporated,’ says Carly.

Looking for resources to assist with conversations about mental health and wellbeing? SuperFriend’s new Workplace Mental Health Essentials for all staff is an online course and well-suited to those working remotely. Find out more about this course by visiting superfriend.com.au and see below additional health and wellbeing resources for inside and outside the workplace.

Resources

Training

 Other mental health and wellbeing support services:

Lifeline  13 11 14
Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467
MensLine Australia 1300 789 978
Beyond Blue  1300 224 636

 

This article has been prepared and issued by Sunsuper Pty Ltd ABN 88 010 720 840, AFSL No. 228975, the Trustee and issuer of the Sunsuper Superannuation Fund ABN 98 503 137 921. Sunsuper is not a mental health service or employee wellbeing consultant and does not provide clinical advice or professional services. We’ve put this information together as general information only and as such it doesn’t take into account your organisation’s objectives, situation or needs, or those of your employees.  You should get professional advice before relying on this information. 

[1] beyondblue.org.au

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