These slides introduce the mental health spectrum, a tool that we can use every week to gauge our levels of mental health. They also remind us about how the causes and symptoms of mental ill health are so often blurred, making it necessary to simplify how we judge our mental health. They accompany a series of posts on LinkedIn about how mental ill health shows up so often against the backdrop of the workplace. This builds on the heightened awareness of mental health that has been caused by lockdown in 2020. I'm the Organisational Psychologist for BOOST&Co in the UK and South Africa.

1. Using the
Mental Health Spectrum
Introducing the simplest way to gauge and monitor your mental health

2. Our mental
health is formed
of many
components.
Symptoms of
mental ill health
can feel like the
cause of mental
ill health, and
causes of
mental ill health
can feel like
symptoms.
Poor sleep
Struggling to wake up/
get out of bed
Feeling anxious
Feeling demotivated
Feeling irritable
Acting irrationally
Feeling dead inside
Lethargy
Confusion
Anger
Frustration
Low self-worth
Repetitive thoughts
Low expectations
Low/no energy
Uncharacteristic behaviour
Upsetting others
Overspending
Feeling “itchy”
Underperforming
Gambling recklessly

3. Sometimes we can’t
even think about
symptoms or
causes; we just
know that we’re
“not right”….

4. …and sometimes we
feel nothing at all…

5. When we “aren’t ourselves”, we need to focus
on one tool: The Mental Health Spectrum
1. Put your finger on the spectrum. Be honest with yourself.
2. Ask yourself if you are happy with where your finger sits. Only you can judge.
3. Use the tool to spot patterns in your mental health.
This tool enables us to judge for ourselves our levels of mental health. The instructions are very simple:

6. The tool is there for you to judge your own levels of
mental health, by gauging something tangible and
accessible.
It doesn’t ask you to judge your symptoms, your mood,
your feelings, or any reasons for your mental health
levels.
It doesn’t ask you to justify yourself.
It merely asks you if you’re coping, and this doesn’t
require too much introspection.

7. Start using the
Mental Health
Spectrum
regularly.
Build up a picture of your mental
well being by considering where you
sit over time.
Be truthful with yourself when you
feel the spectrum is telling you that
things aren’t right.
Cut out the Mental Health Spectrum and put it somewhere
you’ll see it; the fridge door, your bathroom mirror, your
bathroom scales, your monitor at home, etc. etc. etc.
Get into the habit of periodically gauging how you’re doing.
It behoves us all
to make our
mental health a
priority, for
ourselves, for our
loved ones, for
our colleagues
and for the wider
world.

8. Monitor your
mental health
and be honest
with yourself.
Am I happy with
where I sit on the
mental health
spectrum?
YES
Keep doing
what you’re
doing!
NO
Do you want to
improve your
mental health?
Change
something.
YES
NO

9. If you are concerned about your levels of
mental health right now, then you shouldn’t
wait for the instalments.
Tell someone at work. This step can take bravery, but attitudes have changed for the better. Unless you have trust issues, tell your manager, your closest colleague, someone from your People/HR team
or one of your leaders about how the changes in your life. They don’t need to know why; you just need to tell them how it is affecting you at work. It is their responsibility to work to alleviate any
problems at work that are making you feel worse.
Tell your HR department. They can ensure that any changes are dealt with appropriately and will also be able to support your manager and anyone else appropriate.
Tell your GP. In the past if we asked for help with our mental health, our GPs reached for the prescription pad immediately. This is no longer the case. If you are still managing to work through a rough
patch, they have a lot of suggestions to make, from different types of therapies, to exercise and diet, and will work with you to get you back into the green end of the spectrum.
Call your Employee Assistance helpline. If your workplace provides an Employee Assistance Programme, you will probably be able to access some talking therapy, even without going to your GP first. It’s
amazing how helpful it can be at times just to offload our concerns to someone who just helps us to order our thoughts. Check your employee handbook or check with your HR department for details.
Call your private healthcare provider. If your benefits package includes private healthcare, they will either provide the EAP or they may have a separate helpline you can call for psychological support.
Use your local services. The NHS has a page on which you can find a local helpline for any mental health crisis
https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/mental-health/find-an-urgent-mental-health-helpline
Use free listening services. The Samaritans and similar are not just there for you if you are suicidal. This is a popular misconception. They are a helpline of experienced listeners who will help you to frame
the changes you’re experiencing.
 Call 116 123 to talk to Samaritans, or email: jo@samaritans.org for a reply within 24 hours
 Text "SHOUT" to 85258 to contact the Shout Crisis Text Line, or text "YM" if you're under 19
If you’ve already seen changes in your life that are worrying you, please ask for help. I would be a statistic had I not asked for help 20 years ago and a few times since,
which is why I can say with authority that not one of the following services is waiting for you to be in crisis before they deem you to be ready for help.