Introduction
Anxiety does not stop when somebody arrives at work. For some people, work can provide routine, purpose and connection. For others, aspects of the job can add to anxiety that is already there. Often, it is a mixture of both.
Employers cannot remove every source of anxiety from someone’s life, and managers are not expected to become mental health professionals. They can, however, make a significant difference to how manageable work feels and how easy it is for somebody to ask for support.
That starts with noticing what is happening, having better conversations and being willing to look honestly at the working environment itself.
Anxiety at work doesn’t always look like anxiety
Anxiety can affect people in very different ways. Someone may appear visibly worried or distressed, but that is only one possibility.
You might notice somebody becoming quieter than usual, finding it harder to concentrate, repeatedly checking their work or worrying about making mistakes. They might begin avoiding particular tasks, meetings or conversations, struggle with deadlines that they previously managed comfortably, or seem unusually tired or tense.
There can be physical effects too, including headaches, dizziness, a racing heart, breathlessness or stomach problems.
None of these things proves that somebody has anxiety. There may be many explanations for a change in someone’s behaviour or performance, which is why managers need to be careful not to diagnose people from the other side of a desk.
What you can notice is that something has changed.
That is often enough to begin a conversation.
Start by looking at work itself
When someone is struggling, there can be a temptation to concentrate entirely on what they need to do differently: practise relaxation, become more resilient, seek support or learn to manage their anxiety.
Sometimes those things may help. But employers also need to ask a more uncomfortable question:
Is anything about the way this work is organised making the situation harder?
Work-related stress is not simply an individual problem. The Health and Safety Executive identifies six areas of work that can contribute to stress when they are poorly managed: demands, control, support, relationships, role and change.
That gives employers somewhere practical to start.
Look at workload and demands
Is the workload realistic for the time available? Are deadlines routinely competing with one another? Has somebody gradually acquired responsibilities without anything else being taken away?
Occasional periods of pressure are part of many jobs. Constant overload should not be treated as proof that somebody needs to become better at coping.
Sometimes a useful conversation about anxiety leads to a very practical discussion about priorities, staffing, deadlines or the way work is being allocated.
Give people clarity where you can
Uncertainty can be particularly difficult for someone experiencing anxiety.
People cannot know everything that is going to happen at work, but employers can reduce unnecessary uncertainty. Clear responsibilities, realistic expectations and good communication about changes can all help.
If priorities have changed, say so. If somebody does not need to worry about a particular piece of work this week, tell them. If a meeting has a clear purpose, letting people know what to expect beforehand may make it considerably easier to approach.
Small pieces of clarity can remove a surprising amount of avoidable worry.
Think about relationships and support
The way people are managed matters too.
Does somebody know who they can speak to when they are struggling? Are one-to-ones useful conversations, or simply another meeting in the diary? Do managers give constructive feedback, or do employees only hear from them when something has gone wrong?
A supportive workplace does not mean that everybody needs to talk about their mental health all the time. It means people have a reasonable expectation that if they do raise a concern, it will be taken seriously.
How to talk to someone you are concerned about
Managers often worry about saying the wrong thing. That can lead to saying nothing at all.
You do not need a perfect script. A calm, private conversation based on what you have actually noticed is usually a much better place to begin.
Start with what you have noticed, not what you think is wrong
There is an important difference between:
“You seem to be suffering from anxiety.”
and:
“I’ve noticed you’ve seemed under quite a lot of pressure recently and you’ve been quieter than usual. How are things?”
The first makes an assumption. The second opens a conversation.
You may have misunderstood the situation entirely, and that is fine. Your role is not to identify a condition. It is to give the person an opportunity to tell you what is happening if they want to.
Listen before offering solutions
When someone does open up, resist the urge to immediately fix things.
Ask what would be useful. Listen to how work is affecting them. Find out whether there are particular tasks, situations or pressures that are causing difficulties.
You may discover that what you assumed they needed is quite different from what would actually help.
Somebody might want more regular contact with their manager. Someone else may find constant check-ins increase their anxiety. One person may benefit from working at home for part of the week, while another finds being at home alone makes things harder.
Support needs to fit the person rather than the label.
Agree what happens next
A good conversation should lead somewhere.
That does not mean every problem needs an immediate solution. It could simply mean agreeing to look at a workload issue, arranging another conversation, considering adjustments or making sure the employee knows what support is available.
Be clear about what you have agreed, who is doing what and when you will review it.
“Let me know if you need anything” sounds supportive, but it leaves all the responsibility with the person who may already be struggling.
Practical changes can make a real difference
Supporting someone with anxiety does not always require a major change to their job.
Sometimes relatively small adjustments can remove a particular source of difficulty.
Depending on the person and the role, this might include:
- adjusting start and finish times
- providing more frequent or shorter breaks
- reviewing workload or deadlines
- breaking larger pieces of work into clearer stages
- giving greater notice of meetings or changes where possible
- agreeing a preferred way of communicating
- reducing particular duties temporarily
- providing a quieter place to work
- allowing some home working where appropriate
- providing time for medical appointments
- arranging more regular supervision or check-ins
- supporting a gradual return after a period of absence
The important part is the conversation around them. An adjustment that sounds helpful on paper may not be useful to the individual concerned.
Reasonable adjustments and mental health
Mental health difficulties can, in some circumstances, meet the definition of disability under the Equality Act 2010. Broadly, this depends on whether a physical or mental impairment has a substantial and long-term negative effect on someone’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.
Where someone is disabled under the Act, an employer has a duty to make reasonable adjustments to reduce disadvantages they experience at work.
But support should not begin and end with the legal definition. Even where someone’s anxiety does not meet the definition of disability, there may still be straightforward and sensible changes that help them remain well and do their job.
The question does not always need to be “Are we legally required to do this?”
Sometimes it can simply be “Would this help, and can we reasonably do it?”
Managers need confidence, not responsibility for treatment
Managers have an important role in workplace mental health, but it needs to be a realistic one.
They can notice changes, start conversations, listen, respond to workplace issues, explain available support and know when somebody needs further help.
They should not be expected to diagnose anxiety, provide counselling or take personal responsibility for somebody’s recovery.
This is one reason mental health training can be useful. Good training should make managers and colleagues clearer about what their role actually is, including its limits.
What useful mental health training can help with
Training can help people become more confident about:
- recognising when somebody may be struggling
- starting a conversation
- listening without immediately trying to solve the problem
- responding appropriately to what somebody shares
- understanding confidentiality and its limits
- knowing what support is available
- recognising when professional or urgent help is needed
- maintaining appropriate boundaries
The aim is not to create a workforce of amateur therapists.
It is to help ordinary workplace conversations about mental health feel less frightening and more manageable.
Build a workplace where asking for help is possible
One supportive manager can make a considerable difference. A genuinely supportive workplace, though, needs more than individual goodwill.
People notice what happens around them.
They notice whether managers take breaks themselves. They notice whether emails arrive routinely late at night, whether annual leave is genuinely encouraged, whether workloads are achievable and what happens when somebody says they are struggling.
They also notice how people returning from mental health-related absence are treated.
Culture is built through those everyday experiences far more than through a poster telling people that “it’s OK not to be OK”.
Make support easy to find
Employees should not have to go searching through an intranet when they are already struggling.
Make it clear what support exists and how to access it. Depending on the organisation, that might include occupational health, an Employee Assistance Programme, trained Mental Health First Aiders, wellbeing services, HR support or external organisations.
Managers should know this information too.
There is little value in having excellent support available if the person somebody first speaks to has no idea where to direct them.
Make regular conversations normal
A conversation about wellbeing is easier if the first time a manager asks “How are you?” is not when something has clearly gone wrong.
Regular one-to-ones create opportunities to talk about workload, pressure, relationships and what people need to do their jobs well. Mental health does not need to become the subject of every meeting, but there should be room for someone to raise it without the conversation feeling extraordinary.
Trust is usually built before it is needed.
Don’t make wellbeing compensate for a work problem
Mindfulness sessions, wellbeing apps, lunchtime walks and Employee Assistance Programmes may all have a place.
But they should not be used to avoid addressing things an organisation can change.
If a team is consistently working unreasonable hours, a resilience workshop does not solve the workload problem. If roles are unclear, another wellbeing newsletter will not provide clarity. If bullying or poor management is contributing to someone’s anxiety, teaching them breathing exercises is not an adequate organisational response.
Supporting mental health means being prepared to look at both the individual and the environment in which they are working.
The HSE’s approach to work-related stress is useful precisely because it focuses employers on underlying causes as well as individual support.
Follow up rather than assuming the conversation is finished
Mental health can fluctuate. Something that works for somebody now may need changing later.
If you have agreed adjustments or offered support, come back to the conversation. Ask whether the changes are helping and whether anything needs to be reconsidered.
This does not need to become constant monitoring. In fact, repeatedly asking somebody whether they are all right can itself become uncomfortable.
Agreeing how and when you will check in gives both people some clarity.
Supporting anxiety at work is not about creating an anxiety-free workplace
The original version of this article talked about employers creating an “anxiety-free work environment”. That sets an impossible standard.
Anxiety is part of human life, and employers cannot control everything happening outside work or prevent every employee from experiencing mental health difficulties.
What employers can do is avoid making work unnecessarily harmful, take work-related stress seriously, respond well when someone needs help and build managers’ confidence to have better conversations.
That is a much more achievable goal.
A good workplace does not promise that nobody will ever struggle.
It makes it easier for people to say when they are struggling, more likely that they will be listened to, and clearer what can happen next.
