The Importance of Mental Health Focus

I had the opportunity this week to be a participant at the first-ever Province of Ontario First Responder Mental Health Conference. The event was sponsored by Wounded Warriors Canada, of which I am Vice Chair, and brought together public safety personnel, academics, clinicians, and supporters from across the Province.

While mental health is a big issue in the lives of uniformed personnel, it isn’t just in their purview. Mental well-being is a critical part of what I have referred to over the weeks as human flourishing. I was struck at the conference by leadership's critical role in mental wellness. 

Of course, like the hammer only ever sees nails, I go to events and ponder the issues of managerial leadership, so it is no surprise that this is my lens. Here are some of my reflections on mental wellness in our current world:

• Mental well-being for self. I have written extensively on Servant Leadership, and there is a tension between being focused on your team and caring for yourself. You need to balance this tension and manage it. If you do not care for yourself, you will eventually be unable to care for others. So, focus on the things that enhance your resiliency. While it impacts us mentally, stress can lead to real physical issues. The now overused analogy of putting your oxygen mask on first on an aircraft comes to mind. 
• Understanding of mental wellness for others. The tossed-off comment “I’m fine” is far too many times a knee-jerk reaction. I believe that the key here is empathy – that ability to sense another human being's emotions. I think it also requires us to look at things through others' lenses – 

- What do you know about them?

- What do you know about their circumstances?

- What can you imagine they may be feeling?

Then go out and confirm what your mind has conjured up. Again, the key is empathy, a neutral sensing of how someone else feels. Human beings can be quite good at sensing. They just need to value it and practice it.  

• Taking action. The sum of these two areas is to act upon these issues. Taking action on your own mental well-being fills us with energy and builds resilience. Being seen to take action on mental wellness by others fills them with hope. 

Mental well-being is a very real issue and, if the first responder community can come to grips with it as an issue, so can we all. We need to end stoicism and stigma and take action for the betterment of all and for humanity to flourish. We need to dump the idea that health is just physical. They are intertwined and inseparable.

Entering into the summer season is a good time to ponder your mental wellbeing and that of those around you. For it isn’t just a work issue, it is a home issue. We have all come through a lot, and pondering the impact of the last three years is important.

Please also ponder the need for mental well-being in our first responder community. Every day they go out there to care for us and face things that few of us can even dream of. The Wounded Warriors Canada National Ambassador, Romeo Dallaire, said it well at the conference. When he chose a career in the military, his father advised him that he was “entering a business where he couldn’t expect anyone to thank him.” This is how our uniformed personnel go through their days, focusing on the public with little acknowledgement.

The importance of acknowledgement is essential for both First Responders and business employees. If we can’t even recognize the importance of our “hero” workers, what do “regular” workers feel? When you identify and recognize the importance or quality of someone’s efforts, that person subsequently feels seen, heard and understood. Validated and appreciated people bring more to the table and are more willing to speak their challenges – challenges that can then be addressed and made better. Without acknowledgement, these same people can feel disconnected and confused about their impact within the system which makes them draw back and become demotivated. Unacknowledged people can slip into apathy with then impacts the entire team or organization. Too often we focus on what was missed, instead of what was done. The adage, “catch people doing something right” comes to mind. Expressing gratitude is huge. Gratitude improves wellbeing, reduces stress, and builds resilience.  

I leave you with one quote from the session that resonated with me – “Being unbreakable is not how you feel. It is who you are.”