With Mental Health Awareness Week running this week, we interviewed our Oxford-based property manager Esmee, to get an insight into the Mental Health First Aider training that she and other staff members at Ethical Property have completed.
We all know that mental health awareness is important in the workplace, and in this interview Esmee describes how it helps her in the different aspects of her role at The Old Music Hall on Cowley Road.
What motivated you to do the Mental Health First Aid training?
Really I was motivated to carry out the training course to have a better understanding of how to deal with situations when someone is struggling. When I encounter individuals that are facing difficulties with their mental health, for whatever reason, I want to be able to support them.
An important part of being a Mental Health First Aider is knowing when to signpost someone to further sources of support. So it’s great to be able to recognise when a colleague of mine at work has a concern that needs to be taken seriously, and I can encourage them to take it forward in a medical context too. I think that’s important so that people don’t end up sitting on things, thinking that that’s just the way it has to be.
Also, as a Property Manager I come into contact with a lot of tenants, and actually - I end up getting to know a lot of them personally. While I only officially offer mental health first aiding to my colleagues within Ethical Property, the skills do come in handy in the client facing areas of my role too. I’m not sure why, maybe I have one of those faces, but people really seem to open up to me!
How did you find the MHFA training course? (If difficult - what was difficult about it?)
I found it, actually, pretty straightforward - it was intuitive and made sense.
It was really interesting to explore the kinds of different mental health conditions we might encounter in day to day life - I think it’s easy for ‘mental health problems’ to get bundled together under a blanket term, and we forget how diverse these conditions can be.
We were also invited to share our own experiences, and I found myself developing a new sense of respect for my colleagues when I learnt about various challenges they’ve been through in their lives and how they’ve overcome them.
There was also lots about boundaries on the course - so realising what you can do and what you can’t, and what’s the safest way to support people in different situations.
Why do you think it’s an important training to have in the workplace?
I think the workplace is an important place for noticing behavioural changes, especially if someone lives on their own. So it’s a place where we need to be aware of what signs there might be that someone needs a bit of extra help, in whatever way.
I think also because more people are now working from home, there are fewer opportunities to witness mental health struggles. And I know for a fact that as a result there can be many missed opportunities to intervene, support someone, and make sure they are doing better before things potentially escalate.
Likewise, because of greater numbers of staff working from home, more and more tenants can end up being on their own in the office all day - which also isn’t good for their mental health.
How has your Mental Health First Aid training helped you in your role at Ethical Property?
Well, many of the individuals that I come into contact with, by nature, work with vulnerable individuals. Many of our tenants work for charitable organisations, supporting people in distressing or difficult situations, and many of our staff members volunteer or campaign for social causes outside of work that can affect them too.
It’s common for individuals who are exposed to more vulnerable sectors of society to experience empathy fatigue or compassion burnout. I do believe that if someone is around with whom they can explore their feelings, or just talk and vent, then I think they become much less likely to take these concerns home with them.
Also, I can signpost them elsewhere if I think they’ll benefit from other sources of support.
Can you tell us a bit about your journey to go on and do counselling training?
Well I’ve always found psychology fascinating, to be honest! So it’s always been something I’ve wanted to do.
And nowadays adult education has become much more accessible, meaning you can learn and train in a field without having to just up and leave your job, and this has been huge for me.
I’m not sure what it will lead to - at the moment I’m completing an assessment to reach Level 4. Wish me luck!