This year, October 7-13 is Mental Illness Awareness Week, giving employers a perfect opportunity to share available resources. The theme this year is "Cure Stigma."

Each year, around 43.8 million Americans experience a mental health condition. Now,  more than ever, it’s critical to educate employees about resources to avoid burnout and mental breakdowns and reduce suicide risk. 

Plus, it’s a wise move for businesses to invest in mental health education. A World Health Organization (WHO) study estimated “depression and anxiety disorders cost the global economy US $1 trillion each year in lost productivity.” 

Every October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, an opportunity to spread awareness about the disease that kills nearly 41,000 women each year. No matter your office budget, there are plenty of ways to raise breast cancer awareness in the workplace. It’s also a fantastic opportunity to engage the local community through educational events and fundraising challenges.

Ready to get started? Here’s 14 ideas to spread breast cancer awareness: 

You might not think much about your liver. It's not the most glamorous organ, but it's one of the hardest working. Your liver is responsible for many of your body’s metabolic functions and does the lion’s share of toxin removal to keep you healthy and strong. The liver also plays a role in blood health, acting as a “blood recycler” that breaks down old or damaged blood cells in the body, and regulates iron and plasma levels.

To put it bluntly, your liver is irreplaceable. Unlike the heart, if your liver becomes severely damaged, there are no medical procedures, short of a liver transplant, to replace it. But if you take care of your liver, your liver will take care of you. Here are five ways you can keep your liver healthy:

All of us deal with some sort of stress on a regular basis. According to a 2017 survey by Gallup, 79% of Americans feel stressed sometimes or frequently throughout the day. Ignoring this stress can lead to a wide array of health issues – both mental and physical. It can also lead to burnout in the workplace.

Luckily, there are many things you can do to relieve stress. One method that has been gaining a lot of popularity throughout the past few years is meditation. In fact, according to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NIH), nearly 18 American million adults practice meditation. While meditation is an ancient practice, more and more people are beginning to utilize its relaxing powers to relieve stress and feel more productive.

Research has found many reasons why meditation is good for us, both mentally and physically. Here are nine science-backed reasons you should start meditating on a daily basis: 

One of the most common excuses for skipping the gym is, “I don’t have the time.” We know how crazy busy most full-time employees are. And we’ll admit, finding time to exercise during the workday can be difficult! One of the ways we help our employees here at TotalWellness find more time for exercise is by offering free, on-site fitness classes.

Our Wellness Specialist, Crysta, started teaching fitness classes to her colleagues this July (2018), and we’ve seen some major positive impacts since then! We would like to share our experience – along with some tips – about our on-site fitness classes. We hope our interview with Crysta inspires some other employers to try out on-site fitness classes of their own!

When you take a look at your office desk, what do you see? Are there papers sprawled everywhere? Lingering trash from yesterday’s lunch? Or is there simply nothing but blank walls and empty desk space? Believe it or not, your personal workspace has the power to either positively or negatively impact your overall health and mental wellbeing.

Unhealthy workspaces can cause stress and make it difficult to concentrate at work. Not to mention, a chaotic workspace doesn’t exactly scream professionalism. By taking the time to organize and revamp your desk, office, or cubicle, you can boost productivity and help reduce some workplace stress.

Creating and maintaining a healthy workspace is about more than just getting rid of some clutter. It’s about creating a space that promotes healthy habits and helps you feel comfortable and calm throughout your workday. If your workspace makes you feel anything but zen, it might be time for a little makeover. 

Designing Healthy Workspaces

Is it possible to be surrounded by co-workers eight hours a day and still feel lonely? Unfortunately, the answer for many employees is “yes.” Loneliness is a more dangerous issue than it may sound. In fact, research found that loneliness and social isolation have the same effect on a person as 15 cigarettes a day when it comes to healthcare costs and outcomes. 

According to research from TotalJobs, 35% of surveyed employees don’t have any strong relationships at work. This is important for employers to note because when employees feel lonely at work, they tend to feel disconnected from their job. That means that not only does their emotional wellbeing suffer, but their work performance suffers, too.

The good news is that workplace loneliness can be an easy fix. With a bit of help from management and a leap of faith from employees, no one has to feel alone and isolated at work. Keep on reading to learn more about the perks of positive work relationships and some tips on how to combat workplace loneliness. 

Your physical workspace is more important to your health than you might think! Office employees spend about 40 hours a week at their desks, which is why a healthy workspace is important not only your work performance but to your physical and mental health as well. One of the easiest ways to make your workspace a little healthier and more enjoyable is by adding a plant. Research has shown that by simply adding a plant to your desk, you’ll help boost your wellbeing.

The 2015 Human Spaces report, which studied 7,600 office workers from 16 countries to examine the impact of the physical office environment on employees, found that employees who work in office environments with natural elements (including natural sunlight and greenery) report a 15% higher level of wellbeing, and are 6% more productive and 15% more creative. Unfortunately, the researchers also found that about 58% of workers have no live plants in their workspaces – despite the positive effects office plants have on employees.

Indoor plants offer a wide variety of incredible wellness benefits. Keep on reading to learn about how office plants can affect your wellbeing. Plus, we include some tips on which types of plants you should get for your workspace! 

If your morning and evening commutes are your least favorite part of your workday, you’re not alone. In fact, a daily car commute is ranked as one the top two things Americans hate the most on a day-to-day basis, only second to housework.

Not only is your daily commute unpleasant, it’s also bad for your overall health and wellbeing. According to a 2014 study by the University of Waterloo, the more time you spend commuting, the less likely you are to be satisfied with life. Similarly, another recent study found that adding 20 minutes to your daily commute has the same negative effort on job satisfaction as receiving a 19% pay cut.

These studies show that long commutes take a serious toll on not only your personal life, but on your professional life as well. So, why exactly are long commutes so dangerous to your health?

While “work-life balance” might be a popular buzz term in the past few years, many employees have yet to reach a positive relationship between their work life and personal life. A survey from earlier this year conducted by FlexJobs found that more professionals are struggling with work-life balance now than they were three years ago. The survey analyzed results from over 1,200 employees to determine how work impacts their work-life balance, relationships, health, stress levels, physical fitness, and more. 

Unfortunately, the survey didn’t reveal good news. According to its results:

• Only 30% of employees are currently satisfied with their work-life balance, compared to 45% in the same survey administered three years ago
• 37% of employees reported being stressed by their level of work-life balance – up from 29% in 2015

It was also noted that work was a top source of stress, with 86% of survey respondents reporting that work “conflicts with their efforts to take care of their overall health.” So, what can employers learn from this survey? Many studies have shown that traditional office schedules do more harm than good when it comes to employee health, productivity, and overall job satisfaction.