I think we all suffer from mental health issues. It is a constant for anyone. It may lie dormant in us for long periods but the slightest bit of stress bring MH to the fore.
It's like eating and drinking badly. Do that and you soon find you are not that fit. Change your diet and habits, and you find you get fitter. It's a simple analogy.
During the last year I've been focused 100% on keeping my business running and keeping people in jobs. It has had its toll. We had to make a couple of employees redundant, which was horrible. The pressure they were then under was immense. That had an impact on me, but I tend to try and just put things to one side. But you're never really putting things to one side. You are storing them up.
I'd say I've coped well. I've managed to keep mentally healthy by trying to stay physically healthy and I think there's a massive link between those two things. But, I didn't get anytime off last year at all and that undoubtedly started to show by the end of last year. I was tetchy; my work was not as good; I was not concentrating as much; I was probably a bad Dad and a bad husband. Of course, that's nothing compared to the two people who lost their jobs. Thankfully, both are now back in employment.
Your mental health is essential. You simply have to keep an eye on it or it will bit you on the arse. And anyone can be bitten.
I feel most for our kids. Ours are in the twenties and thirties and while it's easy to say, "they have their whole lives ahead of them" that's just bullshit when you are not them and they are watching their futures change and seemingly disappear before their eyes. The pressure on them is immense, and those of us in our 50+ year bracket owe them a debt and it's why they should have to pay for the pandemic further going forward.
Just keep talking. That's what I say to my kids. Don't bottle anything up. Talk, share and when it's out it's easier to deal with.
It's like eating and drinking badly. Do that and you soon find you are not that fit. Change your diet and habits, and you find you get fitter. It's a simple analogy.
During the last year I've been focused 100% on keeping my business running and keeping people in jobs. It has had its toll. We had to make a couple of employees redundant, which was horrible. The pressure they were then under was immense. That had an impact on me, but I tend to try and just put things to one side. But you're never really putting things to one side. You are storing them up.
I'd say I've coped well. I've managed to keep mentally healthy by trying to stay physically healthy and I think there's a massive link between those two things. But, I didn't get anytime off last year at all and that undoubtedly started to show by the end of last year. I was tetchy; my work was not as good; I was not concentrating as much; I was probably a bad Dad and a bad husband. Of course, that's nothing compared to the two people who lost their jobs. Thankfully, both are now back in employment.
Your mental health is essential. You simply have to keep an eye on it or it will bit you on the arse. And anyone can be bitten.
I feel most for our kids. Ours are in the twenties and thirties and while it's easy to say, "they have their whole lives ahead of them" that's just bullshit when you are not them and they are watching their futures change and seemingly disappear before their eyes. The pressure on them is immense, and those of us in our 50+ year bracket owe them a debt and it's why they should have to pay for the pandemic further going forward.
Just keep talking. That's what I say to my kids. Don't bottle anything up. Talk, share and when it's out it's easier to deal with.
