A national NHS Talking Therapy provider is calling for greater awareness of support after a survey conducted found a third of participants had anxiety caused by work situations.
As part of Mental Health Awareness Week, Everyturn Mental Health, which provides talking therapies and specialist mental health services, conducted a survey with the public asking them to share their experiences of anxiety including the symptoms they experience, what situations triggered their anxiety, and what treatments and actions help them.
Common symptoms include a racing heart, nausea, insomnia, overthinking, worrying, and feeling overwhelmed. Alarmingly, when asked to recollect a particular instance of anxiety, one in three said that work was the cause of these symptoms – from starting a new job, an important client call, or just feeling out of their depth. This in turn affected their lives outside of work, including sleeping, going out, socialising, and doing everyday activities such as cooking and cleaning.
Half of the participants said that talking things through helps them manage their anxiety and would recommend anyone who is struggling to do the same. A quarter said that going for a walk or exercising helped them get through an anxious situation.
In the past 12 months, Everyturn has seen a 16% increase in people accessing its talking therapies service due to anxiety, with some areas seeing an increase of as much of 28%, indicating that a rise in this particular mental health struggle is evident.
The organisation is using Mental Health Awareness Week to call for anyone who is struggling to get help sooner. NHS talking therapies are proven to help manage anxiety with a range of treatment options and support networks designed to help alleviate symptoms and get people back to feeling themselves as soon as possible.
Adam Crampsie, Everyturn’s Chief Executive said: “We all feel pressures at work, but our survey has found that it can impact our lives beyond our working hours. Our latest figures show that anxiety is on the rise, and we want people to feel supported in every aspect of their lives.
“Our services offer a range of talking therapies, and we have additional resources, guides, and support that can help anyone who is feeling anxious. It’s incredibly important that anyone who is struggling gets help as soon as possible.”
