Crisis clarifies. The human and economic cost of the pandemic has undeniably been high. Yet if any good has come from this crisis, we have a heightened awareness of the multiple facets of well-being. We understand that mental health is just as critical as physical health. We have a new appreciation for the importance of our connection with others. We realize how we cannot fully thrive professionally if we struggle in other areas of our life. We are starting to understand that a holistic approach to mental health is more than treating mental illness—it is about positively and proactively supporting all the elements that allow us to flourish. Going forward, it is incumbent on business leaders to hold onto these insights and to build on them.

As an executive wellness coach and corporate wellness consultant, I have been through the thick and thin of the struggles and silver linings of the pandemic. When I first started my company nearly a decade ago, corporate wellness was a nascent industry. Wellness programs mainly were focused on physical health and often consisted largely of an onsite fitness center or subsidized gym memberships. Today, progressive organizations know that employee well-being is much more than a gym membership. Even before the pandemic, mental health was gaining more traction. Now it is front and center, and it must remain there.

The danger of a return to "normal" is the temptation to give in to complacency. Understandably, we all want to breathe a sigh of relief and let our guard down. But we have to remember that, even before the pandemic, experts were sounding alarms about our collective mental health, and burnout was on the rise. The good news is that it appears the new awareness is here to stay. At the close of Mental Health Awareness Month, we should commit to making this a year-round conversation. Our resilience as organizations and as a society depends on it. 

The state of mental health before and during the pandemic

As a recent report from Deloitte on the future of behavior health points out, we saw a "long-simmering crisis" in mental and behavioral health even before Covid. Pre-pandemic studies showed that depression alone affected the global economy to the tune of over $200 billion a year. The direct and indirect costs of behavioral illness were equal to 4% of global economic output—exceeding the combined costs of cancer, diabetes, and respiratory disease.

The stress of a global health crisis has only exacerbated these already existing trends. A new poll by the American Psychiatric Association finds that anxiety is still running high. More than four in ten Americans (41%) are more anxious than last year, with the numbers for young adults and minorities even higher. The 2021 State of Mental Health in America report says rates of depression and anxiety have "skyrocketed," especially among young people.

Experts agree that the mental health repercussions of the pandemic will last long after the virus itself is under control. Says APA President Jeffrey Geller: "This is a call to action for policymakers, who need to remember that in our COVID-19 recovery, there's no health without mental health."

A new conversation about mental health and well-being

It seems that political leaders and business leaders alike are taking such warnings to heart. A new paradigm is emerging, acknowledging well-being and mental health as a necessary foundation for prosperity. Part of this new conversation involves recognizing how policy on matters such as childcare impacts women's mental health in particular. The newly formed TIME'S UP Care Economy Business Council notes that balancing work and caregiving responsibilities during the pandemic has created "untenable levels of stress" for working women. Caregiving issues are economic issues and mental health issues.

This year, Willis Tower Watson conducted an Emerging from the Pandemic Employer Survey involving 494 organizations with 6.4 million employees. A majority of employers conceded that their wellness programs were not fully adequate to the challenge of the pandemic.

"Many employers are now acting with urgency as they look to take their well-being programs to the next level," said Regina Ihrke, who helped oversee the survey. "To achieve this transformation, they will ramp up listening to their employee needs, communication efforts, and realignment of benefit programs with a focus on mental health and caregiving."

Next steps for business leaders

The CDC's guide to Mental Health in the Workplace is a good starting point for business leaders. These recommendations echo many of the practices I encourage my clients to implement:

• Make mental health self-assessment tools available to all employees, along with materials to educate employees about the signs and symptoms of poor mental health and opportunities for treatment. These tools should complement free or subsidized clinical screenings by a qualified mental health professional.
• Ensure that your health insurance program includes no- or low-fee coverage for depression medication and counseling.
• Provide free or subsidized lifestyle coaching, counseling, or self-management programs.
• Host seminars and workshops that address depression and stress management and that teach techniques like mindfulness, breathing exercises, and meditation.
• Create and maintain dedicated, quiet spaces for relaxation activities.
• Provide managers with training to help them recognize the signs and symptoms of stress and depression in team members and encourage employees to seek help from qualified mental health professionals.
• Give employees opportunities to participate in decisions that affect stress on the job and shape the quality of their overall work experience.

Last but not least, business leaders must recognize that organizational mental health begins with them. If you are not actively supporting your own mental health and modeling the practices necessary to do so, a culture of well-being will never fully take root in your organization. As we begin returning to some semblance of normalcy, I encourage my executive clients to start with one aspect of their well-being they have been neglecting. Often, that is something straightforward, such as a lack of sleep or exercise. I ask them to make a realistic but specific commitment—for example, going to bed 30 minutes earlier or scheduling a workout two or three times per week and blocking that time into their calendar.

The road to well-being and mental health is built on modest but specific commitments. A coaching relationship has built-in accountability that significantly increases the likelihood we will stay on track. That same accountability can work throughout your organization. Consider, as stated above, offering free or subsidized coaching as part of your wellness program. Encourage managers to make conversations around well-being an integral part of their regular check-ins with direct reports. Normalize discussions (both formal and informal) around mental health.

We are all craving renewed connections with colleagues and co-workers. By making mental health and well-being a regular feature of conversations in the workplace, we can accomplish multiple objectives. In addition to addressing the mental health issues that predated the pandemic, we can also foster greater vulnerability, authenticity, and psychological safety in our organizations. As President Biden has put it, we can build back and build back stronger. This should be a daily conversation, not one relegated to just one month of the year.