Understanding and Coping with Workplace Depression

Beset by cutbacks, massive layoffs and global competition, today's workplace has never seemed more challenging. Depression in the workplace has never been higher, too--especially when difficult or dysfunctional bosses and coworkers enter the picture. But there is good news, however remote it may seem. With a little assistance, coping with job-related depression is possible.

Size

• Work-related or not, the toll taken by depression is fearsome--afflicting roughly 19 million Americans, or roughly 9.5% of the population, according to statistics from the National Institute of Mental Health. A RAND Corporation study found that depressive patients spend more days in bed than people with arthritis, back problems and diabetes.

Features

• Problems with concentration, memory and decision-making are common features of depression in the workplace, while other symptoms--such as decreased productivity, eating or sleeping disturbances--may be subtler, and less easy to spot right away. A professional diagnosis is advised if anyone shows evidence of five or more symptoms for more than two weeks.

Misconceptions

• Telling a coworker to "snap out of it" is not advised by therapists. Clinical depression is not a character flaw or personal weakness. It's a serious brain disorder that can compromise an employee's ability to function productively.

Considerations

• Companies may offer Employee Assistance Programs, which can help a depressive employee subtly redirect the "all-or-nothing" thinking that often characterizes their situation. Overstressed minds may be prone to learned helplessness, in which expectations of failure become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Problem/Solution

• For people unwilling to enter an Employee Assistance Program, toll-free crisis helplines--like the one maintained by the National Alliance on Mental Illness--can offer a reassuring degree of anonymity, though professional counseling is still recommended.

Significance

• The good news is that, in more than 80 percent of cases, counseling programs provide significant long-term benefits to those who take advantage of them--even if few employers offer them, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.