Stress Awareness Month is Underway

Considering the stress, anxiety and uncertainty caused by 2020, Stress Awareness Month 2021 is arguably the most important one since its inception over 20 years ago.   The events over the last year have thrown our lives into disarray with furlough, remote working, homeschooling, limited contact, restrictions on travel and social interaction. Many of us hoped to wave goodbye to the challenges of 2020 as this new year started.  However, the restrictions on our freedoms and rights have lingered long into 2021 and still impacting our way of life. While the lockdown may be slowly easing, it’s evident that anxiety and tension are still a part of our daily lives.

In January 2021, we completed a study in collaboration with Huawei AppGallery to gain an understanding of the true societal impact of the pandemic and lockdowns. The results gathered from 2000 participants, gave us an insight into how people had been impacted and what they may have chosen to do to address this.  Since the start of the restrictions in March, 65% of participants felt more stressed than before, 53% felt more anxious and 44% felt more depressed. Click here to read more about the results of our study.

Through the research, we identified 3 key themes causing the deterioration in mental health and personal wellbeing: Disconnection, Uncertainty and Loss of Control. Our research has not only allowed us to identify the challenges to our nation’s wellbeing, but also provides us with an indication of how we can strengthen it. With this in mind, the theme for Stress Awareness Month this year’s is ‘Regain Connection, Certainty and Control’.

In April, we will be exploring each of these topics individually with the aim of opening an effective (and much needed) dialogue on the topic of stress, mental health, and poor wellbeing. Together, we can start the healing process and knit ourselves and our communities back together.

What are you doing for Stress Awareness Month?

We’ve been contacted by many organisations keen to raise awareness of Stress Awareness Month in the last few months. It’s been rewarding to witness enquiries from all types of organisations, whether it’s small shops in need of display posters or national organisations keen to improve their corporate culture. We invite you to take this opportunity to do something for Stress Awareness Month, whether it’s starting a journey of personal development or educating your team on the importance of wellbeing.

Raising awareness of this topic is vital and to support you, we’ve created a whole host of free resources available at www.stress.org.uk/stressawarenessmonth. This includes online courses, online stress tests, printable posters, social media posts, a stress-busting colouring book and much more.