Stress can be brought on by any number of issues, ranging from workplace pressures to losing your job. Natalie Marsh reports
O
ur bodies are designed to respond to stress or shock, with a surge of adrenaline,” explains
the Mental Health Foundation’s Chris O’Sullivan. “It gives us the ability to run away or turn and fight. Tat is known as a stress response. Te problem comes if that stress response is triggered too oſten.” According to the Health and
Safety Executive, work-related stress, depression or anxiety accounted for 44% of work-related ill health in 2018-19. It was also the reason for 54% of working days lost due to ill health. Symptoms of stress can be physical
and mental, ranging from insomnia and sleep disturbance, to low energy, exhaustion and headaches on the physical side, and anxiety, anger, low mood and depression, according to Mental Health Foundation research. Although stress in itself isn’t
necessarily a mental illness, it can be a huge trigger in developing one, points out head of business development and engagement O’Sullivan. “If you feel these things all the time, if you feel overwhelmed or
16 6 FEBRUARY 2020
“I literally lost it.
I couldn’t go to work, I wasn’t myself, I just went into a complete mental breakdown
unable to cope, that is a recipe for either developing physical illness, a mental health problem or burning out,” he says. “It’s different to the pressure that helps people to thrive, particularly in the workplace.” But what can happen when
someone is suddenly out of work?
Thomas Cook fallout “I know every single customer I rang, I rang crying,” admits Marie Orpe, who was a homeworker with Freedom Personal Travel Advisors until Tomas Cook’s collapse last September. Te uncertainty in the days and
weeks aſter that were challenging. Orpe, who has since joined Holiday Elite, spoke in front of members at the Farewell to Freedom party at the end of last year about the importance of looking aſter their mental health, in
light of the emotions many of them experienced as their businesses were suddenly leſt unable to trade when systems shut down. “Shock is obviously the first thing,
then panic, then there’s the anger and the stress,” she says. “I know everybody that first week literally was working 15 to 20-hour days.” Although the majority of Freedom
Travel Group members’ businesses were trading again within days, the effects have been long-lasting. Former Freedom members who have spoken to Travel Weekly have lost tens of thousands of pounds in commissions. Jayde Nassa of Nassa Travel says
she was “crying every night” aſter news of the Tomas Cook failure broke. “About two weeks’ aſter, I literally lost it. I couldn’t go to work; I wasn’t myself; I just went into a complete mental breakdown,” she says. Arron Mitchell, director at Platinum
World Travel and part of the member- led Freedom Travel Group steering commitee formed just before Cook’s collapse, says there was a lack of guidance from governing bodies in the days following the collapse. “Geting information from
the CAA and Abta proved to be incredibly difficult,” he says. “Te stress and fast-paced nature
of the constantly changing advice impacted the mental health of some of the business owners.” People with a strong affinity to a
company can find it a huge mental challenge when that company comes to an end, says O’Sullivan. “Whether that end point comes
as a result of a business failure, or something like becoming unwell, the loss of a sense of purpose or belonging that it can bring can be a real challenge,” he adds.
Job loss Losing your job through redundancy can affect a person’s mental health as much if not more than a company collapse.
NEED HELP? If you, or someone you know, has been affected by a mental health issue and need help, contact the Samaritans free of charge on 116 123.
travelweekly.co.uk
HEALTH MATTERS
MENTAL
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