Recognizing the Big 4 Mental Health Issues
What exactly should we be looking out for?
While mental health challenges take many forms, there are four core issues that every IT manager should be able to spot and address:
Anxiety – More than just “worrying,” anxiety in IT often manifests as perfectionism, impostor syndrome, overthinking, and avoidance. A QA tester who spends hours beyond the typical workday endlessly repeating test cases or a developer who procrastinates on deploying code for fear of criticism may be wrestling with anxiety.
Stress – IT work’s relentless demands and breakneck pace create fertile ground for unhealthy stress. Common signs include irritability, difficulty concentrating, fatigue, and feeling perpetually overwhelmed. When an ordinarily easy-going sysadmin starts snapping at colleagues or a project manager’s decision-making abilities decline, stress is often the culprit.
Depression – Depression can be tricky to recognize in the workplace, as it often looks like disengagement and low motivation. An IT worker who was once a creative problem solver but now does the bare minimum, regularly misses deadlines, and seems apathetic about their work may be suffering from depression.
Burnout – More than just a bad day or challenging project, burnout is a state of utter depletion that can take months or years to recover from. Irritability, cynicism, lack of focus, and a feeling of futility are red flags. Burnout may be to blame when a previously gung-ho developer’s code quality degrades, or a once-collaborative team member withdraws from conversations and seems perpetually exhausted.
Recognizing the Big 4 Mental Health Issues
What exactly should we be looking out for?
While mental health challenges take many forms, there are four core issues that every IT manager should be able to spot and address:
Anxiety – More than just “worrying,” anxiety in IT often manifests as perfectionism, impostor syndrome, overthinking, and avoidance. A QA tester who spends hours beyond the typical workday endlessly repeating test cases or a developer who procrastinates on deploying code for fear of criticism may be wrestling with anxiety.
Stress – IT work’s relentless demands and breakneck pace create fertile ground for unhealthy stress. Common signs include irritability, difficulty concentrating, fatigue, and feeling perpetually overwhelmed. When an ordinarily easy-going sysadmin starts snapping at colleagues or a project manager’s decision-making abilities decline, stress is often the culprit.
Depression – Depression can be tricky to recognize in the workplace, as it often looks like disengagement and low motivation. An IT worker who was once a creative problem solver but now does the bare minimum, regularly misses deadlines, and seems apathetic about their work may be suffering from depression.
Burnout – More than just a bad day or challenging project, burnout is a state of utter depletion that can take months or years to recover from. Irritability, cynicism, lack of focus, and a feeling of futility are red flags. Burnout may be to blame when a previously gung-ho developer’s code quality degrades, or a once-collaborative team member withdraws from conversations and seems perpetually exhausted.
Daniel Breston
IT Management Advisor at Independent
Daniel Breston is a 50+ year veteran of IT, ex-CIO and principle consultant, multiple framework trainer, blogger, and speaker. Daniel is on the board of itSMF UK and is a Fellow of the British Computer Society. Daniel may be retired, but he will help an organization if requested. Not full-time, but hey!
https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielbreston/