Mental health – our employees’ stories

Following this, we also want to share some of our employees’ experiences and their tips for wellbeing during lockdown.

Some of our employee mental health champions have recorded videos.

Tips from employees on wellbeing during lockdown

Below are some of their tips, taken from these videos.

Lisa Doran, Sellafield Ltd Remediation Team Leader says:

My tip is to do things to keep your mind occupied. I take daily exercise. I also stay connected to friends and family and give myself little treats.

Some days we all have little slumps, and that’s fine. Be kind to yourself and stay safe.

Stuart Buchanan, Sellafield Ltd Control Systems says:

Like lots of you, my mental health has been up and down, but thankfully with no real problems. I find that getting out and doing a bit of exercise really does help.

I also do a bit of charity work and I think that helping others have a positive impact on your mental health.

Kay Mulhatton, Sellafield Ltd Waste Vitrification Plant says:

I try to stop overthinking. I also crochet, knit and do any DIY. All these are things to fill your head, so you don’t overthink things.

It’s not always easy, but it helps to keep your feet on the ground.

Kindness is important too – I think we need more of that. DO help each other and keep each other going strong.

We finish with an insight to a particular mental health challenge from Michael Wright who is the co-founder and co-chair of the Nuclear Stammering Network. This aims to raise awareness of stammering as well as coach those who suffer within the industry, helping them gain control over their speech.

Michael Wright, Site Integration and Outage Management Team has talked about his experiences of lockdown with a stammer, and how the daily conference calls can be a challenge.

Since working from home, we have seen a huge increase in the use of technology to enable us to communicate effectively, with the use of conference call dial ins, and with apps such as Skype and Zoom.

For those who suffer from a stammer this can inflict additional stress and anxiety and can bring additional complexity when trying to perform their job.