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There's an elephant in your office

There's an elephant in your office

By Ashley Johnson & Andrea Herron

Poor mental health doesn't magically disappear when you clock in for work. It's there. It's real, and finding an appropriate way to deal with it leads to greater success for everyone.

Sisters Ashley and Andrea combine their knowledge in human resources, communication, mental health, and coaching to share practical ways you can help all people be successful in the workplace. That includes the 1 in 5 US adults experiencing a mental illness in a given year, as well as their co-workers and managers.

Join the authors for honest conversations and straightforward answers to tough questions.
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Reasonable Accommodations

There's an elephant in your officeOct 10, 2020

00:00
28:44
What is an accommodation for mental health? Can I have one?

What is an accommodation for mental health? Can I have one?

In this episode, Ashley and Andrea explain which feelings and actions may indicate that a change in how you do your work would benefit your mental health and increase your productivity. They spell out exactly who qualifies for reasonable accommodations and give several examples of specific workplace adjustments that benefit people managing a mental health disorder. To wrap up Part I, they discuss using the interactive process to find a solution acceptable to the employee and business.

While you may not know the phrases "interactive process" or "reasonable accommodations" you've seen them in action. The most common way this appears at work is when someone takes a leave of absence to have surgery and comes back on "light duty" or with restrictions for a few weeks. Prior to the surgery, the employee discusses the need for time off with their manager (Interactive Process) and addresses any changes to how they will perform job tasks upon return (Reasonable Accommodations).

The same process applies to employees seeking accommodations due to mental impairment. 

In Part II, Ashley and Andrea describe the steps involved in acquiring and implementing an accommodation at work. *Spoiler alert* in order to receive a reasonable accommodation under the ADA, you must disclose your disability.  

This topic is huge and heavily regulated. If you want to know more, check out these trusted resources: 

Ask JAN - The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) is the leading source of free, expert, and confidential guidance on job accommodations and disability employment issues. 

US Department of Labor - Office of Disability Employment Policy

EEOC - Equal Employment Opportunity Commission


Check out Ashley and Andrea's newly redesigned website and buy a copy of There's an Elephant in Your Office! (Major credit cards, debit cards, and PayPal accepted.)

Hire them to train your workforce on how to identify and support employees experiencing poor mental health. Send them a message at elephantinyouroffice@gmail.com.

Find them on social - Instagram @elephantinyouroffice; FB @elephantinyouroffice

Jul 12, 202116:48
Managing Depression and Employees at the Same Time
May 29, 202125:54
Jeanine and Noelle Part 2

Jeanine and Noelle Part 2

In Part 2 of our conversation with Jeanine and Noelle, we hear about some good things that came out of 2020, like finding a therapist, learning how to communicate that you need something, and watching as the rest of the world discovers what small business owners have known for years - how hard it is when your work and home lives meld into one.

Andrea shares her thoughts on how we successfully transition back into face-to-face work settings, and Ashley has a suggestion for leaders on how to help employees who are struggling to regain balance. 


How to buy Noelle's original ceramics and other super cool stuff:

Visit Full Circle Gifts and Goods - a small business bringing you a unique gift shopping experience. Noelle & Scott Horsfield invite you to stop by their shop in Huntington, W.V. or buy merch from their website. Find them on Instagram @fullcirclegiftsandgoods.

Jeanine is starting a program in the Buffalo, NY area called "Women R"

It's a way for women to build connection and community. Stay tuned for more details.

Check out Ashley and Andrea's newly redesigned website and buy a copy of There's an Elephant in Your Office! (We accept all major credit cards, debit cards, and PayPal.)

Hire us to train your workforce on how to identify and support employees experiencing poor mental health. Send us a message at elephantinyouroffice@gmail.com

Find us on social - Instagram @elephantinyouroffice; FB @ASJexplains  

May 05, 202119:59
Jeanine and Noelle, How Did You Cope with 2020? (Part 1)

Jeanine and Noelle, How Did You Cope with 2020? (Part 1)

In this episode, Ashley and Andrea are joined by two amazing women, Jeanine and Noelle. The group discusses how COVID upended their plans for 2020 and specific ways they have tried to cope. For Noelle, that meant transforming her community-based small business into an online retailer while caring for her aging parents and managing her own chronic illness. Jeanine tried her hand at working full time from home while helping the kids do remote school and her husband follow constantly changing regulations for the small business he started at the end of 2019. 

Whew! That's a lot to balance! And the exact reason to focus a spotlight on Amazing Mammoths. (As a reminder, Amazing Mammoths are employees being crushed by the weight of external stressors. They have great difficulty coping with a particular source of stress.

Have a listen to Part 1 of this conversation and feel inspired, comforted, and seen as Jeanine and Noelle share details of their journey through a rough year.

and come back for Part 2!  


How to buy Noelle's original ceramics and other super cool stuff:

Visit Full Circle Gifts and Goods - a small business bringing you a unique gift shopping experience. Noelle & Scott Horsfield invite you to stop by their shop in Huntington, W.V. or buy merch from their website. Find them on Instagram @fullcirclegiftsandgoods.


Jeanine is starting a program in the Buffalo, NY area called "Women R" 

It's a way for women to build connection and community. Stay tuned for more details. 


Check out Ashley and Andrea's newly redesigned website and buy a copy of There's an Elephant in Your Office! (We accept all major credit cards, debit cards, and PayPal.)

Hire us to train your workforce on how to identify and support employees experiencing poor mental health. Send us a message at elephantinyouroffice@gmail.com

Find us on social - Instagram @elephantinyouroffice; FB @ASJexplains

Apr 07, 202122:27
Did the pandemic turn you into an Amazing Mammoth?

Did the pandemic turn you into an Amazing Mammoth?

A year into the coronavirus pandemic, more people than ever are dealing with poor mental health. The CDC and Mental Health America have recently released studies that show the significant, but not unexpected, rise in people experiencing anxiety and depression. Are you one of those people? Maybe you live or work with someone struggling with their mental health. 

In this first episode of Season 2, Ashley and Andrea talk about Amazing Mammoths and adjustment disorder. To refresh your memory, an Amazing Mammoth is a person having difficulty coping with or adjusting to a particular source of stress. This could stem from something straightforward like the loss of a job or a loved one or be more complicated, like trying to navigate a global pandemic. Regardless of the source, the external stressor causes the person to have symptoms similar to clinical depression. That includes inability to focus, having trouble completing tasks, isolating, and looking more disheveled. 

When we went to work and saw people on a regular basis, it was a little easier to tell when someone was withdrawing or having a tough time dealing with something because you saw it evolve over time. Once the world went virtual, our context clues disappeared making it harder to know who was struggling.

During this podcast, Ashley and Andrea teach you how to recognize an Amazing Mammoth and provide examples of how coworkers, businesses, and the C-suite checked in with each other while being virtual. They also talk about coping skills and how alcohol and online shopping seemed to fill a void for many people who lost their support systems. 


Check out our newly redesigned website and buy a copy of our book, There's an Elephant in Your Office! (We accept all major credit cards, debit cards, and PayPal.)

Hire us to train your workforce on how to identify and support employees experiencing poor mental health. Send us a message at elephantinyouroffice@gmail.com 

Find us on social - Instagram @elephantinyouroffice; FB @ASJexplains


Mar 22, 202123:29
Drink water. Sleep. Maintain sanity.
Nov 24, 202016:05
Reasonable Accommodations
Oct 10, 202028:44
Toxic Positivity
Sep 02, 202021:22
How we're staying sane
Jul 22, 202021:07
Being an Ally in the Workplace: Words That Work.

Being an Ally in the Workplace: Words That Work.

What is BIPOC? Can I say "trans" without offending people? How many letters are supposed to be in LGBTQIA and what do they all mean?! 

In honor and recognition of Pride Month, Black Lives Matter, social justice, and minority mental health, Ashley and Andrea devote this podcast to highlighting the unique struggles faced by people who identify with multiple marginalized identities and talk about ways we can all be better allies.* 

Learning the language is an important first step if you want to engage in conversations about race, disparities, and justice. Ashley uses the UC Davis LGBTQIA Resource Center Glossary to define several words that keep popping up in the news and which ones are most appropriate to use.  

Andrea shares the Project Implicit website and the quizzes you can take to uncover your hidden biases about race, gender, age, disability, and more. There's also a 21 Day Racial Equity Challenge where you do one action to further your understanding of power, privilege, supremacy, oppression, and equity each day for 21 days. If you love checklists, definitely try Dr. John Raible’s Checklist for Allies Against Racism. Read through the checklist to get a feel for what constitutes ally behavior on the part of anti-racists, and think about how often and how consistently you do any or all of them. 

Other great resources: 

The Angry Black Woman: The Do’s and Don’ts of Being a Good Ally 

The White Ally Toolkit/Ally Conversation Toolkit helps anti-racism allies do their part in the fight against racism by empowering and equipping them with best practice communications skills based on listening, storytelling, and compassion.  

Racial justice educator and writer Debby Irving, on her website, gives us "a small sampling of what the racial justice community has offer." 

Safe Space Radio: Talking to White Kids About Race & Racism

MHA and NAMI have all the data you want related to Prevalence of Mental Health Conditions in Specific Populations. 

The Netflix documentary, 13th, reviews the Thirteenth Amendment and analyzes the criminalization of African Americans and the U.S. prison boom. 

If you want to donate, here's a list of Black Lives Matter and Black Lives Matter LGBTQ charities who need support.  

*Ashley and Andrea 100% recognize their privilege as white women and want to connect people with the experts and tools they need to engage in important conversations.  

Buy the book, There's an Elephant in Your Office, on our website elephantinyouroffice.com or on Amazon. Hire us to train your workforce on incorporating mental health into all kinds of businesses. Find us on social - Instagram @elephantinyouroffice; FB @ASJexplains

Jun 18, 202029:28
Expert Information and Resources

Expert Information and Resources

Calls to crisis lines and mental health providers continue to increase as people struggle to deal with a wave of emotions. For many, the COVID-19 pandemic, quarantine, and now racial unrest have pushed them beyond normal limits of stress. They are in unfamiliar territory and seeking solutions. For this episode, we've called in the experts and gathered up the most useful resources for people needing to address poor mental health. Please share these numbers and web addresses with anyone and everyone because anxiety, depression, and other types of poor mental health aren't visible on the surface and you never know who may need them. #CubicleCamouflage   

Special thanks to Emily Reidford, Executive Director of Mental Health America Vanderburgh County* for her insight. 

Resources:

  • National Suicide Prevention Lifeline - 1-800-273-TALK (8255) 
  • Veterans Crisis Line and Military Crisis Line - 1-800-273-8255 (press option 1)
  • Trevor Project (LGBTQ) - 1-866-488-7386 

Call them if you are thinking about killing yourself or are having a mental health crisis. Alternative to calling: Text HOME to 741741 to message with a trained crisis counselor.  

If you are not in immediate danger or crisis but need help and someone safe to talk to, try calling a warm line. List of warm lines by state;

These websites have trusted information and helpful tools: Mental Health America Screening Page ; NAMI ; Trevor Project

Buy the book, There's an Elephant in Your Office, on our website elephantinyouroffice.com or on Amazon. Hire us to train your workforce on incorporating mental health into all kinds of businesses. Find us on social - Instagram @elephantinyouroffice; FB @ASJexplains

*Mental Health America Vanderburgh County is located in southwest Indiana, near the city of Evansville. It's a local affiliate of MHA.

Jun 01, 202020:35
Rampaging Pachyderms
May 09, 202026:39
Invisible Elephants
Apr 04, 202037:15
Navigating work, mental health, and the coronavirus

Navigating work, mental health, and the coronavirus

In this very special episode, Ashley and Andrea address the giant elephant in the office.... the coronavirus. It's impacting how we do business and interact with each other. It's also exacerbating previously well-controlled mental health disorders. 

Mentioned in the show - MHA Screening Tool and warmlines. Both are free and highly effective ways to address mental health concerns that aren't quite an emergency.  

Buy our book, There's an Elephant in Your Office, on our website elephantinyouroffice.com or on Amazon. 

Find us on social - Instagram @elephantinyouroffice; FB @ASJexplains

Mar 18, 202023:23
Amazing Mammoths
Mar 09, 202024:28
There's an Elephant in Your Office

There's an Elephant in Your Office

In the very first episode, sisters and co-hosts Ashley and Andrea explain how a big problem at work led to a book about elephants. 

Find us on social: Instagram @elephantinyouroffice; FB @ASJexplains; #CubicleCamouflage

Mar 01, 202014:10