Inside Out: Mental Health at Work and in Life

MHScot Workplace Wellbeing CIC
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In this MHScot-hosted podcast, we break down barriers and spark conversations about mental health. Starting in the workplace and extending outward, we’ll explore tools, stories, and initiatives that shape a healthier, more inclusive world. Whether you’re an employer, employee, or community member, tune in to discover actionable insights, challenge assumptions, and learn how nurturing well-being from the inside out helps us all thrive.

  1. Jul 13

    The Colleague You Think Is Fine: Trauma at Work

    In this episode of Inside Out: Mental Health at Work and in Life, I'm joined by Tracey Secker, founder of Voices Social Enterprise, a non-profit raising awareness of domestic abuse, trauma and other forms of abuse, supporting both employees and employers through training, resources and events. Tracey also works with the charity Rape and Sexual Violence Project. Tracey came to this work through lived experience of domestic abuse and its long aftermath. She understands how trauma can shape the way someone responds to managers, colleagues and pressure at work, often without realising it at the time. That understanding sits underneath everything she now does. We talk about why a mentally healthy workplace starts with a culture that feels safe, open and supportive, and why so many people, including senior leaders, stay silent for fear of being judged or seen as weak. Tracey lays out the scale of the issue: around one in four women and one in six men experience domestic abuse in their lifetime, which means trauma is present in almost any workforce, whether it's current or historical. She's candid about the assumptions that get in the way. "It doesn't happen here" is, she argues, one of the most dangerous things a leader can believe. People hide it well. For some, work is the one place they feel in control, a safe space they protect by becoming someone else for the day. The fix isn't to turn managers into counsellors. It's far simpler, and it belongs to everyone: notice, ask, listen, believe, and point people towards the right support. 🔑 Key Topics Why a mentally healthy workplace starts with a culture that feels safe, open and supportiveThe scale of domestic abuse and trauma in any workforce, and the ONS figures behind itHow historical trauma, coercive control and post-separation abuse follow people into workWhy "it doesn't happen here" is the assumption that does the most damageWork as a safe space, and the quiet signs someone may be surviving something at homeSupporting people without being a counsellor: hear, believe, listen, signpostPolicies that mean something versus tick-box policies that don'tWhy checking in on each other is everyone's job, not just managers' 💡 Did You Know? Around one in four women and one in six men experience domestic abuse in their lifetime (ONS). In a team of ten, the maths is unavoidable: someone you work alongside is likely carrying it, current or historical, whether you can see it or not. 📝 Actionable Takeaways Don't assume trauma isn't present. Find out. Even an anonymous QR-code check-in can surface what you can't seeWhen someone opens up, hear, believe and listen first. You don't have to fix itBe honest about your limits. Don't promise what you can't deliver, and signpost to specialist supportMake your policies (domestic abuse, menopause, mental health) mean something, and live by them from the top downCheck in on people, including the ones at the top who rarely get askedTreat a disclosure as a chance to support and educate, not automatically to discipline 🗣️ Join the Conversation When did someone last ask you, simply, "are you okay?", and what difference did it make? Share your thoughts and connect with us on social media. Connect with Tracey Secker on LinkedIn | Voices Social Enterprise LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tracey-secker-9522b047/Voices Social Enterprise: https://www.voices-social-enterprise.co.uk If anything in this episode affects you, support is available. In the UK, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline (run by Refuge) is free on 0808 2000 247, 24 hours a day. If phoning isn't safe or possible, you can also reach them through the live chat on their website: https://www.nationaldahelpline.org.uk

  2. Jun 29

    Leading with Humility: Why the Best Bosses Stay Human

    In this episode of Inside Out: Mental Health at Work and in Life, I'm joined by Steven Pink, who is the CEO of Verve Healthcare, a SELDOC Group company. Steven has worked in retail, banking, aviation, the NHS and private healthcare. You will hear in the podcast how experiences from each of these industries have shaped Steven's view on how to lead well. Steven's route to leadership has been interesting, starting as a 16-year-old selling men's suits in Marks and Spencer to leading two healthcare businesses as CEO: Verve Healthcare and SELDOC. That breadth shows in how he thinks about work. For Steven, a mentally healthy workplace is one where people get something back for themselves, not just a wage, but a sense of purpose, challenge and growth. He makes the case that we often have far more agency over our working lives than we think. We need to take hold of it. We talk about reflection as a vital discipline rather than a luxury. We consider why leaders who never carve out time to think end up leading with tunnel vision, and how saying no in a good way is an important technique you can learn; it isn't just about confidence. Steven shares his own turning point on health and fitness, and what changed when he finally treated his own wellbeing as a priority. He's also candid about the kind of leader he wanted to become. After working for some excellent bosses and some poor ones, he set out to build the kind of workplace he wished he'd been in when he was unhappy. The result: 97% workforce retention over five years in his current business, without the need to always be the best payer. His explanation is disarmingly simple, just be a bit human. 🔑 Key Topics Why purpose and challenge matter as much as pay for mental health at workThe agency we have over our own working lives, and why we underestimate itReflection as a leadership discipline, and building structure to protect itSaying no by offering an alternative, a learnable technique, not just confidenceLeaders not always putting themselves last, and why looking after yourself isn't selfishBuilding the workplace you wish you'd had: humanity, belonging and retentionInfluence with humility, and the responsibility that comes with seniority 💡 Did You Know? Steven's business holds 97% staff retention over more than five years, despite, in his words, not always being the best payer. His reason: once people arrive, it's simply a good, human place to be. Genuine kindness and low ego are vital ingredients for effective leadership. 📝 Actionable Takeaways Decide what gives you value from your work, then engineer more of it into your weekProtect time to reflect, whether that's the gym, a walk, or talking it through with someone you trustPractise saying no with an alternative: "I can't really do that this week, but I can do a great job with it next week. Would that work for you?"Treat your own health and wellbeing as your number one priority; allow other things to reorganise around itIf your team look nervous or avoid you, treat it as feedback on your leadership, not on them, change how you areUse influence with humility, the bigger your role, the greater your responsibility 🗣️ Join the Conversation When did you last give yourself real time to reflect, and what changed when you did? Share your thoughts and connect with us on social media. Connect with Steven: LinkedIn | Verve Healthcare https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenpink123/https://www.vervehealthcare.co.uk/

  3. Jun 4

    Supervision, Not Snoopervision: Leading with Compassion

    In this episode of Inside Out: Mental Health at Work and in Life, I'm joined by Dr Emma Williamson, Consultant Clinical Psychologist and CEO of Aneemo. Emma spent over 20 years in the NHS, including developing what is now the largest homeless psychology service in Europe, and she now supports organisations across sectors through trauma-informed leadership, training and immersive learning. We start with a simple question: what does a mentally healthier workplace actually look like? For Emma it begins with psychological safety, compassion and a trauma-informed approach, an environment where people can raise concerns or admit they're struggling without fear of repercussion, while still holding high standards and healthy challenge. From there the conversation opens out into leadership. We get into how we set managers up to fail, handing them targets and KPIs but little training, support or time.We talk about why so many people, younger workers especially, are stepping back from management, what happens to our judgement when we're burnt out, and why leaders so rarely give themselves the care they extend to everyone else. Her answer to the one change that would make the biggest difference is refreshingly practical: regular, genuine one-to-one spaces. "Supervision, not snoopervision," a phrase she credits to Dr Karen Treisman, support that's about the person, not just their objectives. 🔑 Key Topics What a trauma-informed workplace looks like, and why it benefits everyone, not only those who've experienced traumaPsychological safety sitting alongside high standards and healthy challengeWhy trauma is a wide umbrella, and why we don't need to label or diagnose to support people wellHow we set leaders up to fail, and why healthy teams produce better outcomes than target-chasingBurnout and the three signs to watch for: emotional exhaustion, disconnection, and feeling you achieve nothingWhy leaders have to start with their own wellbeing, and role-model boundaries, leave and restDistributed leadership, and letting go of the idea that one person does it all"Supervision, not snoopervision" (a phrase from Dr Karen Treisman): regular one-to-one support as prevention, not paperworkWhat to do when you don't get on with your line managerWhether wellness action plans help, and why it's how they're used that counts 💡 Did You Know? Around 70% of the global population will experience at least one traumatic event in their lifetime, and more than a third of workforce sickness and absence is linked to mental health. A trauma-informed approach isn't a niche concern, it's about almost everyone you work with. 📝 Actionable Takeaways Build regular one-to-one spaces that are about the person, not only their KPIs, at least monthlyNotice the people who say "I don't need that", sometimes they can be the ones who need support mostAs a leader, start with yourself: take your leave, hold your boundaries, find your own supportUse "I" statements rather than "you" statements when a working relationship is strainedTreat wellbeing tools as the start of a conversation, not a tick-box exerciseFind your own "team of solidarity", the people who reset you when your boundaries slip 🗣️ Join the Conversation Do you get a regular one-to-one space that's actually about you, not just your targets? And if you lead a team, are you giving yourself the same support you give everyone else? Share your thoughts and connect with us on social media. Connect with Dr Emma Williamson: LinkedIn | Website https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-emma-williamson-04bb7a85/https://www.aneemo.com

  4. Apr 27

    Construction, Culture, and Why You Can't Shape a Bully

    In this episode of Inside Out: Mental Health at Work and in Life, I'm joined by Marjorie Thomson, a commercial leader with more than 30 years in the construction industry. Marjorie's career has taken her from graduate trainee in Croydon to regional director responsible for a £26 million business, through two start-ups, two sales, and the process of leading a company through administration. She's now commercial manager at the startup she helped build, in what she describes as the best place she's been in her entire career. We talk about what culture actually is, not what the organisation declares, but what people decide to build on the ground. Marjorie argues you cannot shape a bully, and she's honest about the last 18 months leading up to her previous company's collapse, about the mental health crisis playing out in construction right now, and about what kept her going when it would have been easier to walk away. This is a conversation about what good leadership looks like when it shows up in other people, why mental health first aid training changed how she listened, and why, despite everything, seeing people develop is what still gives her hope. 🔑 Key Topics What a mentally healthy workplace actually looks like in practiceWhy culture isn't driven by the organisation, it's driven by the people in the right positionsWhy you cannot shape a bully, and what happens when one becomes your leaderLeading over 120 people through the slow decline of a businessMisogyny in construction, then and nowWhat mental health first aid training changed for Marjorie as a leaderThe specific mental health pressures in the construction industryWhy "I stayed for the people" is a leadership stance, not a consolation prize 💡 Did You Know? Construction has one of the highest suicide rates of any UK industry. Marjorie talks about why the sector's culture of "just get on with it", combined with long hours, financial precarity, and a near-complete lack of psychological safety, makes honest mental health conversations almost impossible on site, and often impossible in the office too. 📝 Actionable Takeaways Check where your organisation's culture is actually coming from: the boardroom, or the people closest to the customer?If you spot a bully in leadership, don't try to coach the behaviour out. Marjorie's lived experience says it cannot be shapedLook at who your team comes to for advice. That's a signal of who's leading in practiceAudit your approach to wellbeing. Are you ticking boxes, or creating real space for people to speak?If you're in a failing organisation, remember the people relying on you. That's a legitimate reason to stay, and a legitimate reason to leave when the damage becomes personalAsk yourself: what gives you hope? If the answer is nothing, that's information worth acting on 🗣️ Join the Conversation What shapes workplace culture more, the people in it or the organisation that employs them? Have you ever stayed for the people when everything else told you to go? Share your thoughts and connect with us on social media.

  5. Apr 6

    The Core Four Skills Nobody Teaches New Leaders

    In this episode of Inside Out: Mental Health at Work and in Life, I'm joined by Sue Naughton-Marsh, Organisational Development Strategist, Leadership Coach and Psychotherapist with over 30 years of experience helping organisations build confident, capable leaders. Sue brings a rare combination of perspectives. As a psychotherapist, she works one-to-one with people experiencing workplace stress. As a leadership coach, she helps organisations figure out why their people are struggling in the first place. Her argument is that most wellbeing initiatives miss the point. Organisations are reaching for sticking plasters when they haven't addressed the basics: do people know what they're here to do, do they have the skills to do it, and do they feel safe enough to grow? We talk about what Sue calls the "core four" skills that every leader needs but rarely gets taught: prioritisation, delegation, decision-making, and understanding team purpose. She explains why lean organisations are burning out their HR teams, why younger workers are turning away from management roles, and what happens when you strip an organisation back to its simplest structures. Sue also shares her "concertina approach" to HR support, bringing in temporary external expertise to build structures that last, rather than lengthy programmes that don't stick. This is a conversation about doing less, but doing it properly, and why the simplest changes often have the biggest impact. 🔑 Key Topics The "core four" skills every leader needs: prioritisation, delegation, decision-making, and understanding team purposeWhy wellbeing initiatives fail when organisations skip the basicsThe generational tension between younger employees' expectations and senior leaders' resistance to changeRunning too lean: what happens when organisations cut so deep there's no space for developmentHR burnout and the "concertina approach" to bringing in temporary external supportWhy fewer people want leadership roles, and how to make management less dauntingSkills matrices and internal academies: focusing on three areas rather than trying to fix everythingSystems mapping to find bottlenecks and reduce complexity 💡 Did You Know? Most people struggle to narrow their priorities down to just three, even when they know it would improve their daily working lives. Sue explains this as resistance from our primitive brain, which wants to hold onto everything rather than let go. 📝 Actionable Takeaways Audit whether your team has the "core four" skills before layering on wellbeing initiativesSet aside time quarterly for leadership teams to assess core skills gaps and succession risksFocus skills development on three areas, not everything at once, and make progression visibleConsider temporary external HR support to build lasting structures rather than committing to lengthy programmesRun a systems mapping exercise to identify where bottlenecks and complexity are costing you timeAsk your team one question: "What one thing would most improve your daily working life?" 🗣️ Join the Conversation What core skills do you think are missing in your organisation's leadership development? Are you investing in wellbeing initiatives without the basics in place? Share your thoughts and connect with us on social media. Connect with Sue on LinkedIn | Website https://www.linkedin.com/in/suenaughtonmarshleadershipcoach/ https://www.suenaughtonmarsh.com

  6. Mar 30

    Why Your Wellbeing Services Don't Talk to Each Other

    In this episode of Inside Out: Mental Health at Work and in Life, I'm joined by Dr Raja Gangopadhyay, Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Obstetric Lead in Perinatal Mental Health at West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, and NHS Clinical Entrepreneur. As a Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist with a special interest in perinatal mental health, Dr Raj brings a clinical lens to a question most workplaces are getting wrong: why are employers spending money on wellbeing but still not seeing results? After interviewing more than 20 companies, he found a consistent pattern. Organisations are investing in occupational health, Employee Assistance Programmes, health insurance, and HR support, but these services operate in complete isolation from each other. The result is a fragmented system where nobody has the full picture. We talk about why employees won't open up to internal mental health champions (and what they need instead), why secondary prevention is the missing piece in workplace health, and how the biopsychosocial model, the idea that physical, mental, and social health are all connected, should be shaping every employer's approach. Dr Raj also shares his experience supporting pregnant women and those going through fertility treatment, and why the trust gap between employees and employers often starts with something as simple as not believing someone needs time off for appointments. This is a conversation about what happens when clinical expertise meets workplace reality, and why bridging that gap could change everything. 🔑 Key Topics The three stages of prevention (primary, secondary, tertiary) and why workplaces miss the most impactful oneWhy wellbeing services in organisations operate in silos, and what a multidisciplinary approach looks likeThe case for external clinical professionals as trusted intermediaries for employeesHow occupational health is being underused and reduced to tick-box assessmentsPerinatal mental health: one in four mothers experience difficulties during pregnancy, and employers often don't understand what that means in practiceThe stigma and workplace challenges around fertility treatmentWhy "quality of life" is measured in healthcare but never applied to the workplaceEducation gaps: why leadership teams need wellbeing education as much as employees do 💡 Did You Know? One in four mothers can experience mental health difficulties during pregnancy, and partners are affected too. Yet many employers question the number of appointments needed, creating a trust gap that makes everything harder. 📝 Actionable Takeaways Audit whether your wellbeing services (occupational health, EAP, health insurance, HR) actually communicate with each otherConsider whether employees have access to a trusted, confidential third party for health concerns, not just internal championsLook at your approach to prevention: are you only supporting people once they're already unwell, or are you investing in early detection?Review your pregnancy and fertility policies: do they reflect the reality of what employees actually need?Apply a lifecycle lens to women's health support, from periods to menopause to cancer screeningMake sure wellbeing education reaches your executive team, not just employees and line managers 🗣️ Join the Conversation What does your organisation's approach to prevention actually look like? Are your wellbeing services joined up, or do they operate in silos? Share your experience with us. Connect with Dr Raj: LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/raja-gangopadhyay-b0816875/

  7. Mar 23

    Radical Love at Work: Why Showing Up Human Changes Everything

    In this episode of Inside Out: Mental Health at Work and in Life, I'm joined by Irene Warner-Mackintosh, co-founder and director of Mhor Collective. Irene brings a perspective shaped by a career spent entirely in the third sector, where the ethos of care is part of the DNA, but where capacity constraints and funding pressures create their own challenges. We talk about what a mentally healthy workplace actually looks like, and Irene is candid about what her organisation gets right and where it falls short. For her, it starts with feeling safe to say what you need, safe to disagree, and safe to show up flawed. We get into the tension between autonomy and structure. High autonomy is brilliant for creativity and ownership, but without clear expectations it can leave staff wondering what they're actually supposed to be doing. Irene is open about this being one of their weak spots, and that getting the balance right is ongoing rather than something you solve once. We also discuss frontline workers, social workers, and third sector staff dealing with other people's trauma every day. Irene makes the case that peer support isn't enough, that what's needed is professional psychological debrief, but the funding for it simply doesn't exist in most organisations. We talk about the UK's blame culture, why wellbeing policies need to respond to the wider world and not just individual circumstances, and Irene's belief in radical love at work, written into her organisation's manifesto. When asked what gives her hope, her answer is immediate: the people she works with every day who show up with love despite the "bin fire of the world." 🔑 Key Topics Psychological safety: feeling safe to disagree, to say what you need, and to show up flawedThird sector challenges: supportive ethos but capacity constraints and funding pressuresThe tension between autonomy and structure, and why both matterSupporting the supporters: why frontline staff need professional psychological debrief, not just peer supportCompassion fatigue vs burnout: differentiating what's impacting you and where it's coming fromTick-boxing as a starting point, not the end: policies are baselines but wellbeing is never staticUK blame culture and its impact on workplace experimentation and growthLove in the workplace: radical love, written into their organisational manifesto 💡 Did You Know? Irene's organisation, Mhor Collective, has love written into its organisational manifesto, not as an abstract aspiration but as a practical commitment to how they show up for each other and the communities they serve. 📝 Actionable Takeaways Create the conditions for psychological safety: make it acceptable to disagree, to ask for help, and to get things wrongIf you offer high autonomy, pair it with clear expectations and structure, otherwise staff can feel lost rather than empoweredRecognise the difference between compassion fatigue and burnout, they require different responsesLook beyond individual circumstances when thinking about staff wellbeing, the sociopolitical context affects everyoneConsider whether your staff who support others through trauma have access to professional psychological support, not just peer debriefTreat wellbeing policies as a starting point that needs constant revisiting, not a finished product 🗣️ Join the Conversation When was the last time your workplace held space for the wider world, not just individual struggles, but the collective weight of what's happening around us? What would change if love was written into how your organisation works? Share your thoughts and connect with us on social media. Connect with Irene on LinkedIn | Mhor Collective https://www.linkedin.com/in/irenemackintosh/ https://www.mhorcollective.com/

  8. Mar 16

    Slow Starts, Strong Foundations: Why Settling In Matters

    In this episode of Inside Out: Mental Health at Work and in Life, I'm joined by Carolina Uggenti, Research Fellow at the MRC Institute of Genetics and Cancer, University of Edinburgh, working on innate immunity and rare genetic diseases. Carolina shares a perspective shaped by major life transitions, from moving countries to navigating cancer, and how those experiences have changed the way she thinks about mental health at work. She describes a workplace, the Institute of Genetics and Cancer (IGC) in Edinburgh, where saying "I'm not OK today" isn't penalised, and explains why that kind of environment makes people more reliable, not less. We talk about what happens when someone relocates for work and everything is unfamiliar, the language, the humour, the customs. Carolina recalls her own move from Italy to the UK, how it took six months before something clicked, and how close she came to quitting during that period. Her point is direct: if you invest time in helping someone settle at the beginning, they'll perform better in the long run. Go slower now, go faster later. There's an honest conversation about the career structure in academia, where someone can work for ten years and still be on temporary contracts. Carolina describes hitting a point, after a cancer diagnosis, where she considered alternative careers, only to discover that transferring her skills would require five years of formal requalification. We also get into what the IGC does well, from wellbeing groups and community events to managers who recognise intense work periods and offer time off afterwards. Carolina makes the case that seeing your colleagues as people, not just co-workers, changes everything. At its core, this conversation is about something simple but often overlooked: when people feel supported as human beings, not just employees, they do their best work. 🔑 Key Topics Cultural adjustment and the mental health impact of relocating for workWhy slowing down at the start leads to better long-term performanceCareer transitions in academia, from PhD to postdoc to senior researcherJob insecurity and contract culture: 10+ years on temporary contractsHow a cancer diagnosis changed Carolina's perspective on career and transferable skillsThe retraining trap: wanting to transfer skills but facing years of formal requalificationPermission to not be OK, and why that makes people more dependable, not lessCommunity events, wellbeing groups, and institutional retreats that build real connection 💡 Did You Know? Carolina describes taking six months to feel settled after moving from Italy to the UK, including headaches from constant mental translation and laughing along with jokes she couldn't understand. She nearly quit during that period. The support of people around her was what kept her going, a reminder that those first months in a new environment can be make-or-break. 📝 Actionable Takeaways Invest time in helping new starters settle, especially those relocating from different countries or cultures. Going slower now saves time laterCreate an environment where people can say "I'm having a bad day" without fear of being seen as less capableAfter intense work periods, recognise the effort and offer recovery time. Even saying "take a couple of days off next week" makes a differenceSet clear expectations before busy periods so people know what's coming and can see the end pointCheck understanding, don't assume clarity. Ask: "Was that clear? Do you need more information?"Use community activities (walks, retreats, social events) to help people see each other as humans, not just colleagues 🗣️ Join the Conversation When you started a new role or moved to a new environment, what made the difference in helping you settle? Was it a person, a process, or something your workplace did deliberately? Share your thoughts and connect with us on social media. Connect with Carolina on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolina-uggenti-stewart-a93b0a69

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In this MHScot-hosted podcast, we break down barriers and spark conversations about mental health. Starting in the workplace and extending outward, we’ll explore tools, stories, and initiatives that shape a healthier, more inclusive world. Whether you’re an employer, employee, or community member, tune in to discover actionable insights, challenge assumptions, and learn how nurturing well-being from the inside out helps us all thrive.

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