Mental health trends: let’s make 2022 the year of you
The world is changing, and fast. Some of it has been for the better. Amid the chaos, fear and uncertainty there have been many positive developments in health and wellbeing. For one, mental health is no longer considered the poor, exiled counterpart to physical health. The pandemic has placed it firmly on the agenda.
In 2022, we’re going to be hearing a lot more about the formerly taboo topic. We’ll be seeing better mental health information, improved access to services, more specialised mental health and wellness programs, and an explosion in the wellness market.
It starts with businesses. Employees now have the upper-hand. As such, small businesses and large organisations will increasingly be called on to make workplace mental health a priority. Blended virtual, work-from-anywhere, and office-based work environments, together with hyper-personalised work choices, will continue to transform traditional employment dynamics and workplace relations.
The workplace exodus and staff shortages mean employers who fail to prioritise the mental health, wellbeing and desired lifestyles of their people will be left to face their own demons. Work cultures will need to innovate to attract and retain staff, avoid employee burnout and reduce stress and illness.
Increasing mental health literacy will continue to be important. Stress, depression and anxiety are more commonly understood and accepted. However, education and the destigmatisation of complex mental health conditions such as schizophrenia will improve.
Other acute issues such as substance use and suicide will also receive greater attention, with reduced shame and greater access to targeted support and interventions. Awareness about the role of trauma in mental health is more understood, and trauma-informed service provision and healing will continue to grow.
Along with this, men’s mental health and wellness is set to boom. Blokes are opening up and seeking help is becoming more acceptable, normal even. The wellness industry has typically favoured women, but males are rapidly entering the market. Yoga, mediation, community barbecues, gatherings and men’s circles are attracting more blokes. This is very promising, for all of us.
Telehealth made a leap forward in 2020, and virtual healthcare services are here to stay. We’ll be seeing more integrated, at-home and community-care models, and a greater focus on diverse modalities in the year ahead.
People have spent more time going within, prioritising self-care and seeking alternate sources to support their wellbeing. Hardcore personal development programs are being softened by the emergence of progressive holistic health therapies, such as bioenergetics. Nutrition and physical exercise are also increasingly part of looking after our mental health.
Additionally, the great waves of transformation lapping our shores are seeing people increasingly return to the land. Eco-therapies and nature-based immersive experiences are making their way into the health and wellness industry. Weekends away, outdoor and outback adventures and gardening have all become more important to us, and will continue to be so.
Our increasing connection to nature will flow into built environment planning and architectural design. Plantlife and eco-sustainable solutions will enhance the health of buildings, offices and healthcare settings, now and into the future.
To round it all off, cross-cultural wellness, cultural safety, and a growing interest in Indigenous culture and knowledge will start to transform health services. Traditional knowledge systems and Indigenous healing practices will emerge and (hopefully) take a greater role in contemporary health care settings in 2022, and beyond.
This article was first published in The West Australian in Renée Gardiner’s weekly column in Agenda, 8 January 2022.