October is Mental Health Awareness month. During this month, we aim to increase people’s awareness of mental health. Although we have come a long way, people still stigmatise mental health disorders. Recently, one of the mental health care users who I am treating lost her job because she admitted to her manager that she has Major Depressive Disorder. 

People who have mental health disorders should be supported rather than judged by others in the workplace. Unfortunately, it is not only people in the workplace who judge people with mental illness; family members are also often judgmental and unsupportive. I find it ironic that people fight for equality of gender, race, etc., but they seem to forget to fight for equality when it comes to mental health issues. According to the Employee Assistance Professionals Association-South Africa (EAPA-SA, 2024), 27% of South Africans are affected by depression. They report a variety of reasons for this, but also mention that stigma, cultural beliefs and a lack of workplace assistance programmes are major contributors toward the prevalence of depression.

People with depression and anxiety tend to be more sensory sensitive (Costa-LoCosta-Lopez, et al., 2021) and this contributes to depressive symptoms in the workplace. If we think of someone working in a shoe factory, we realise that the sounds can be overwhelming and we often find signs that caution the employees about potential hearing loss. However, employers should also be more aware of the sensory effect that these loud noises can have on employees, thus, influencing their arousal levels and therefore productivity levels. We should strive toward the ideal and rather look at the workplace through a “sensory lens”. If we can manage and eliminate loud noises, tactile information that employees find overstimulating and other potential overstimulating sensory experiences within the workplace, we can probably decrease depression and anxiety and have more productive employees. However, how can we do something like this?

The following are suggestions of how to make the work environment more accommodating for people who are sensory sensitive:

• Limit the amount of noise.
• Allow for “sensory break” time- this can be a break where the employee has “alone time”.
• Be considerate when wearing perfume or using any air-fresheners.
• Remember that people react differently to different smells.
• Limit the variety of textures on chairs and lounge areas.
• Create a space in the tearoom/break room that contributes to calmness – this is usually a quiet area where lights are dimmed and there could even be a blanket or cushions.
• Move the desks or work areas away from each other, so that employees don’t sit very close to each other and invade other people’s “personal space”.
• Be considerate of others’ personal space.

When we start to think of how to adapt the workplace to consider the sensory profiles of all the employees, it becomes quite overwhelming. However, I think it is good to keep in mind that the people who struggle with sensory sensitivity are also more prone to anxiety and depression. Therefore, it is always good to consider people with sensitive sensory systems. This will not only contribute to a friendlier workplace, but create an environment where employees will likely be more honest about their mental health and “how they are feeling”.

Bibliography

Employee Assistance Professionals Association of South Africa, 2024. [Online] 
Available at: https://www.eapasa.co.za
[Accessed 25 September 2025].

Costa-LoCosta-Lopez, B. et al., 2021. Relationship between Sensory Processing Sensitivity and Mental Health. Medical Sciences Forum, Volume 4(1), p. 19.