However, a lot of these drawbacks can be mitigated by investing time in ourselves and promoting positive mental health and wellbeing. In aid of Mental Health Awareness Week (10^th - 16^th May 2021), here are a few general tips for improving your mental health whilst working remotely.

Maintain a positive work-life balance

The pandemic thrusted us away from our daily commutes and offices, straight to our spare rooms, dining room tables and kitchens. The boundary between work and home life became blurred and it was easy for new, unhealthy habits to take hold during the transition.

To combat this, it is important to take regular breaks away from your screen and ensure you take your full lunch break for its intended purpose. Ensure you take your annual leave throughout the year (but of course save a week or two for the much anticipated staycation or trip abroad to a 'green list' country!) and try to get outdoors and exercise as much as possible. Use this time as a good excuse to explore new areas around you or further afield. Meet up with family, friends and colleagues regularly as a way of setting and sticking to a new routine. Simply put, be sure to make time for activities away from your desk.

Set and stick to a routine (as far as possible)

Gone are the days of getting up earlier to commute into the office. For the vast majority of us the extent of our daily commute will now be from our bedroom to our home desk. However, it is important to set and stick to a new routine that involves time to work and socialise. Home working has meant that this distinction is more difficult to maintain.

To combat this, try to create and follow a weekly routine to allow your body to set boundaries between resting, working and socialising. Stick to a regular sleeping pattern and, more importantly, get up at the same time each day. Take time before work to do something you enjoy as a positive start to the day (e.g. daily morning exercise such as walking, cycling or yoga). Create a dedicated work space somewhere in your home. Whether that be in your spare room, at the kitchen table or even somewhere else in your bedroom or living room. Do not overlook the importance of separating yourself from this area outwith your working hours (e.g. shutting the door to your spare room, closing your laptop or tidying away your papers). Just as we would leave the office after each working day, ensure you are similarly detaching yourself from your home work space and devices too. A good way to do this is by finding (new) activities that you can regularly look forward to and enjoy each day/week.

Socialise

The ever-changing restrictions on our lives has made face-to-face interaction difficult. Zoom is a great tool for keeping in touch and there is no denying it has proven its usefulness over the last 12 months. However, the pandemic has only emphasised the importance of socialising in-person.

To combat this, utilise the most up to date guidance and socialise with family, friends and colleagues as far as possible. Freeze to death in a beer garden, catch up in a pub, go for a meal in a café/restaurant, or go for a walk in a park. As we hope for a dry summer, start to plan trips further afield or invest time in a new sport or hobby. We've been inside for the vast majority of the last 12 months, make sure to get outdoors!

Be kind to yourself and think of the longer term

Acknowledge the "new normal" but always keep in mind that things will improve for the better. We will not be living under these restrictions forever and, in fact, things are looking extremely positive as of recent. There may be bumps in the road but, if the past 12 months have shown us anything, it is that we are all extremely adaptable and should be proud of ourselves for it.

In the meantime, make time for yourself and do something you enjoy, whatever that may be. Always be kind to yourself and acknowledge the wobbles along the way. If you're feeling down, take comfort in the fact you are not alone and things will improve. Most importantly, reach out if you're struggling.

Be aware of the available support tools

It's ok not to be ok. But if you feel like you're struggling, please reach out. Whether it be to a family member, a friend, a colleague or a charity, be sure to talk. All of these organisations can provide support to you or someone you know:

NHS Scotland - https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-and-conditions/mental-health

Scottish Association for Mental Health (SAMH) - https://www.samh.org.uk/find-help

Breathing Space - https://breathingspace.scot/

Samaritans - https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/

You can also call the non-emergency NHS number by dialling 111.

What is Morton Fraser doing?

Morton Fraser recognise that mental health is as important as physical health. We have implemented a number of initiatives in order to promote positive mental health and wellbeing, even more so when working remotely.

• We have signed up to the Mindful Business Charter, encouraging us to be more thoughtful about the impact we have on each other.
• We have trained nine employees as Mental Health First Aiders and plan to train a further 13 more.
• We have developed and launched an online training programme in conjunction with Edinburgh College to train managers in mental health awareness and support.
• We have introduced the AVIVA Digi Care+ healthcare app. This includes a free blood test to check key aspects of your health and a consultation to review the results. Employees also have access to remote GPs, mental health counsellors, bereavement counselling, nutritionists and a second opinion service if you've been diagnosed with a condition.
• We offer posture massages when working from our Glasgow and Edinburgh offices. Whilst remote working is still the norm, Lindsey Cartwright (Partner in Employment Law) provides twice-daily desk stretches via Teams for all those within the firm.
• We developed an annual wellbeing programme in conjunction with an external provider on a wide range of wellbeing topics to help support staff during the pandemic via a series of webinars.
• We surveyed the entire workforce twice during lockdown to ensure we understood mental health concerns, equipment needs when working from home, what was not working as well and how we could help.
• …and more!