The World Health Organization has referred to stress as a worldwide epidemic. In a recent poll, the American Psychological Association (APA) found that almost 80% of respondents consider the economy a significant source of stress.

Treatment providers are experiencing the effects of this epidemic. In every demographic, people are struggling with a staggering list of stressors and relapse triggers; including job loss, out of control credit, foreclosure, stress-induced illness, relationship problems, domestic abuse, bounced cheques, work conflict with no alternative job prospects, and more. Eilenna Denisoff, work stress treatment leader, comments, “People are getting exhausted. Throw some unhealthy coping in there, and we're more likely to see major depression.

In fact, one third of surveyed Canadians say they are more stressed now than a year ago and 30% of employees across Canada are experiencing anxiety, losing sleep, and/or suffering from headaches, muscle aches and other symptoms of physical tension.[1]

With increased stress and anxiety, many people cope by self-medicating. Traditionally, alcohol consumption increases in a recession and the current economic downturn is no exception. The abuse of prescription medication is also on the rise. Ontario Drug Benefit’s annual expenditure for prescribed OxyContin alone has almost tripled to $54 million in the past 5 years[2]. In 2007, responding to rampant abuse of this same drug, Provincial Governments in Atlantic Canada launched legal action against the manufacturers, alleging that OxyContin’s addictive properties were not properly disclosed.

In the workplace, stress and anxiety caused by the expectation of continuing layoffs creates a productivity and morale crisis that makes it even harder for corporations to remain competitive. With little sign of economic improvement and almost 40% in planned workforce reduction for 2009[3], job security and workplace uncertainty will continue to be a source of distress for many. Employers must be prepared for acceleration in addiction and mental health issues stemming from a combination of acute and chronic stress in and beyond the workplace.

Here are a few key strategies for managing these challenges:

• Reduce uncertainty as much as possible. Even bad news is better than not knowing what to expect; so keep employees informed.
• Partner with the expertise you’ll need to help all employees deal with challenging times. Most especially, make sure managers have access to addictions experts and mental health support services for consults.
• Train managers, supervisors and employees to recognize potential mental health and substance abuse problems and to actively address them.
• Make layoffs your last resort and let employees know it. Involve employees in the search for alternate solutions. If you lose valuable experience and damage morale through layoffs, you will not be able to capitalize on the eventual recovery.
• If layoffs are unavoidable, prevent legal challenges or accusations of discrimination by basing decisions on the needs of the business, rather than head count, seniority or performance (including suspicion of substance abuse.
• Support remaining employees by acknowledging the impact on them of the layoffs. Openly communicate the business reasons that made layoffs necessary so they don’t imagine their own reasons.
• Focus on the future. Help remaining employees become invested in what can be done rather than being dragged down by what has just happened. Give them (and yourself) something to look forward to by sharing a compelling vision.