Mental health
fromPsychology Today
2 hours agoWhy Your Company's Wellness Programs Keep Missing the Point
Disconnection in the workplace is often structural, not individual, and requires proper diagnosis to address effectively.
Special needs summer camps are specialized programs designed for children and young adults with a range of disabilities, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), ADHD, Down syndrome, and other developmental or physical challenges.
Social anxiety and depression had other plans, leaving me in an ugly cycle of self-isolation and rumination. Terrified of rejection, I'd meet someone interesting during one of my English lectures and invite them out for frozen yogurt in my head.
We're also spending less time with friends. For years, Americans averaged about 6.5 hours a week with friends. Between 2014 and 2019, that number plunged by 37%, to just 4 hours. The year 2014 coincides with a rise in smartphone users.
Instead of chasing fleeting fads, people have been responding to a deep-seated burnout fueled by economic instability and the relentless demands of hybrid work. This exhaustion is steering many away from generic fitness trends and toward the precision of wearables, health apps, and AI-driven tools.
"I thought I was going to die in the street on this day." Moses describes the moment his health deteriorated to the point where he collapsed outside Victoria Station, having lived on the streets for several months. "I was there for maybe one hour on my knees with my suitcase, and crying in a lot of pain. I was broken." Moses now says he has found a "new family" at the Salvation Army church in Chalk Farm but is still trying to find a permanent home.
If you run a business, there's a familiar email you probably opened this fall: the one from your benefits broker with your 2026 health insurance renewal. You scroll. You see a double-digit increase, and your stomach drops. You want to do right by your team. You also have a P&L to protect. And the three standard options you're handed - pay the increase, raise deductibles or push more cost onto employees - all feel bad in different ways.
Being a leader today requires a new level of performance. One that overrides fatigue, can suppress internal signals, and absorbs constant urgency, all while rapidly context-switching. Simply said, modern leadership demands have increased, and not everyone is-or wants to stay-on board. Today's leaders face growing expectations, dynamic responsibilities, and constant pressure to perform amid deep uncertainty and an ever-accelerating business ecosystem.
Cuts that hurt are obvious: layoffs, program closures, college closures, furloughs, deferred maintenance, pay freezes, travel freezes, etc. It's a well-worn playbook at this point. Most of the moves in this category involve either attacking employee compensation, which causes obvious pain, or putting off necessary investments and living with gradual declines in quality.
Childs has teamed up with her longtime collaborator, Sue Cronin, who formerly worked as a program director for the center, to launch Footsteps Forward, a nonprofit organization. The goal is to fill the considerable gap left behind by the closure of the Centre for Living with Dying, which helped roughly 1.5 million people navigate grief and trauma over its 50-year run, according to Childs.