Sorry, a bit serious for a Friday. Can anyone give me some good guidance on what to do about managing/trying to help an employee that is obviously suffering from work place stress. The person currently works alone in his responsible role & has a good degree of self managment of his duties. The company has tried to assist him by sending him on a stress managment course & in the past, provided him with assistance. I feel that getting assistance again would help, but to me, it seems some of the stress is through his own demands on himself to do a good job.

Paul-ps Your approch to the problem appears to be a credit to you and your organisation. The prevailing economic climate as well as the educational climate since 1988 (when the Baker Act come into force) have tended to fuel the kind of perfectionism associated with what is known in OSH as 'Type A', driven behaviour. There are a host of helpful people and printed resources relevant to the problem. For the best possible chance of balancing value for the company with constructive sensitivity for the employee, I'd suggest you look up the database of the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) and find a registered occupational psychologist, ideally one both qualified in counselling and who's also a CMIOSH (and can advise you on relevant legal safeguards). In case, you are not aware, the HCPC is now the regulatory agency with which all psychologists who use 'reserved words' (e.g. occupational, clinical, counselling) as part of their trading description. Going through that channel is a cautious route - but why take unnecessary risks when you've got an employee displaying the symptoms you outline?

First and foremost, be a friend What comes next, if anything, is a matter of intuition - time to chat, share a coffee, find a common interest and when the time seems right involve others too (you don't want to be the sole bearer of other peoples problems). Don't try to help in the 'professional' sense, that really is a matter for those far more experienced in such things that all of us and you tell us that you have that in hand already. But by being a friend you might divert some of the focus on work, even briefly, and in doing so ease the situation considerably. Tread carefully. Don't push. But it worked for me, when one of my people had problems that affected their work and life beyond work.

Some good advice has been provided already, including Ian B’s advice at #5 about offering/giving informal one-to-one support to anyone who is experiencing problems. Here are some additional and similar pieces of advice based on my experiences of both sides of the metaphorical fence (though not at the same time I hasten to add!). Reassure the person about confidentiality, find somewhere neutral to talk, do more listening than talking to them and try to avoid being judgemental. It might help to tell/remind them that anyone, irrespective of position, age, life experience, etc., can become over-stressed at times because of circumstances involving work, home, personal relationships or health issues or a mixture of them. For example, a person who is over-stressed by a non-work situation may find that their normal ability to cope with demands at work is impaired and therefore this impairment exacerbates their stress. Also, though the person might not think it, they will get better in due course. Some time ago an occupational health doctor said he thought of stressed people as having “sore minds” from which they will recover just as people with physical ailments tend to do. Furthermore, as most of us are not experts, do also advise the person to seek professional help from their GP and other experts if they haven't already done so. MIND’s website has pages which may be useful, including the one at http://www.mind.org.uk/h..._a_mental_health_problem p.s. paul-ps - You had no need to apologise for raising a serious topic on a Friday. Though some forum users seem to have strange notions about Fridays and frivolity, the forum is surely open for anyone to raise or respond to topics, serious or whimsical, on any day and at any time!

support. 'you are not alone', a good ear, and a friend - all mentioned above. I have experienced this from both sides - and it is important to have people who are approachable and are there to listen and help.