Stress, loneliness, anxiety and depression can affect people at work, but the signs are not always visible. How can we recognise signs of distress, support one another, and create workplaces where mental health is taken seriously?
Mental health is an important part of working life. We spend many of our waking hours at work, and the working environment can have a significant influence on our wellbeing, relationships and everyday energy.
Even so, it can be difficult to talk about psychological distress at work. Some employees try to hide their challenges. Others are unsure how their manager or colleagues might react.
An employee who used to participate actively in meetings may become quieter. A colleague may seem exhausted, lose track of tasks or begin to withdraw from the team.
These changes may be signs that something is difficult. They can, however, have entirely different explanations.
Good support is therefore not about guessing diagnoses. It is about paying attention, making room for dialogue and exploring whether anything about the work itself needs to change.
Why Is Mental Health Important at Work?
Mental health is a significant public health and workplace challenge, including in Denmark.
According to the Danish National Health Profile 2025, around 29% of people in Denmark aged 16 and over scored highly on the stress scale. This is an increase of almost nine percentage points since 2010. The survey covers the general population, not only people in employment, so the figure does not show how much of the stress is caused by workplace conditions.
Stress also has consequences beyond the individual. It can have substantial economic costs.
An analysis published in 2023 by the National Research Centre for the Working Environment (NFA) estimates that absence associated with high stress levels results in at least DKK 16.4 billion in lost work each year in Danish workplaces. This corresponds to around 61.9 million lost working hours annually, or working time equivalent to more than 37,000 full-time positions.
The DKK 16.4 billion is distributed as follows:
- DKK 10.4 billion in salary costs during sickness absence, calculated before public reimbursements.
- DKK 4.8 billion in lost production when employees leave the workplace.
- DKK 1.2 billion in other production losses, including losses associated with leave.
This amount is not a direct measure of companies’ total expenses or all societal costs associated with stress. It estimates the value of lost work, and stress can have both work-related and private causes.
These figures help explain why prevention matters. A healthy psychosocial work environment can help employees feel safe, have influence, build meaningful relationships and carry out their work in a sustainable way.
Conversely, persistent time pressure, unclear expectations, conflict, insufficient support or limited control over work can create strain. It is therefore important to consider both the individual employee’s situation and the conditions in which the work takes place.
Workplace Pressure and Mental Health in Denmark
How do employees in Denmark experience their psychosocial working environment?
According to the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) survey from 2025, 45% of surveyed workers in Denmark report severe time pressure or a heavy workload. At the same time, 19% say that, during the previous 12 months, they experienced stress, depression or anxiety that was caused or made worse by their work.
For comparison, 44% of workers across the EU report severe work pressure, while 29% report work-related stress, depression or anxiety. These figures measure different things. A heavy workload does not necessarily mean that an employee has developed a mental health condition. However, the survey shows why it is important to pay attention to both working conditions and employees’ wellbeing.
Source: EU-OSHA, OSH Pulse 2025. Self-reported risks and health problems; the figures measure different indicators.
Six Mental Health Challenges That May Affect Working Life
1. Prolonged Stress
Stress is a natural response to demands and pressure. For shorter periods, we can often manage a heavy workload. But when pressure continues without enough opportunity to recover, it can affect both physical and mental health.
Possible signs include difficulty concentrating, irritability, sleep problems, tiredness or the feeling of constantly falling behind.
How Common Is Workplace Stress in Denmark?
According to the 2025 National Monitoring of the Working Environment among Employees (NOA-L), 15.6% of employees in Denmark say that they have felt stressed often or all the time during the previous two weeks. The survey indicates how many people experience frequent stress, but this figure is not, by itself, a measure of diagnosed illness or long-term stress.
What Can a Manager Do?
Explore whether tasks, deadlines and resources are aligned. Clarify priorities, make room for breaks and involve the employee in finding solutions. It rarely helps to tell an overloaded employee simply to become better at managing stress if the workload itself remains unchanged.
2. Anxiety and Persistent Worry
Anxiety and worry can make working life more demanding. Some people may feel very uneasy before meetings, fear making mistakes or spend a great deal of energy preparing for situations that feel uncertain. Such reactions are not, in themselves, signs of an anxiety disorder.
What Can a Manager Do?
Provide clarity about tasks, expectations and changes. Give constructive feedback and be open to discussing adjustments that could make the work feel more manageable.
3. Depression and Reduced Mental Energy
Depression can affect energy, motivation, concentration and the ability to function in everyday life. At work, it may show up as changes in participation, greater difficulty with tasks or less energy for social contact. Similar changes can also be caused by sleep problems, physical illness, private pressures or other circumstances.
What Can a Manager Do?
Have a respectful conversation based on specific observations rather than assumptions. Explore whether temporary adjustments to tasks or working hours might help. If needed, help the employee find appropriate professional support.
4. Loneliness and Lack of Belonging
People can feel lonely even when surrounded by colleagues. Workplace loneliness is not necessarily about being physically alone. It can also mean feeling that you do not belong, are not included or lack meaningful relationships. Research has found associations between workplace loneliness, lower job satisfaction and higher levels of burnout.
What Can a Manager Do?
Create opportunities for social connection and collaboration without making participation in social activities compulsory. Pay attention to new employees, remote colleagues and people who have limited access to informal team interactions.
5. Burnout
Burnout is associated with prolonged work-related stress that has not been managed successfully. The World Health Organization describes burnout in terms of exhaustion, increased mental distance from work or cynicism towards it, and reduced professional efficacy. Burnout is not the same as depression, although some symptoms can overlap.
What Can a Manager Do?
Explore ongoing overload, how work is organised and whether employees have enough opportunity to recover. A day off or a short stress-management course cannot, on its own, resolve problems caused by unreasonable or persistent work demands.
6. Psychological Safety and Workplace Conflict
Employees may find it difficult to speak up, ask questions or share concerns if they fear criticism, humiliation or negative consequences. Psychological safety does not mean that everyone must always agree. It means people can express concerns, ask questions and point out mistakes respectfully.
What Can a Manager Do?
Listen to concerns without automatically becoming defensive. Respond constructively to mistakes, and address bullying, harassment and demeaning behaviour.
How to Have a Conversation with an Employee Who May Be Struggling
A supportive conversation does not need to begin with a big or difficult question. The most important thing is to refer to something specific and give the other person an opportunity to explain their experience in their own words.
For example, you could say:
“I’ve noticed that you seem more under pressure than before. How have you been experiencing your work lately?”
Or:
“We’ve had a lot of tasks and changes recently. Is there anything about the work that we need to adjust?”
Listen without interrupting, and do not pressure the employee to share private or medical information. Ask what might help, and agree on practical next steps and a follow-up conversation if appropriate. Depending on the situation, HR, the workplace health and safety organisation, an employee representative or relevant professional support may be involved. Respect confidentiality and the applicable rules for handling personal information.
What Can the Workplace Do to Prevent Mental Distress?
Mental health should not only be discussed when an employee becomes unwell. Prevention requires ongoing effort.
Workplaces can, for example:
- Create a realistic balance between tasks, time and resources.
- Ensure that roles, responsibilities and expectations are clear.
- Give employees influence over their work.
- Prevent conflict, bullying and harassing behaviour.
- Train and support managers in addressing the psychosocial working environment.
- Create opportunities for breaks, recovery and social connection.
- Involve employees in assessing and improving the working environment.
In Denmark, the workplace assessment known as APV is a central tool in systematic occupational health and safety work. For workplaces with employees, the APV also covers the psychosocial working environment.
Can Mindfulness Help with Mental Health at Work?
Mindfulness can be a way to practise paying attention and becoming more aware of thoughts, feelings and bodily reactions. A short awareness exercise during the workday may help someone notice tension, unease or tiredness and choose how to respond.
For example, you could try the following:
A One-Minute Pause
- Pause for a moment, if the situation allows.
- Notice how your body makes contact with the chair or the floor.
- Notice your breathing without trying to change it.
- Notice how you feel right now.
- Return to your work when you are ready.
The exercise does not need to make you feel calm. The aim is simply to notice the present moment. Some people may find this kind of exercise helpful; for others, it may feel uncomfortable or less relevant. It should therefore be voluntary and adaptable.
Mindfulness, meditation and yoga can complement work to improve mental wellbeing. They do not replace improvements to problematic working conditions or professional treatment when that is needed.
Mental Health Is a Shared Responsibility, but Not Everyone Has the Same Responsibility
Employees can contribute to a respectful community and speak up when something is not working. Managers can create dialogue, support employees and influence how day-to-day work is organised. Employers have a particular responsibility to provide a safe and healthy working environment. When mental health is taken seriously at all these levels, the conditions are better for people to thrive at work.
A healthier workplace is not one where nobody experiences difficulties. It is one where concerns can be raised, support is available and working conditions are taken seriously.
Onivers: Knowledge, Practice and Community
At Onivers, we work to support mental health and wellbeing through knowledge, practice and community. We connect mindfulness, meditation, yoga and psychoeducation with everyday challenges in an inclusive and evidence-informed way. In working life, these approaches can encourage reflection, awareness and shared understanding when they form part of a broader effort to create a healthy psychosocial working environment.
Would you like to work more systematically with mental wellbeing in your workplace? Learn more about Onivers’ workshops and programmes for businesses and organisations.
Important: This article is for information only and does not replace professional advice, diagnosis or treatment. Anyone experiencing persistent or severe mental health symptoms should seek appropriate professional help. In an emergency involving immediate danger in Denmark, call 112.
Sources and Further Reading
- Statens Institut for Folkesundhed, University of Southern Denmark (2026). The Danish National Health Profile 2025. https://www.sdu.dk/da/sif/rapporter/2026/den_nationale_sundhedsprofil_2025
- National Research Centre for the Working Environment (NFA). Stress. https://www.nfa.dk/psykisk-arbejdsmiljoe/stress
- EU-OSHA (2025). Denmark: OSH Pulse 2025. https://healthy-workplaces.osha.europa.eu/en/publications/denmark-osh-pulse-2025-mental-health-and-digitalisation-work
- NFA (2023). Stress-related absence costs Danish workplaces at least DKK 16.4 billion annually. https://www.nfa.dk/nyt/nyheder/2023/fravaer-i-forbindelse-med-stress-koster-danske-arbejdspladser-mindst-16-4-mia-kroner-aarligt
- World Health Organization (2022). WHO Guidelines on Mental Health at Work. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240053052
- NICE (2022). Mental Wellbeing at Work. https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng212
- Danish Working Environment Authority. Workplace Assessment (APV). https://at.dk/kend-din-rolle/arbejdsgiver/arbejdspladsvurdering/
