The cost of silence

He was the kind of employee every leader celebrates: outstanding performance reviews, mentor to new hires, first to volunteer and last to leave. For three years, he was the company's gold standard.

Until one Monday he didn't show up. No calls, no emails. After days of uncertainty, we learned the truth: he had voluntarily admitted himself to a mental health clinic. He had been in crisis for months.

When he came back, his first words to me as a psychologist stayed with me:

I thought that if I worked harder, I could outrun what I was feeling.

The company has every wellbeing benefit imaginable. He never used a single one. He didn't believe he was "that kind" of person.

As a psychologist working inside organizations, I see this every day: stigma is not abstract. It shows up directly in turnover, burnout, absenteeism and presenteeism (being physically present but mentally disengaged).

• The barrier of silence: on average, people wait 11 years between their first symptoms and seeking help. Not for lack of resources, but out of fear of the impact on their career.
• The return on investment: according to the WHO, every dollar invested in employee mental health returns $4 USD in productivity and health. This isn't philanthropy — it's a 400% ROI.

Companies today measure cybersecurity and operational resilience as critical business risks. Mental health belongs at the same table.

The real impact in numbers

• Rising absenteeism: mental health-related leave has tripled compared with pre-pandemic levels. Global data shows more than 11% of absences now stem from this cause, directly affecting team workload and project continuity.
• The cost of losing talent: replacing an employee costs between 6 and 9 months of their salary. Given that nearly half of professionals have left a job for mental health reasons (most of them voluntarily), inaction becomes financially unsustainable.

The gap between policy and culture

Many organizations already have Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) or psychological support. The infrastructure is there. But employees don't use a benefit they don't trust.

86% of people report a significant improvement in their performance after receiving therapeutic treatment. If effectiveness is that high but usage is low, the problem is organizational culture.

Leaders and managers are the real engine of this strategy. If a leader signals — even with a subtle gesture — that asking for help is a sign of weakness, corporate benefits will be ignored and no awareness session will get the team to take the first step.

3 questions to assess your organization today

• Do your employees genuinely believe they can use mental health benefits without it affecting their professional growth?
• When was the last time leadership spoke openly about mental health in a company-wide communication?
• If someone on your team were struggling today, would they know exactly where to turn — and feel safe doing so?

The employee in this story came back. Later he admitted he had considered resigning rather than asking for help, because he felt the company culture "couldn't handle" seeing that he wasn't okay. The standard of perfection was too high.

Corporate policies don't solve this. Culture does. Most organizations aren't short on resources or budget: what's missing is vulnerability and empathy.

At Mentis Health we don't offer cosmetic solutions. We integrate as strategic allies to turn psychosocial risk management into a sustainable competitive advantage.