Addressing Languishing: The Neglected Middle Child of Mental Health
At Be Well Co, we’ve dedicated significant research to understanding and addressing languishing. Languishing is a (scientifically recognised) state of mental limbo where motivation is low, focus is fuzzy, people feel stuck, and joy feels out of reach. Sometimes referred to as the neglected middle child of mental health, Languishing is not a mental illness, but it still significantly impacts wellbeing and productivity. Being in this state is a serious risk factor for problems in the future, but it is more than that—it’s a form of present-day suffering, impacting relationships, productivity, and overall quality of life. One that people should not need to be in.
Embracing Complexity: Beyond the Surface
Mental wellbeing is often misunderstood as simply “feeling good.” We aim to dive deeper into wellbeing’s underlying complexity. Our work builds on the great research of many leaders – think Ed Diener, Carol Ryff, Corey Keyes, Felicia Huppert – each having different theories and perspectives on what it takes to make people become better versions of themselves.
Our research philosophy is centred around synthesising and integrating insights from global multi-disciplinary research on wellbeing, resulting in a comprehensive framework detailing the most important scientifically supported factors that influence how well we feel day-to-day. We use this framework and the accompanying research to underpin our service provision, but we don’t just keep it for ourselves. We publish our scientific research so other people, organisations and the government can benefit from its insights.
The Dual Continua Model: A Paradigm Shift
We recognise that mental wellbeing and mental illness are distinct yet interconnected. Why this view? Because there is simply too much academic research that shows they aren’t. Wellbeing and illness don’t appear to be two opposites on a spectrum, and as such we cannot assume that solutions designed to treat illness work to improve wellbeing, and vice versa. That’s why we reviewed the literature, not once, but twice, to get a thorough understanding of what we should recommend to promote wellbeing, so we teach people both how to survive AND to thrive in today’s (working) world.
You have a problem with languishing
Languishing affects over 5 million Australians, creating a widespread yet often overlooked and underplayed problem, for individuals, workplaces and the community
A problem you can reliably measure and quantify
You can reliably measure languishing, allowing you to determine how it affects individuals and groups of people
There are tons of ways you can tackle languishing
Scientifically validated wellbeing interventions are all around, and they are specifically impactful when people struggle
Improving languishing comes with significant impact
Languishing affects workplace engagement. Our communities are affected by it.The need for tailored Solutions: Science Meets Practicality
Wellbeing isn’t one-size-fits-all. Wellbeing isn’t built without experimenting with what works and doesn’t. Wellbeing isn’t built if you aren’t also aware of the challenges of life. Wellbeing isn’t built if it does not become a part of your every-day life.
That’s what our formative research and our review of 53,00 people told us when we set out to design one of our solutions: the Be Well Plan. This group-based program is a bit different in that we teach participants to find the activities that are relevant to their life, based on their wants and needs. We teach people different ways of finding all the types of activities supported in wellbeing intervention research. We teach people how to embed these learnings into their own life
And does it work? It sure does, at least according to our scientific studies on people from the general population, students and breast cancer survivors.
How else can we help?
Have a look at our services page. It doesn’t stop with the Be Well Plan. We provide a range of other education services, can help you design and evaluate your own wellbeing interventions, can provide advice on wellbeing strategies, and can help you with your own research on wellbeing.
By tackling languishing head-on, we provide the tools to transform this state of ‘not quite right’ into flourishing, helping both individuals and workplaces thrive.
Contact us
Take the first step toward transforming your workplace and empowering individuals to thrive. Get in touch now.