Polo employees promote overall wellness, mental health

     In an effort to promote overall health and wellness for its employees here in Monticello, Polo Custom Products’ wellness committee has been busy coming up with creative and fun ways to keep everyone engaged.

     Eight weeks ago, the committee kicked off a series of wellness events, all leading up to the employee biometric screening (for insurance purposes).

     “It’s all about setting goals for ourselves,” explained Polo’s Product Development Assistant Meghan Lightner.

     Some of their goals might entail taking a certain number of steps in a single day, eating healthy, drinking a certain amount of water per day, or even reading so many pages in a book.

     The wellness committee surveyed the Polo employees for various activities they could do on site to boost wellness. Lightner said it doesn’t just involve physical health, but mental health as well as financial and nutritional. One of the ideas to come from the surveys was to talk about mental health.

     “We wanted to open up the conversation about mental health and well being,” said Lightner. “It tends to have a bad connotation, and people don’t talk about it. It was time to open that up, especially this year.”

     So Lightner reached out to Dr. Lauren Welter, owner of Prairie Home Wellness and Counseling in Monticello.

     “Lauren was very interested in coming here,” Lightner said.

     Welter offered two 45-minutes sessions at Polo for those employees interested in hearing about overall wellness and well being.

     Prior to her visit, Polo asked employees to suggest areas of mental health they wanted Welter to offer in-depth information about. Some of those topics included time management, anger management, anxiety, and sleep aids.

     “It’s important to know that people know their employer cares for them,” Lightner said of the ways in which Polo goes above and beyond to make the workplace feel like a family unit.

     Welter, who’s quite passionate about the work she does, wanted to speak at Polo as a way to help normalize the stigma surrounding mental health.

     “I have my own anxiety I work through,” she admitted.

     She said it’s all part of the human experience.

     There is so much in today’s society that has caused undue stress on many people: COVID-19, the recent derecho storm, unknowns about people’s jobs, unknowns about sending children back to school, etc.

     Welter said the most important things people can do for themselves right now is to recognize that there nothing a single person can do alone.

     “There is too much on everyone’s plate right now,” she said. “People think they’re in a position where they have to do it all. They need to look at the big picture and be compassionate with themselves.”

     Welter’s number-one message for those she addressed at Polo, and everyone else, is to realize that mental health affects us all, and it’s quite common to have mental health problems.

     In her talk, she noted that 20 percent of the population is diagnosed every year with a mental health condition. Fifty percent will be diagnosed in their lifetime.

     “It’s thought-provoking,” she noted of the facts and figures.

     Within the two groups Welter met with at Polo, she had between 25 and 30 people. While this was a completely voluntary program, Welter was impressed with how many attended and asked questions.

     “I was impressed with how open the employees were in talking about mental health in a group setting,” she praised. “It said a lot about the work environment at Polo, that people were interested and engaged.”

     As for Polo’s entire wellness program, Welter said mental and physical health are really not that different. Depression, for example, can impact one’s mental and physical health at the same time.

     “Anxiety leads to heart disease, blood press problems,” noted Welter. “The more anxiety you have, the likely you are to get sick.”

     Overall, Welter just wants to normalize the distinction around mental health, especially in a rural community like Monticello, where services often times are not available for those in need.

     “I want to educate people about therapy, meeting you on your level and to help you feel better,” she offered.

     Throughout the pandemic, since mid-March, Welter has seen an uptick in people reaching out for services. She’s seen new clients across the spectrum. The increase in clientele meant the need for more staff. Prairie Home Wellness has brought in two additional therapists: Lacy Doyle, a Monticello native; and Elizabeth Watters, from the Iowa City area.

     “I’m really excited that we’ll be much more accessible here in Monticello and Jones County,” said Welter. “We’re able to offer more services in the area, and see a positive shift to improve our well being.”

     You can find out more about Prairie Home Wellness by visiting www.prairiehomewellness.com.