The first and most important thing is to understand that mental disorders have always been a natural part of humanity and there shouldn’t be any prejudice or biases. Another thing is that we have to be sensitive to what we call a mental disorder and in a case of uncertainty, we can follow documents such as DSM, MKN, and similar. To finally answer the question – yes, there is a significant chance we meet an individual with a mental disorder (not only) in the working environment. And what does it mean “a significant chance”? Heavily depends on the statistics, but if we simplify it, there is a lower two-digit number percentage of the population experiencing it at least once in life.

Is it important to know how a car works in greater detail to be a good driver? I would say no. On the other hand, if I want to be an awesome driver, can the knowledge give me an advantage that distinguishes good and excellent drivers? I would say yes, for instance, some people need nothing more than to hear “just breath” when they are under stress. However, some prefer to have additionally a basic understanding of the limbic system and the connection to breathing. In the end, both approaches are functional, but knowing what is going on “behind the curtain” may give us an advantage in less typical situations or when we want to help the other.

First of all, there is definitely nothing wrong with positive thinking. Vice versa, especially psychologists belonging to the area of positive psychology have brought amazing ideas utilizable in practice with convincing results. So, is the statement correct? No, not at all. Why? Positive thinking has an unquestionably positive impact but it’s many times, not enough. Sometimes there is a need to include a specialist, such as a therapist who may offer more structured guidance. And sometimes, especially in the case of depression that may literally be connected, for instance, with a lack of neurotransmitters is the sentence “think positively” mostly useless, sometimes even harmfull.

This is one of those opinions, that may exist, but has no weight and will change nothing. Why not? Because it’s not our decision whether emotions exist or not. Yes, of course, there are mental disorders that can significantly either increase or decrease our emotionality, and the same scenario regarding various medicaments but if we exclude these circumstances, emotions are here. Therefore, neither ego defense nor social norms will change it fundamentally. That’s why a much smarter question is how to understand, handle and accept emotions and then we can have a discussion about what intensity of emotions belong to the business. Pretending that it’s not here causes in my opinion more harm than good and it’s as effective as closing eyes and hoping for invisibility.