It took Soma Ghosh a while to realise that what she thought was just an ‘awkward’ work experience was actually bullying.
‘It started off with emails,’ she tells Metro.co.uk’s mental health podcast, Mentally Yours. ‘Then her walking into my office unannounced, then picking on things constantly.
‘There was a horrible incident where she shouted at me in front of everyone – it was embarrassing. I wanted to cry, but I couldn’t.
‘I knew then that this behaviour was not acceptable. That was the nail in the coffin for me – knowing this person just didn’t respect me.’
Soma had worked as a career advisor for years, helping to get young people into fulfilling careers.
She never expected that she could be a victim of workplace bullying – but soon, her experience in a part-time role had a dramatic impact on her mental health.
‘I was suffering from severe anxiety,’ Soma remembers. ‘It affected me tremendously, to the point where I stopped socialising with my friends, I was mentally exhausted, I was arguing with my husband.
‘I would come home still thinking about work. On my days which were meant to be for my business I would still get emails and be working from home on my work laptop. It never seemed to stop.
‘I began to believe the things being said about me and lost my confidence. I still produced good work, but it never seemed to be enough.
‘I wasn’t myself. I just couldn’t cope.’
Soma realised she needed to leave the job. But her experience also sparked a major change, inspiring her to launch her own business as a career happiness mentor.
Now, Soma works with women who are unhappy at work, experiencing burnout, or going through career-related stress and anxiety, all with the aim of helping people find genuine work happiness.
She discusses her journey – and what we can learn from her experiences – on Mentally Yours, breaking down the process of knowing when it’s time to leave, how to tackle burnout, the impact of redundancy, and why workplace bullying can have such longlasting effects.
‘There are many people who are unhappy at work, who feel like they can’t be themselves,’ Soma says. ‘I think that is a key to happiness: being who you are.
‘Work happiness is a process. It’s an ongoing journey that you need to develop.
‘I have found my version of career happiness with what I do, and I would love to help others find theirs.’
You can listen to Mentally Yours on Spotify, Audioboom, and Apple Podcasts.
To chat about mental health in an open, non-judgmental space, join our Mentally Yours Facebook group.
Follow us on Twitter at @MentallyYrs.
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