The Impact of Workplace Bullying on Mental and Physical Health

by Catherine MatticeOct 13, 2014

Private Health and Life Insurance Experts, a blog by Luxury Medical, recently put out an article regarding the impact of bullying.

Of course, the article mentions the mental impact of bullying – it’s no secret that bullying hurts. This is because bullying gets at our basic human needs to feel safe, to belong to a group, and to feel like that group values us. One study even found that those who are bullied as a child are more likely to suffer from poor mental health as an adult.

The article does a great job of discussing bullying and our fight or flight response. In other words, bullying increases stress levels causing the heart to beat faster, blood pressure to go up, and muscles to become more tense. In other words the body starts focusing on escaping danger and stops focusing on important things like its immune system and digestion.

Read the full article here.

Do you know how much money chronically bad behavior costs your company? Spoiler alert – it’s a LOT higher than you want it to be. Download our data and worksheet to see how it’s costing your organization and what you can do to fix it.

About Catherine Mattice

Catherine Mattice, MA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, is the founder/CEO of Civility Partners, an organizational development firm focused on helping organizations create respectful workplace cultures and specializing in turning around toxic cultures. Civility Partners’ clients range from Fortune 500’s to small businesses across many industries. Catherine is a TEDx speaker and an HR thought-leader who has appeared in such venues as USA Today, Bloomberg, CNN, NPR, and many other national news outlets as an expert. She’s an award-winning speaker, author and blogger, and has 50+ courses reaching global audiences on LinkedIn Learning. Catherine’s award-winning book, BACK OFF! Your Kick-Ass Guide to Ending Bullying at Work, was hailed by international leadership-guru, Ken Blanchard, as, “the most comprehensive and valuable handbook on the topic.” Her latest book is Navigating Toxic Work Environments For Dummies (Wiley).

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