1ON1 with Tina Thornton on the state of mental health at Nationwide
By Terrance Thornton | Digital Free Press
While personal wellness may not seem from the outside to be at the core of a national insurance entity, talking with Tina Thornton of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company a picture of an American corporation striving to improving the lives of those employed — as well as those it serves — cannot be denied.
At the Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company Ms. Thornton — a registered nurse — serves as associate vice president of wellbeing and safety at the national insurance behemoth.
“We are all on a different path of wellbeing and what my vision of wellbeing looks like is different from everyone else — it is a personal journey,” she told the Digital Free Press in late February.
“I create a wellness vision for myself and actually write down ‘who do I want to be,’ not just what do I want to do. Personal wellness is creating this vision, taking steps to achieve it, and accepting that along the way there will be great successes and sometimes challenges.”
A snapshot of the Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company is one illustrated with 25,000 employees —- all of whom are provided with equitable access to mental health services to deal with the day-to-day stress of life in the 21st century.
Ms. Thornton says a way to create a safe corporate environment communication and a focused vision are key elements.
“The key is to keep working towards that vision, which may change over time, of what wellbeing looks like to you,” she said. “Nationwide is a company that values people and recognizes that in order to be your best self at work, each of us has to be in a state of health that allows us to thrive, both in the workplace and at home with our friends and families.”
Ms. Thornton points out Nationwide is wholly focused on supporting the ‘whole life experience’ of each of its 25,000 associates.
“Because of this, Nationwide has been ahead of the curve in providing wellness resources and flexibility for our associates,” she said. “We know supporting our associates’ whole life experience is critical to a caring, high performing culture that can better serve our customers. Our culture is a resounding strength that enables the business to deliver on its mission and be recognized as a best company to work for.”
1ON1 with Tina Thornton on the state of mental health at Nationwide
To learn more about the pursuit of personal wellness at the Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, the Digital Free Press sat down with Ms. Thornton. This is what she had to say:
*How do you assess your current state of wellness across different dimensions ie physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual?
I believe that if I am struggling in one area of wellbeing, the other areas are impacted as well. For example, if I am not feeling good physically or putting unhealthy food in my body, my mental wellbeing is impacted. This means I may not be my best self at work, or for my friends or family. It’s really important to pay attention to all the realms of wellbeing.
Really focus on self-care and pay attention to how you are feeling and drive down to what is causing that feeling at that moment. Ask yourself, did I work out today, eat well, connect with friends? Then you can detect a pattern which can help you assess what is impacting your wellbeing.
Personally, I take time every day, and we encourage our associates to do so as well, to assess their wellness across the different dimensions. It’s important to take a “time out” from our busy lives to slow down and address our mental and physical wellbeing. For example, I’m a big outdoors person so that’s one way I take a mental break. I walk outside every day, no matter the weather, and it lifts my mood and gives me energy. I also make sure to get in other workouts to move my body like strength training and cycling.
I believe that the food I put in my mouth is integral to health so I pay attention and make sure I eat when I am hungry (not bored or sad) and I make conscious choices about what I eat. I really enjoy trying to prepare great-tasting food that is good for me too.
For my emotional wellbeing I meditate or listen to a positive story every morning as I get ready for work and when I am feeling stressed, I take a quick break to practice some breathing exercises.
To help our associates, we provide them with an annual health assessment for insight into how they are doing across the wellness dimensions. They can see trends from year over year to help them understand where they may want to prioritize action. My team, composed of nurses, registered dieticians, fitness instructors, mental health and crisis experts and wellness instructors, provide many educational presentations.
•What are some common barriers or challenges you encounter in maintaining personal wellness?
My personal challenges are the same as everyone else: time, priorities, and motivation. I find that if I make wellness part of my everyday routine, I am much more successful in maintaining that lifestyle. There are some individuals who also have barriers such as access to healthy options or knowledge about wellbeing.
At Nationwide, we try to help our associates overcome these barriers. We offer a nurse to every associate and many resources to help people navigate their own wellbeing, whether mental, emotional, or physical. One of the biggest challenges for our associates is simply knowing about the tools and resources we offer so we work very hard educating them about all that is available and making it easy for them to access the right resource at the right time.
•What strategies and tools do you use to track your progress and stay motivated towards your wellness goals?
I’m someone who likes to track my progress. It gives me a feeling of accomplishment to see that I completed my wellness activity that day or conquered a step in my journey. I also like to talk with and workout with like-minded individuals who are also working on their journey. The sense of friendship, community and accountability makes it easier for me to achieve my goals.
I also use the same resources we offer Nationwide’s associates, which includes wellness challenges that provide daily tasks, including tips for mindfulness practices, fitness workouts, fun trivia and healthy recipes. We have a variety of resources for associates to meet the many different needs that people have.
•How do you make time for self-care and relaxation in your daily routine?
I am a firm believer in self-care. If I am not taking care of myself, I don’t have much to give to others. I take time each day to move my body, take a stretching break and connect with others. I like to add a small healthy activity into something that is routine. For example, while my tea is brewing in the morning, I like to do some simple stretches. Once I get home from work, I grab my dog and head to the park. I look forward to this part of my day. My kids are older, so I make sure to connect with them by phone or Facetime as well. These simple activities bring me joy and help me relax and unwind from my day.
I think it’s important for our associates to know that it’s encouraging to take small self-care breaks throughout the day. We encourage our associates to take advantage of the variety of resources that are designed to be easily incorporated into their day, like a breathing exercise or a short walk with a co-worker. That’s what I do, and I’m in the profession. We all can use help and assistance when it comes to this space, so I encourage people to make the most of what is available to them through their employer, friends or resources offered in their community.
At Nationwide, some of the offerings we provide to our associates include webinars with expert speakers on a variety of wellness topics, on-demand virtual fitness classes and a nutrition broadcast that includes a live cooking demonstration. We also recently launched a new feature of our employee assistance program where our provider will do the hard work and locate and schedule an appointment with a provider on behalf of our associates.
•How do you integrate mindfulness and gratitude practices into your wellness plan?
I have a gratitude journal next to my bed, it only takes a second or two to write down something I was grateful for that day. It’s a great reminder of all of the positive things in my life. I try to use mindfulness and stay present in the moment in all that I do, but that’s a hard one! My mind wanders too with everything I need to get done, but I think the practice of trying to be present is important.
At work, I love to get feedback from Nationwide associates in forming our wellness plans. It’s an ongoing process and we want to ensure we’re providing resources that are the most important to them for their personal wellbeing.
One example is we’re launching a new mindfulness podcast for our associates that will address a variety of topics related to a mindfulness and gratitude practice. Our experience at Nationwide has been that healthy people make a healthy company, and we’ve found that when you provide the resources that consider your whole life experience, the more people will value them.
