The pace of daily life seemingly gets more pressure-packed every week, with technology and news events magnifying personal and professional stresses. Recognizing that as a reality, attorneys and professional staff at Harris Beach across the state spent their lunch hour on Thursday participating in the firm’s first Roundtable Event for Mental Health Awareness Month. In offices from Buffalo to Albany to Long Island and including virtual employees in various locations outside New York, our teams gathered to acknowledge the stressors and share coping strategies to avoid becoming overwhelmed.

Among the suggestions were activities such as walking, meditation, positive self-talk and friendly conversation with co-workers. Partner Tracie Lopardi shared a short story titled “Put Your Glass Down.” The story involves a professor who walks into class carrying a glass of water and proceeds to ask a series of questions about how much it weighs, as a way of illustrating the impact of mental health and the pain of dwelling too much on ones problems

The roundtable was jointly sponsored by our Professional Staff Committee and our Wellness Committee, which was formed during COVID to provide employees with timely information and support on emotional, physical, financial and other factors impacting well-being. Tracie co-chairs the Wellness Committee with Attorney Brendan Hall of our New York City office.