We often say “home” is where our people are. Whether those people are our partners, parents, friends, children, faith communities, or colleagues, relationships sit at the center of our lives. As a result, they are often the source of our greatest joy and, at times, our greatest stress.
Work doesn’t exist apart from this reality; it sits inside it. And yet, many employees feel pressure to hide whatever challenges they’re carrying at work, worried that acknowledging them could be risky or seen as unprofessional. For employers committed to supporting employee mental health, this presents both a challenge and an invitation to make space for the full reality of people’s lives and relationships. Organizations that do that, while also enabling strong connections at work, create the conditions for greater employee trust, wellbeing, and sustainable engagement.
This article explores how relationships impact mental health and wellbeing, why recognizing relationship diversity matters, and what employers and managers can do to build environments where people feel connected, supported, and empowered to thrive.
How relationships shape our mental health in and outside of work
According to the American Psychological Association’s 2025 Stress in America Survey, 92% of U.S. adults identify relationships as a key source of meaning in their lives – relationships of all kinds: family, friendships, romantic relationships, and pets, ranked accordingly. Those with strong relationships and communities indicate higher levels of optimism and resilience than those who report more isolation and loneliness. Yet, perhaps because of how important they are, 48% of adults also cite relationships as a significant source of stress.
This tension isn’t surprising. From navigating partner dynamics to celebrating family milestones, from raising kids to caregiving for aging parents, from creating rich memories and communities to experiencing loss and grief, our relationships carry real weight. So much so that numerous studies show that interpersonal and relationship stress is a major predictor of psychological distress, anxiety, and burnout. When workplaces ignore the role relationships play in employees’ lives, it forces employees to compartmentalize in ways that can actually worsen their stress and mental health.
Relationships at work have a big impact, too. If employees’ work relationships bring more stress – if they don’t feel safe, lack meaningful connection, or feel isolated from colleagues or managers – that can compound issues. Higher isolation and work-related anxiety is associated with lower engagement and worsening mental health. On the flip side, research consistently shows that supportive work relationships can provide a powerful proactive buffer – not only buoying people through challenging periods outside of work and preventing escalating concerns, but also improving resilience and performance at work.
Recognizing relationships of all kinds
Despite growing appreciation for whole-person wellbeing at work, there’s a blindspot in the conversation about wellbeing and relationships: many organizations still operate with an assumption that employees’ closest relationships and support come from a narrowly defined nuclear “family,” as in a heterosexual spouse and biological children. But that assumption doesn’t reflect the reality of today’s workforce.
Not only does “family” incorporate much greater relationship diversity today, but the data also reveal fundamental shifts in the structure of American households: fewer people are married, have children, or live with biological relatives.
- According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2024, only 64% of American households were “family households” (those with at least one additional person related to the householder by birth, marriage, or adoption), which is down from 79% in 1970
- Fewer than 47% were married-couple households, and only 39% had children under 18 – both indicating significant, steady decreases from previous decades.
- A study from the Pew Research Center further shows the number of same-sex married couples in the U.S. has risen 82% since marriage equality became law, and cohabitating same-sex couples account for 5.6% of cohabitating couples overall.
All of these statistics point to the fact that employees increasingly rely on a broader constellation of relationships for support and meaning outside of the traditional family structure. Long-term partners who aren’t married, LGBTQ+ partners and spouses, coparents across households, adoptive families, blended and step-families, multi-generational households, chosen family, friends, roommates, neighbors, faith communities – all of these matter deeply.
As traditional nuclear family structures become less universal, the importance of having employers and managers recognize and support the full range of meaningful connections in employees’ lives – through language, policies, and everyday interactions – only grows.
How managers can create supportive environments and build connection
So, how can organizations and managers meaningfully hold up the relationships that shape employees’ lives and mental health?
It starts with proactively fostering a supportive environment grounded in psychological safety. A psychologically safe workplace is one where employees feel they can be themselves, feel listened to and valued, and know they can seek help or resources without fear of professional repercussions.
Practices to foster psychological safety with your team
- Listening. Actively listen when employees share their experiences and concerns, and ask open-ended, non-judgmental questions using inclusive language. Let them guide the conversation and set their own boundaries, signaling care and permission to share without prying, pushing, or making assumptions.
- Protecting their trust. Maintain confidentiality at all times. Sharing challenges or seeking help is vulnerable for everyone. Employees must trust that what they share won’t be spread, documented unnecessarily, or used against them professionally.
- Guiding, not fixing. There is no expectation for managers to be therapists or come up with solutions; in fact, they shouldn’t try to. However, they can proactively point employees toward available resources, benefits, or structures that can better support them.
Create opportunities for connection
Beyond one-on-one interactions, organizations and managers can intentionally design opportunities for connection that strengthen relationships at work:
- Encouraging team norms that prioritize respect, empathy, and collaboration
- Building in moments for reflection and shared learning
- Supporting peer connection through mentorship, affinity groups, or team rituals
The goal isn’t constant closeness or forced socialization; it’s organic connection and meaningful support to deepen trust and collaboration.
Encourage employees to use and share their proactive mental health benefits
Another simple way to support relationships in all areas of employees’ lives is to implement and promote a proactive mental health benefits program, like Journey Proactive EAP. Journey Proactive EAP offers numerous resources to help employees navigate relationships and mental health concerns on their own and in whatever setting is most comfortable to them – whether that’s watching on-demand videos on managing caregiving responsibilities, attending a live workshop on establishing work-life boundaries, or finding a local therapist.
Furthermore, Journey’s proactive design combines the expertise of Master’s-level clinicians with real-time insights through Journey Signal™, an AI-powered tool that detects emerging mental health strain and risk factors in real time, delivering personalized support before challenges impact an employee’s relationships, wellbeing, or performance.
We also offer these resources to all loved ones of employees. And we mean all – partners, children, neighbors, friends, roommates, etc. Anyone important to an employees’ life can access the same mental health resources that the employee can. By giving everyone proactive support, we bolster the mental health and wellbeing of not just the employee but also the people who impact their lives the most, further preventing the likelihood of escalated relational strain and any resulting mental health effects.
Why it matters for organizations
Strong relationships are one of the most powerful predictors of wellbeing and a key to proactive mental health. The World Health Organization and the U.S. Surgeon General have both emphasized social connection as a key determinant of physical and mental health, while isolation and disconnection are associated with higher rates of anxiety and depression.
At work, this translates directly into outcomes leaders care about. Research from Gallup shows that employees who feel supported and connected are more engaged, experience less burnout, and are more likely to stay at their organization. And multiple studies, including one by BetterUp, link employee psychological safety and belonging to stronger performance, learning, and resilience.
On the other hand, stigma and fear of negative consequences reduce the likelihood that employees will seek help when they need it. This, in turn, allows issues to escalate into more serious mental health challenges with high costs for individuals and organizations alike, including absenteeism, turnover, hospitalization, and more.
Organizations that enable employees to show up safely as their full selves, with everything they’re carrying and everyone on their mind, help employees bring more focus, creativity, and commitment to their work. Ultimately, cultures of connection and proactive care are how the best work gets done.