Modupe's Top 5 (#1): Why you should talk about your anxiety at work | Adam Whybrew

Summary

---

TED Business – Modupe's Top 5 (#1): Why You Should Talk About Your Anxiety at Work | Adam Wybrew

Date: July 30, 2026
Host: Modupe Akinola
Guest: Adam Wybrew (Director at BCG, depression truth-teller)

---

Episode Overview

This episode spotlights Adam Wybrew’s TED Talk on mental health in the workplace, focusing on why it’s important—and beneficial—to talk about anxiety and depression at work. Adam shares his personal journey with mental illness, the surprising impact of sharing his story, and the power of vulnerability in building organizational trust and psychological safety. Modupe Akinola follows up with insights on how institutions can create spaces that encourage honest dialogue around mental health.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Power of Vulnerability at Work

Adam Wybrew’s main argument: Sharing mental health struggles at work is not only healing for individuals but also strengthens teams and organizations.

• Adam describes his unique practice when starting to lead a new team:

  • "When I start working with someone new, I ask them how I will know if they're struggling...I tell them how they will know if I’m struggling." (05:47)
  • This mutual openness helps create space for honesty and trust.

• Adam openly discusses his personal experiences with anxiety and depression—how severe anxiety affected him each morning on the way to work, to the point of being physically sick, deeply withdrawn, and unable to eat:

  • "I'd woken up about three hours earlier than normal, thinking and worrying about work. And I'd got up just retching with anxiety and gone to the bathroom and been sick." (06:47)

2. The Long Road to Recovery

Adam explores the practical advice that helped him, emphasizing the importance of small, concrete changes:

• His psychologist’s advice:

  • "You really need to eat because feeling anxious and feeling hungry are very similar feelings in your body." (08:01)
  • "Don't get up and go to the bathroom and be sick. Get up, go to the kitchen, make a cup of tea, read a book." (08:18)

• Adam created mental boundaries, like imagining a green force field to protect non-work time:

  • "Anyone can stop working, that's easy. The difficult thing is stopping thinking about work...I'd imagine a green force field around the house." (08:46)

• The challenge of re-engaging with friends and family:

  • "I remember going out for pizza with the family and all I wanted to do was lie on the floor, curl up into a ball and groan...But with a bit of practice, it got less awkward, I got a bit less self absorbed, and I learned to enjoy other people again." (09:33)

3. The First Steps to Sharing: From Secrecy to Openness

Initially, Adam felt consumed by shame about his struggles and poor work performance:

• "Because I'd done such a terrible job at work, I didn't want anyone to know about it. It was this kind of shameful secret." (10:43)

Gradually, he started confiding in colleagues he sensed were struggling, then reached out to HR, offering to talk to others:

• "I said to our HR team, if you come across someone who's struggling with their mental health, I'll be happy to talk to them one on one, if you think it would help." (11:26)
• Later, when HR assembled a mental health booklet, Adam chose to attach his name to his story:
  • "When I sent the message, I asked them to print my name next to it. Now, have you ever sent a message and thought, oh, I wonder if that was a good idea? So that was what I felt." (12:00)

4. The Impact of Storytelling and Openness

Adam’s openness led to meaningful change in the organization:

• The response was overwhelmingly positive:

  • "People got in touch to say it was really comforting to have someone quite senior say, I had this experience. It was horrible. I got through it. I'm still here and I'm doing fine." (12:55)

• He was eventually invited to share his story with larger audiences—including 600 colleagues:

  • "One day, about 10 years after that sunny day in London, I stood up in front of 600 of my colleagues and told them the full story." (13:44)

• The most common emotion from others who approached him: relief.

  • "They were just relieved that someone was talking about it openly." (14:06)
  • A particularly powerful moment: "One person actually took me aside on the stairs more than a year later. To say it had given him the push he needed and wanted to go and get some help for some things he was struggling with at the time." (14:18)

• The effect on new employees:

  • "One of the people in that audience of 600 was new to the company, and she said to me, hearing that talk made me feel like this was my kind of place." (14:36)

• Connection to ideas of psychological safety (Amy Edmondson):

  • "We know from Amy Edmondson's work on psychological safety that that feeling improves the performance of teams." (14:58)

5. Lessons Learned: Appropriate Sharing and Advice for Others

Adam admits the need for balance:

• "It is possible to go too far with this, and I know that because I did...Anonymous feedback said, Adam is always talking to me to make sure I'm not depressed or anxious. He never talks to me about work or my career. So after that, I changed a bit." (15:18)

Advice to listeners:

• You don’t have to share everything; disclosure should be a personal choice and only in trusted spaces.
  • "I'm not saying that if you've suffered from mental illness, you should tell everyone at work all about it. If you're experiencing it now, you probably won't regret telling someone you trust." (15:40)
• Don’t romanticize mental illness; it’s difficult and serious, but professional help and solidarity make a difference.
  • "I'm not saying that if you are suffering from anxiety or depression, you should be really thankful because of all these terrific benefits you're going to get that I got, and it's good for your character. I'm not saying that at all. It's really horrible. I feel for you." (16:18)
  • "If you are lucky enough to be able to get professional help, please do. I cannot tell you how much of a difference that has made to my life. If you can't get professional help, look for free resources online. And in either case, remember that you're not the first person to have gone through something like this...You are not alone." (16:35)

Final reflection:

• "If there was this magic button for ridding the world of anxiety and depression, I'd press it straight away. But unfortunately, that button is still an imaginary button. It's not real. And while it stays like that, I think we would all do better by talking about it." (17:30)

---

Host Mini-Lesson: Building Institutional Support

Modupe Akinola reflects on Adam’s story and discusses how organizations can move beyond relying on individual bravery to support mental health:

• Modupe shares an example from Columbia Business School—CBS Matters—which invites students to share personal stories in a voluntary, structured, and supportive environment.
• She emphasizes the importance of creating safe, optional opportunities for sharing, to help foster trust and belonging.
  • "What I like about this forum is it opens the door for conversations to occur that may seem difficult or uncomfortable. You don't have to share if you don't want to, but if you do, this structured environment makes it easier for people to do so in a way where they feel valued, safe, heard and acknowledged." (19:40)

Key takeaway:

• Organizations should proactively create channels and cultures where sharing is celebrated, safe, and always a choice.

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “If there was a magic button I could press that would rid the world of those two things, I'd press it straight away. But if that button only worked for me...I'd leave it alone.” — Adam Wybrew (06:28)
• "It's the first time I'd ever really failed at anything. And I can't tell you how comforting it is now to know that I can fail at something, even something quite important. Life will go on and I'll be fine." — Adam Wybrew (10:19)
• "They were just relieved that someone was talking about it openly." — Adam Wybrew (14:06)
• "If I could stand up in front of all my colleagues and tell them this story that had been terribly embarrassing and upsetting and shameful...it made it feel like my kind of place, too." — Adam Wybrew (14:50)
• “While [the magic button for curing anxiety and depression] stays like that, I think we would all do better by talking about it.” — Adam Wybrew (17:30)
• "Employees shouldn’t always have to share what’s hard and vulnerable in order to transform an organization. This advocacy should happen on an institutional level, too." — Modupe Akinola (18:50)

---

Key Timestamps

• 05:47 — Adam Wybrew begins his TED Talk
• 06:47 — Adam describes his personal experience with anxiety and depression
• 08:01-08:46 — Psychological and practical advice for managing anxiety
• 10:19 — Importance of accepting and surviving failure
• 11:26-12:00 — Deciding to share his story with HR and others
• 12:55-14:36 — The organizational impact: positive responses, building psychological safety
• 15:18 — The importance of balance in sharing; learning from feedback
• 15:40-17:30 — Advice to listeners; final reflections on the importance of talking about it
• 18:50-19:40 — Modupe’s commentary on institutional support (CBS Matters example)

---

Episode Summary

Adam Wybrew’s candid TED talk reveals how acknowledging and sharing his journey with mental health—first privately, then publicly—sparked connection and built trust in his workplace. His experience highlights that while vulnerability can feel risky, it can also have positive ripple effects, creating communities of understanding and psychological safety. Modupe Akinola closes by calling for organizational structures that normalize, support, and celebrate these conversations, ensuring that the weight of advocacy isn’t solely on individuals, but shared at the institutional level.

---

Transcript

[Capital One Bank Announcer]

With no fees or minimums on checking accounts, it's no wonder the Capital One bank guy is so passionate about banking with Capital One. If he were here, he wouldn't just tell you about no fees or minimums. He'd also talk about how most Capital One cafes are open seven days a week to assist with your banking needs. Yep, even on weekends, it's pretty much all he talks about in a good way. What's in your wallet? Terms apply. See capitalone.com bank capital1na member FDIC it's like math. McDonald's is now introducing all new Caesar sauce, plus an even crispier McCrispy strip. This all equals a creamier creamy snack wrap. Try the new caesar sauce at McDonald's.

[Madupe Akinola]

Need a boost? Sometimes all it takes is tapping into your inner cool. Icebreaker's gum helps you unleash the confidence within. Each chew releases a rush of icy flavor powered by cooling flavor crystals, sending a wave of refreshment to reinvigorate all your senses. Icebreaker's convenient pack fits everywhere from car cup holders to backpack pockets so you can find your cool wherever you go. Grab Icebreaker's gum online or at a store near you hi listeners, it's Madupe, the host of TED Business Summer is fully underway, and that means we are well into 2026. I will never, ever be able to wrap my head around how quickly time moves, but as a way to process time passing, I'm going to do something a little different. I'm sharing a playlist of some of my favorite talks we've ever aired on this show. So settle in as we take a trip down memory lane. All of these talks are so different from one another. That's what I've loved about hosting this show. Every week brings a different topic, a different approach, a different way of seeing and thinking. But I think if there's one overarching quality these five talks share, it's that they remind us that our relationships to work, to personal finance, to our colleagues are all distinctly human. In an increasingly automated world, that idea can truly change everything. Whether the speaker is harnessing humor or vulnerability or or their own memories of growing up, these talks are anchored by compelling storytelling. They remind us that the professional doesn't mean sacrificing the personal, and that all organizations are made up of people trying to figure something out together. You'll hear business leader Adam Wybrew make a case for talking about your anxiety in the workplace. President and CEO of Morehouse School of Medicine, the Valerie Montgomery Rice share how she stepped up to become a leader in her field. Director Barry Sonnenfeld on the lessons he's learned on set that can translate to the office goodwill strategist James Re on the power of kindness and nonprofit leader Aisha Yandoro on rethinking what wealth means. If there's one thing I've learned from my many years of researching stress, it's never tell someone deep in the throes of it that it's going to be fine. That response is not really helpful. Neither is you shouldn't be stressed or don't worry about it. And I understand why people might say something like this. We generally like to reassure people in times of crisis. We want to let them know that we believe in them and that they're going to be okay. But it's actually better to acknowledge someone's feelings and allow them to process and be present with their emotions. Because swee, keeping them under the rug never works out in the long run. I'm Madup Akinola. This is TED Business, a podcast from the TED Audio Collective. Our speaker today, Adam Wybrew, is a director at bcg, and he's also known as a depression truth teller. His own experience with depression turned him into an advocate for those struggling with mental illness in the workplace. He's here to share how creating an organization where people are allowed to be vulnerable about what they're going through benefits everyone. Then after the talk, I'll discuss the importance of advocating for change at an institutional level and what that might look like. But first, a quick break.

[Capital One Bank Announcer]

With no fees or minimums on checking accounts, it's no wonder the Capital One bank guy is so passionate about banking with Capital One. If he were here, he wouldn't just tell you about no fees or minimums. He'd also talk about how most Capital One cafes are open seven days a week to assist with your banking needs. Yep, even on weekends, it's pretty much all he talks about. In a good way. What's in your wallet? Terms apply. See capital1.com Bank Capital One NA Member FDIC I can't believe they're having a gender reveal for their dog.

[Adam Wybrew]

No, no, no, no.

[Capital One Bank Announcer]

This is a breed reveal.

[Adam Wybrew]

Oh.

[Capital One Bank Announcer]

So yeah, they're finding out the breed of the puppy they're rescuing, so they could just be spending all their money on, like, pet insurance. Instead, we got lemonade for Roscoe and it covered vaccines.

[Adam Wybrew]

Microchipping.

[Capital One Bank Announcer]

We saved 90% on vet bills.

[Adam Wybrew]

Oh, here we go.

[Capital One Bank Announcer]

What do you think beige confetti means? I don't know that we'll never get this Saturday back. Get a quote for any [e-mail] Peter

[Madupe Akinola]

and now Adam Wybrew takes the Ted stage.

[Adam Wybrew]

So I lead teams of data scientists and we solve business problems using difficult analytics. And when I start working with someone new, I ask them how I will know if they're struggling. And I don't mean struggling with a business problem or with difficult analytics. They don't struggle with that. I mean struggling with their mental health. And to make them feel comfortable to tell me, because I want them to tell me. I tell them how they will know if I'm struggling. So I might be just unrealistically calm or they might get any kind of message from me at all before nine in the morning because I am not a morning person. Message before nine, Very bad sign. Now, I do this because I have suffered from anxiety and depression and it was horrible. And if there was a magic button I could press that would rid the world of those two things, I'd press it straight away. But if that button only worked for me, if all it meant is that I wouldn't have got depressed, I'd leave it alone. And that's because of some things that happened in the weeks and months as I was recovering from depression, but also things that happened years later when I started talking about it at work and it improved my relationships with colleagues. So let's step back in time. It's 2012, it's a Friday morning in May and the sun is out in London and I'm walking to work along the banks of the Thames. And all around there are British flags flying and there's this quiet excitement in the city, and that's because the Olympics were coming there in two months time. And that morning, like every other morning at the time, I'd woken up about three hours earlier than normal, thinking and worrying about work. And I'd got up just retching with anxiety and gone to the bathroom and been sick. And I felt a bit better after that, made my way to work, but by the time I got to work I could barely speak, so I could just about order a cup of coffee. But apart from that for the mornings, I was pretty much silent and coffee was about the extent of my diet, so I'd pretty much given up eating. And that's probably not what you would have expected if you'd been walking past me on that sunny Friday morning with flags flying and the Olympics coming. And after a couple of weeks things hadn't got any better and so I decided I shouldn't Go to work. So I phoned the team and told them, and a few days later I got professional help. And what a difference that made. So my psychologist gave me really simple, practical advice. Things like, you really need to eat because feeling anxious and feeling hungry are very similar feelings in your body. Another bit of advice was don't get up and go to the bathroom and be sick. Get up, go to the kitchen, make a cup of tea, read a book. So I did. That helped a bit. With the morning vomiting, I had to learn how to switch off from work. Anyone can stop working, that's easy. The difficult thing is stopping thinking about work. And to do that, I would imagine a green force field around the house that would keep thoughts of work out. And I still switch that force field on from time to time. It helps me put off until tomorrow things that I could do today. If I do them tomorrow, they'll be a bit rushed, they will be less good, but are we good enough? And my wife, who saw this change in my working patterns, was convinced I was going to get fired. I actually have been promoted twice since then. Now I also had to learn how to enjoy spending time with my wife and with my family and friends. And it sounds easy, but it really wasn't at first. So I remember going out for pizza with the family and all I wanted to do was lie on the floor, curl up into a ball and groan. Now, fortunately for everyone in the pizza restaurant, I didn't do that. But it was still really awkward because all I could think of to talk about was how miserable I was. Anyway, with a bit of practice, it got less awkward, I got a bit less self absorbed, and I learned to enjoy other people again. And one day, about a few weeks after I first got professional help, I woke up in the morning feeling fine, just feeling normal. And I have done every day since then. Now, some people can do a really good job at work when they're anxious or depressed, and I am not one of those people. So I really did a terrible job. The team had to carry me. It's really very difficult to contribute if you can't speak all morning. It's the first time I'd ever really failed at anything. And I can't tell you how comforting it is now to know that I can fail at something, even something quite important. Life will go on and I'll be fine. And because I'd done such a terrible job at work, I didn't want anyone to know about it. It was this kind of shameful secret. So the strange thing is, what happened when I did start talking about it at work, and it started very privately. So if I was working with someone and it seemed like they were struggling, I'd tell them some of my story. That seemed to help a bit. It wasn't as awkward and horrible as I thought it might be. So I got a bit braver and I said to our HR team, if you come across someone who's struggling with their mental health, I'll be happy to talk to them one on one, if you think it would help. And I did that a few times, and I still do. And what that meant was when the HR team were putting together a booklet about what to do if you're struggling with your mental health, they asked me and some other people to share our stories anonymously. And I did that. But when I sent the message, I asked them to print my name next to it. Now, have you ever sent a message and thought, oh, I wonder if that was a good idea? So that was what I felt. And I was quite scared. It was going to hundreds of people. There was no going back. It was in writing. And I was worried people would think it would happen again and they wouldn't want to work with me. I was worried they'd think I was weak and self indulgent, and maybe some people do. And I was worried that even if they didn't think either of those things, it would just be on their minds when they were talking to me later on. That's not what happened. What actually happened was people got in touch to say it was really comforting to have someone quite senior say, I had this experience. Experience. It was horrible. I got through it. I'm still here and I'm doing fine. And gradually I started talking about it to larger and larger audiences. So there's a podcast about it. We did a session for people who are struggling during lockdown. And if you're not sick of hearing about me being sick in the mornings, you can read about it on two websites. And one day, about 10 years after that sunny day in London, I stood up in front of 600 of my colleagues and told them the full story. And after that, people from all levels of the company, right up to the very top, took me aside and shared that they had either been through something like that or they were going through something like that at the time. And then I'd say the most common emotion that I picked up from them was relief that they were just relieved that someone was talking about it openly. One person actually took me aside on the stairs more than a year later. To say it had given him the push he needed and wanted to go and get some help for some things he was struggling with at the time. Now, one of the people in that audience of 600 was new to the company, and she said to me, hearing that talk made me feel like this was my kind of place. And I think she actually got to the bottom of what it made me feel like. So if I could stand up in front of all my colleagues and tell them this story that had been terribly embarrassing and upsetting and shameful. Felt shameful at the time and it was fine. Well, it made it feel like my kind of place, too. And we know from Amy Edmondson's work on psychological safety that that feeling improves the performance of teams. Now, I didn't stand up and tell 600 people about vomiting in the morning to improve their performance, but if it does, I'll take it. That's great. It is possible to go too far with this, and I know that because I did. So I got some great anonymous feedback that said, Adam is always talking to me to make sure I'm not depressed or anxious. He never talks to me about work or my career. So after that, I changed a bit. What I talk to people about now, I'm not saying that if you've suffered from mental illness, you should tell everyone at work all about it. If you're experiencing it now, you probably won't regret telling someone you trust. If you've recovered, you may find, like me, that telling people about it goes better than you expect. There's no guarantees and there's still plenty of prejudice around. Nor am I saying that if you are suffering from anxiety or depression, you should be really thankful because of all these terrific benefits you're going to get that I got, and it's good for your character. I'm not saying that at all. It's really horrible. I feel for you. If you are lucky enough to be able to get professional help, please do. I cannot tell you how much of a difference that has made to my life. If you can't get professional help, look for free resources online. And in either case, remember that you're not the first person to have gone through something like this, that depression and anxiety are treatable, and that you are not alone. Now, on that sunny Friday morning in London, I had no idea that within a few months I would have recovered to something better than I was before. I started to get anxious. And when I felt really worried sending the message to the HR team about printing my name next to my story, I had no idea what would follow from that and how beneficial it would be for me and for other people. There's no guarantees that anyone else will experience the same thing. And that's why if there was this magic button for ridding the world of anxiety and depression, I'd press it straight away. But unfortunately, that button is still an imaginary button. It's not real. And while it stays like that, I think we would all do better by talking about it. Thank you.

[Capital One Bank Announcer]

With no fees or minimums on checking accounts, it's no wonder the Capital One bank guy is so passionate about banking with Capital One. If he were here, he wouldn't just tell you about no fees or minimums. He'd also talk about how most Capital One cafes are open seven days a week to assist with your banking needs. Yep, even on weekends it's pretty much all he talks about in a good way. What's in your wallet terms apply. See capitalone.com bank capital1na member FDIC@ Amica

[Madupe Akinola]

Insurance, we know it's not just about where you're going, but who you go with. That's why we work even harder to protect what matters most. Visit ameca.com and get a quote today.

[Capital One Bank Announcer]

It's like math. McDonald's is now introducing all new Caesar sauce plus an even crispier McCrispy strip. This all equals a creamier creamy snack wrap. Try the new caesar sauce at McDonald's.

[Madupe Akinola]

That was Adam Wybrew speaking at TED at bcg. It's inspiring to hear how much change Adam created in his organization. He's made a real difference in the lives of his colleagues, and that process has clearly influenced his sense of purpose and fulfillment in his career. But the onus shouldn't be on individuals alone to serve as advocates for important causes. Employees shouldn't always have to share what's hard and vulnerable in order to transform an organization. This advocacy should happen on an institutional level, too. I've seen this at Columbia Business School, where I work, teach and do research. The students there started something called CBS Matters several times a year. In each section of around 70 students, a few students volunteer to share what matters most to them. And it's pretty cool to experience. You feel closer to the presenter. You feel more connected as a community. It also grants other people the courage to openly share who they are and what they're all about. What I like about this forum is it opens the door for conversations to occur that may seem difficult or uncomfortable. You don't have to share if you don't want to, but if you do. This structured environment makes it easier for people to do so in a way where they feel valued, safe, heard and acknowledged. So how can we create spaces like these in our organizations where sharing is both celebrated and a choice? This is something we should think long and hard about. That's it for today. TED Business is part of the TED Audio Collective. This episode was produced by Hannah Kingsley Ma, edited by Alejandra Salazar and fact checked by Julia Dickerson. Special thanks to Maria Lajas, Farrah de Grunge, Daniela Balarazo and Roxanne Hylash. I'm Medupa Akinola. Thanks for listening.

[Capital One Bank Announcer]

With no fees or minimums on checking accounts, it's no wonder the Capital One bank guy is so passionate about banking with Capital One. If he were here, he wouldn't just tell you about no fees or minimums. He'd also talk about how most Capital One cafes are open seven days a week to assist with your banking needs. Yep, even on weekends, it's pretty much all he talks about in a good way. What's in your wallet? Terms apply. See capitalone.com Bank Capital One NA Member FDIC

[Aura Security Announcer]

Most people don't realize how much of their personal information is being bought and sold every day. Data brokers are making billions of billions, pulling details about you from public records and the Internet, then packaging and selling it, usually without your consent. That's how your information lands in the hands of scammers, spammers, even stalkers. It's why you get endless robocalls and why ads seem to follow you everywhere. That's where Aura comes in. Aura actively removes your data from broker sites and keeps it off. They also instantly alert you if your information shows up in a breach or on the dark web. But Aura goes beyond data protection. With one app, you get a vpn, antivirus, password manager, spam, call protection, dark web monitoring, and even up to $5 million in identity theft insurance. All backed by 24. 7 US based fraud support. Other companies might sell just credit monitoring or even just a vpn. Aura gives you all of it together at the same price. Competitors charge for just one service. Start your free trial today at aura.com safety protect yourself [e-mail] safety.