I’m here in San Francisco. I know what it’s like. As we prepare to navigate an increasingly complex economy, one of the things I notice most when I’m speaking with my clients is the effects that living here has on our mental health. I noted this in a previous blog post about burnout, but today I want to go further and talk about something else that affects the Bay Area more than many other places: the always-present fear of layoffs.
Any company, in any industry can lay people off. But the tech world is typically where it starts, and it’s the place that makes the most news when it does it. Just look at recent articles in the news:
- Tech layoffs in 2025 continue: Google, Microsoft, Meta and others slash jobs
- Mass Tech Layoffs? Just Another Day in the Corporate Blender
- These are the companies that laid off the most San Francisco workers in 2024
Tech layoffs – and, by extension, Bay Area layoffs – are typically the ones that make the most news. We can discuss at length why this is and why tech dominates news coverage, yet one thing is clear, and that is that – if you work in SF, you’re hearing about layoffs frequently – far more than you’re hearing about job surges.
It’s also one of the most *expensive* places to live, which means that layoffs here can mean more to a person’s finances. Replacing the finances of a job, depending on your skills and background, can be difficult.
But we’re not here to talk about finances. We’re here, instead, to talk about mental health, and one of the most problematic things about SF layoff news dominating coverage is that it creates, for many, a sense of constant stress and tension. It’s hard for anyone to get comfortable. It’s hard for anyone to feel secure.
That ongoing stress can cause many mental health related issues, including:
- Anxiety/Depression – Living under constant stress can change your brain chemistry. It puts you at risk for developing anxiety disorders and mood disorders. Even if you generally feel fine day to day, the human body struggles to manage that much chronic, ongoing stress, putting you at risk for mental health issues
- Trauma – Fear of layoffs itself may not be a trauma, but what it does is it can cause people to overlook, ignore, or otherwise not address traumas that may happen in the workplace. If a person is afraid of layoff risk that comes from moving to a new company, it means that they’re more likely to ignore poor workplace treatment rather than find a new career.
- Relationship Issues – Stress in one area of our lives can easily affect others. If you’re frequently stressed about the security of your career, then you may also bring that stress into dating, marriage, and other relationships in your life. We become more irritable the more stressed we are, and less able to handle things like conflict.
All of these issues are in addition to various financial stresses and other challenges that arise from layoff risks. It’s something that is hard for anyone to manage, and one of the reasons that it’s so important to take care of your mental health.
Psychotherapy Now to Improve Your Life
You cannot control layoffs, especially in today’s economy. But you can control how much the risk of a layoff affects you, and even your mental health should a layoff occur. If you’re ready to improving your mental health, please reach out to me today.