How our sense of safety affects our wellbeing

Safety is critical to human survival—we wouldn’t be here as a species if we weren’t wired with an in-built desire to stay safe and avoid trouble. Humans have risen to the top of the food chain by ensuring our safety above all else. But as we have evolved, so too has our sense of safety and the varying forms that it takes. 

According to the Australian Unity Wellbeing Index—a more than 25-year study into the wellbeing of Australians, conducted in partnership with Deakin University—it’s important for us to feel safe in our homes, workplaces and communities.

“Safety is foundational. People have to feel safe to have good personal wellbeing—if you don’t feel safe, it’s very challenging to achieve that,” explains Dr Kate Lycett, lead researcher of the Wellbeing Index.

It’s so important, in fact, that the Wellbeing Index considers safety to be one of seven key life areas, or factors, that improve wellbeing, alongside relationships, health, community connectedness, future security, achieving in life and standard of living.

In Australia, we have the luxury of living in a relatively peaceful country, however, in our everyday lives, we still need to safeguard the factors that support our wellbeing. From physical safety, to how we feel psychologically and beyond, we explore the importance of personal safety and its impact on our Real Wellbeing.

Fight or flight? What does it mean to feel safe?

When it comes to feeling safe, we often think about our physical self first. Keeping ourselves and family physically safe is the most important element of human survival, but it’s also vital to our ability to thrive. Without a sense of physical safety—both individually and more broadly as a community—we are unable to focus on other factors that support our wellbeing.

When you feel as if you’re in a position of physical danger, your fight-or-flight reflex kicks in. This primitive survival technique forces us to make immediate decisions on how to respond to threats, real or perceived.

While the physical dangers we face now are very different to those of our ancestors, or those faced internationally in war-torn countries, building a sense of safety in our homes, workplaces and communities is one of—if not the most—important elements of wellbeing. But it’s not the only thing you need to feel safe.

The importance of psychological safety 

“Psychological safety is the ability to be ourselves and express ourselves without fear of embarrassment or punishment. We talk to kids about it all the time—teachers do a great job—but we don’t do nearly as good a job in workplaces and social environments,” says Kate.

“We always think about physical safety. But we don’t think nearly enough about psychological safety. And it’s becoming more important than ever—including online, where people need to feel safe to engage with others.”

A sense of psychological or mental safety is integral to humans being able to assess situations and then make informed decisions about their lives. When we feel mentally safe, we’re able to build resilience, which is key to helping us develop and progress. 

Suzanne Leckie, Organisational Wellbeing Manager at the Country Fire Authority (CFA), says that the changing attitude towards mental health conversations within the emergency services sector has been vital to building a safe working experience. 

“There’s a growing understanding now that psychological safety is equally as important as physical safety. Psychological safety is the thing that prevents psychological injury, and that’s something that’s really prevalent in emergency services.”

Understanding the importance of mental health and creating a psychologically safe environment is crucial to protecting people at work, but also people in the community more broadly. 

“Psychological safety in the workplace is quite complex, it’s not as obvious as a slip hazard or a fall. But if we don’t treat people’s experience with respect and provide a psychologically safe environment, they’re just simply not going to be as productive,” explains Suzanne. 

Also read: How our sense of purpose affects our wellbeing

A community safety net 

We’ve all experienced a time when we’ve leaned on others for support. Whether it’s emotional support after a break-up, physical support when we’re ill, or psychological support after a traumatic event, having a safety net to catch us is an important factor in our overall sense of safety.

Suzanne says that working in a highly dangerous job, such as emergency services, requires a different level of stamina. Mental health is a key focus, and an important element in coping with job stress is having a group of people who understand the situation. Finding safety in a group setting with people who share your experience is vital to coping with stress, anxiety or other psychological stressors.

“Emergency services are renowned for their dark humour. It’s not about disrespect, it’s a coping mechanism that allows them to separate themselves from whatever trauma it is they’ve just experienced,” she explains.

Processing trauma with people who have had the same experience helps ease the burden and often reduces anxiety in the aftermath.

“Most people don’t want to go home and talk about it—they want to keep their home protected from the things they experience in the workplace. It’s really important to have that buffer with your colleagues who understand it. So when you do go home, you can normalise yourself,” says Suzanne.

Without a sense of safety and wellbeing, the person carrying the trauma can feel as though they’re isolated in their feelings or experience, which can decrease their wellbeing. Being involved in a group or community that shares your experience, or having access to a support network to help you through, is therefore critical. 

Building a sense of safety

Our sense of safety relies heavily on a number of factors. From our physical safety to the support networks that help us cope with stress, every aspect of our sense of safety impacts on our wellbeing in some way.

Learning how to manage and engage in safer practices across the spectrum will drastically improve our physical and mental health, ultimately helping us support our overall wellbeing.