My Mental Health Journey

At Melon, we know that mental health has a significant impact on our teammates’ personal and professional lives. That is why we take at heart their emotional well-being. With the establishment of our Self-care program in 2018, we have been providing them with the shortest path to relief and support by partnering with professional psychotherapists both in Bulgaria and North Macedonia. 

Silvia Andreeva, Head of our Melon Learning product team, shares her personal mental health story and tells us how she found confidence and happiness through hardships with the help of our Self-care program. 

A few years ago, Silvia felt at the lowest point in her personal and professional life. After a hard to bear break-up with the father of her little boys, she felt unhappy and struggled to move on. Exhausted from being a single parent for a couple of years, Silvia found herself riding an emotional roller-coaster. Besides, she did not find the motivation to be successful at Melon either. Blaming her weaknesses, Silvia was ready to quit everything she had worked for throughout her whole life and get a low-paid but easy and routine job where she wouldn’t have to think much. 

At that time, in 2018, Melon had just launched the Self-care program to reduce the social stigma surrounding mental health, raise awareness of the various psychological states, and provide employees with the easiest way to find support when they need it. Everyone at Melon is offered up to five free individual consultations with a specialist per year. Moreover, teams can invite their self-care partner to hold a session with them and help the group members work better together. Throughout the year, the company also hosts presentations on various topics relevant to mental health. For instance, Melon organized presentations to help employees overcome the stress after the beginning of the pandemic and adjust to the changes easier. 

Silvia attended the program’s kick-off presentation at the office kitchen in Sofia where Melon software developers usually gather at company-wide events and meetings. There, for the first time, she spoke to the psychotherapist who led the session and who would be available to all Melon employees in case they needed help. 

Silvia had considered therapy before and had even attended a few group sessions during the past few years. However, she was hesitant to try individual consulting afraid that it would prove that there was something seriously wrong with her. Fortunately, Silvia started seeing Melon’s therapist in the spring of 2019. They worked together for two consecutive years during which Silvia’s life was significantly transformed for the better. Today, she is not only hopeful, but also certain that she will overcome any obstacle. 

Having been with Melon for over eleven years, she says that the company continues to surprise her not only with its impressive business growth, but also with its genuine care of people’s personal well-being. 

“At that first presentation when Melon announced the Self-care program, I contemplated the idea of making huge life-changing decisions out of frustration. Instead, I ended up taking a life-changing path with the support of my company.”