The American Lawyer’s 2023 Mental Health Survey results were recently released, and guess what? Legal professionals are still not happy after a few years of meditation apps, monthly workshops and growing implementation of in-house well-being officer-type positions. Despite the increase in dedicated well-being resources, the survey results suggest the profession is still struggling with mental distress and burnout.

But all is not lost. It is possible that some of those well-being interventions, programs and resources are beginning to pay off; lawyer and staff awareness of mental health issues, their own and that of colleagues, may in fact be increasing. With increased awareness, an accompanying increase in reported symptom observations may be expected. This means that at least a portion of the reported mental health symptoms may reflect a positive trend toward awareness and acknowledgement of symptoms, rather than increasing distress in the profession.