Stress In The Workplace

Tuesday February 2011, 00:00:00

Off average hours worked in the twenty first century, Britons work the longest hours of all our European neighbours ,with around 40 hours of unpaid over time worked each year by each one of us. It is these long hours and heavy workloads which can cause stress. In a study carried out in 2009 over 415,000 people in the UK reported a level of stress which was making them ill. Indeed some stress at your work can be motivating working towards targets or commercial goals however when the stress becomes excessive it can cause detriment. To quote the health and safety Executive (HSE),”Stress is the adverse reaction people have to excessive pressures or other demands placed on them.” Symptoms of stress include heart palpitations, dry mouth, loss of appetite and aches and pains. The way a person deals with stress can lead to certain behaviours such as drinking too much or smoking which in turn cause other ailments such as heart disease. The management of your stress condition is therefore pivotal for your good health and well being. Stress busting tips include: Become active .Physical activity can make a person get into the right state of mind enabling them to pinpoint the causes of stress and also be more confident on how to deal with stress. Take control. No matter how big you think your problem is there is always a solution. The act of taking control is empowering and is essential to you finding a solution which will satisfy you. Have some me time. Working long hours basically means that the individual’s not spending enough quality time relaxing, socialising in short doing things they really enjoy. A good tip is to set aside a couple of nights per week and earmark them as nights away from overtime etc Accept that some things can’t be changed. Changing a difficult situation isn't always possible. If this proves to be the case, recognise this and accept things as they are concentrating on everything that you do have control over. And lastly be positive. Attempt to look for the positives in life, and the things for which you're grateful-family, friends, your job etc. Write down three things at the end of every day which went well or for which you're grateful ,this will put life into perspective that life is for living.