Careers and jobs are a significant part of an individual’s life. It not only serves as a source of income but also helps fulfill one’s aims, serve communities or professions, and build social networks.
However, these are also one of the major sources of stress even if it is a dream job. Everyone experiences stress once in a while and may feel like running away from work and home for some time. Health not only means the absence of infirmity or disease, but it includes a positive and productive state of complete mental, social, and physical well-being. A person not only needs a balanced diet for a good and healthy life but also a healthy work environment.
A healthy work environment provides safety, empowerment, and satisfaction to the employees. When an individual’s working environment is not healthy and he/she is under pressure on a regular basis then it can cause stress. Stress is the interaction between the individual and the situation. It is a physical as well as a psychological state that is caused when the individual’s resources are insufficient to cope with the pressure and demand of the situation. When the stress at the workplace becomes uncontrollable, it not only affects the work and relationship but can have long-lasting physical, mental, and emotional impacts.
Signs and Consequences of Stress
Stress can be seen in one’s behaviour such as he/she can become aggressive, unmotivated, withdrawn, or tearful. Regular stress can lead to depression, fatigue, anxiety, and irritability. It can also affect one’s thinking ability such as difficulty in concentrating, solving the problem, and taking decisions.
Stress can have physical symptoms as well such as headaches, nausea, and palpitations. Uncontrolled and persisted stress can lead to the malfunctioning of cardiovascular, immunological, neuro-endocrine, and autonomic systems of the body, causing physical and mental illness such as heart disease and high blood pressure.
Stress Management
There are a number of ways to help people manage workplace stress. Some programs focus on actual issues including improving social skills, time management, and assertiveness training. Other programs fuse nutrition and exercise with relaxation techniques.
Some common stress management techniques may include taking at least 10 minutes of break from the work that helps in refreshing the mind. Avoiding insignificant situations where one has chances of getting triggered. For this, one can simply walk out of the situation or indulge in other physical or mental activity. Another way to manage stress is by communicating with the employer about the job description and asking people for help to avoid overburdening.
Takeaway
Stress is normal and sometimes it acts as a motivator for people to achieve their objectives at the workplace. However, uncontrolled stress can have serious consequences and can negatively affect work, relationships, and health. One can release some stress by taking small breaks during the work or going on vacations with loved ones, or various other ways.
As an employer, one should make the workplace environment stress-free by not overloading his/her employees, providing them with sufficient resources, and giving them appropriate control over their work.