How To Deal With Stress In The Workplace

Written By: Tanijoy, TheCubicleChick.com Contributor

There is a time in everyone’s life where you will experience stress in the workplace. Some people have no idea what the symptoms of stress are, so I will take you with me on the journey of stress, the affects of stress on your body, and how to deal and fight the evil stress monster.

According to the Mayo Clinic: “Stress is a normal psychological and physical reaction to the demands of life.”

From experience, I can detect when I am stressed out in the workplace. I will dread going to work, and when I get to work I am moody, standoffish, and just out of it. It is a good thing to approach your boss if you feel as if your workload or working environment is becoming too stressful and triggering health issues or causing your work productivity to decrease. Normally, upper management should be trained on how to deal with employees that are stressed out in order to maintain a peaceful and productive work environment.

Stress Symptoms:

Headache (Migraines)
Back pain
Stiffness in your neck
High Blood pressure
Ulcers
Inability to focus

Stress can cause:

Strokes
Heart attacks
Drug abuse
Alcohol abuse
Social withdrawal
Depression
Obesity/Anorexia
Sleeping disorders

If you are experiencing any of the above symptoms, please consult with your primary care physician or seek help from a counselor. If you don’t want to have to financially deal with your stress issues, there are many stress relief/management techniques that you can do from the privacy of your home, such as: meditation, exercise, massage, laughing (which you may not even think about when you’re stressed), and reading. If none of those options work , you should look into taking a stress leave from work.

Stress leave is a period of time where you are allowed to take paid time off from work to get yourself back together and healthy. In order for a doctor to approve stress leave, you must have visible health issues such as the ones mentioned above. Stress leave can normally last up to an year depending on your length of tenure with your employer.

If you have read this and come to the realization that your working environment is the cause of your stress issues, please seek help and take care of yourself. Stress can be fatal, so if you want to stick around longer and enjoy life abundantly, please value your life and talk to someone.

How do you deal with stress in the workplace?