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Coping With Work Related Stress – DSJ Breakdown

It is fair to say that every job comes with some work-related stress, regardless of what that particular job is or how much it pays. Everyone that has held a job at some point in their lives can most likely tell you of a time of feeling stressed in their work environment.

Overview

Work-related stress can come in different ways such as short-term or long-term. Short-term stress can include feeling pressure to meet a deadline or having to complete a new and unfamiliar task. Short-term stress is actually quite normal to experience in the workplace. Chronic or Long term stress, however, can be harmful to an employee’s overall health and can also make the workplace less productive. In this article, we will go over some of the main stressors employees and business owners go through and how to cope with these stresses in a healthy way.

Common Sources of Stress

According to the American Psychological Association, some of the most common sources of workplace stress include; low salaries, excessive workloads, lack of opportunity, lack of challenging or engaging work, lack of support, and more. Experiencing these things for a long period of time can take a toll on an employee, which could result in the employee becoming less productive or even deciding to leave the company altogether.

More importantly, stress induced by work doesn’t just stay in the office. It has the tendency to follow employees home and affect their lives outside of the workplace.

Physical & Mental Affects

Any persisting stress can take a toll on a person’s overall health and well-being. When a person is constantly stressed in their work environment, it can lead to a lack of sleep, headaches, shortened tempers, anxiety, and high blood pressure. On top of the physical and mental effects that stress induces, the majority of Americans use unhealthy coping mechanisms such as alcohol and smoking.

What many people don’t know, is that are a plethora of healthy ways to cope with workplace stress, that don’t include further damaging the body.

Coping With Stress the Healthy Way

According to the American Psychological Association, there are numerous ways an employee can cope with work-related stress in a healthy manner. One of these ways is keeping track of your stressors. Keeping a mental log of situations in the workplace that stress you out can help you better deal with the situation again in the future. Another excellent stress management method is physical activity.

Almost every from of exercise is proven to reduce stress. Yoga in particular has been known to put peoples minds at ease. The last method is to simply make time for yourself to decompress. In this digital era, it can be extremely easy to take your job home with you. Keeping time to spend by yourself and with loved ones will also promote a less stressful work life.

Wrap Up

As a business owner , consider an open door policy and make employees aware of the resources available to them. Additionally, checking in on your employees and asking them how they feel about their duties, and the work environment altogether will make them feel more heard, and can also reduce the chances of future stressors popping up in the workplace.

 
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