Looking after self

Many of you reading this will be employees, health care practitioners or managers looking after staff.  If you are based in health care, you will spend your working life (and probably much of your private life) caring for others.  For those of you not in health care you are probably still caring for others in the home, at work and in your community.  When did you last pay attention to yourself and your needs? When did you last consider how to improve or maintain your health?

It is claimed that 1 in 5 people in the UK are suffering from high levels of work related stress (Health and Safety Executive, 2001). In the UK alone, stress costs employers nearly £4 Billion a year.

‘NHS Plus- Health at Work’ offers the following list of stress symptoms and health related affects from prolonged periods of stress:

• Finding it hard to concentrate and make decisions
• Being short tempered
• Feeling tired most of the time
• Sleeping badly
• Feeling stretched beyond your limits and unable to cope
• Drinking and smoking more in order to get through the day
• Feeling that you've achieved nothing at the end of the day

IIf it is prolonged, they claim that work-related stress can lead to:

• poor mental health (e.g. anxiety, depression)
• heart disease
• high blood pressure
• menstrual problems in women
• asthma attacks in asthma sufferers
• back pain, gastrointestinal problems and various minor illnesses
• an increase in unhelpful health behaviours - skipping breakfast, drinking too much alcohol, smoking, abusing drugs

NHS Direct have written that "excessive or prolonged stress can lead to illness and physical and emotional exhaustion. Research has shown that around 12 million adults see their GP's with mental health problems each year. Most of these suffer from anxiety and depression, much of it stress related".

The NHS Direct list of symptoms is even more inclusive, as well as giving the explanation behind them:

Adrenaline and noradrenaline raise your blood pressure, increase the rate at which your heart beats and increase the rate at which you perspire. They can also reduce blood flow to your skin and reduce your stomach activity.

Cortisol releases fat and sugar into your system (but also reduces the efficiency of your immune system - making you more prone to infections).

All of these changes make it easier for you to fight or run away, which was extremely useful to the human race in past times.

Unfortunately these changes are less helpful if you are stuck in a busy office or on an overcrowded train. You cannot fight or run away, and so cannot use the chemicals your own body has produced to protect you. Over time these chemicals and the changes they produce can damage your physical and mental health.

For example, you may start to experience headaches, nausea and indigestion. You may breathe more quickly, perspire more, have palpitations or suffer from various aches and pains such as:

• chest pains
• constant tiredness
• constipation or diarrhoea
• cramps or muscle spasms
• craving for food
• dizziness
• fainting spells
• lack of appetite
• nail biting
• feeling sick
• frequent crying
• nervous twitches or muscle spasms
• pins and needles
• restlessness
• sleeping problems
• a tendency to sweat.
  

Longer term you may be putting yourself at risk from high blood pressure, heart attacks, strokes, impotence.

This is not considering the emotional and behavioural changes which you are also at risk of experiencing.

So - Are you suffering from work related stress?
Have you already started to exhibit some of the signs and symptoms of an impact on your health?
Do you need to take action now to ensure you do not create such dis-ease in yourself?
Do you manage a team where you know staff are stressed?
Would you like to help your staff to deal with that stress more effectively?
What would it be worth to reduce the time taken off by staff due to stress?

We can come alongside individuals and teams and help you not only identify the stress you are experiencing, more importantly we can help you to manage that stress so that you can ensure it does not impact negatively on your health and well being.  If you are experiencing any of the problems outlined here, don’t wait till you yourself are off sick – contact us now and give yourself the same care and attention you would give someone you cared for in the same situation.  You don’t have to continue suffering from stress, there are ways to manage that stress and protect your own health and well being.  Contact us now and invest in yourself.

As L'Oreal say 'Because you are worth it'.