The most common cause of stress is work-related stress with 79% saying they frequently felt it
Source: Statistica, 2020
Stress happens because our body is reacting to feeling threatened or under pressure. Too much stress has a very negative impact on us, affecting our mood in a number of negative ways. It also causes us to experience physical reactions in the form of muscle tension. We will tend to experience stress the most in work related situations at this is when we are more likely to be working fast paced, under pressure and to deadlines.
13.7 million working days are lost each year in the UK because of work-related stress, anxiety and depression, costing £28.3 billion yearly
Source: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence
In a Workplace Health 2023 report conducted by Champion Health, they found that 54% of people do agree that a perfect amount of stress enables them to thrive. When we are working under a moderate amount of stress this can sometimes be a good thing for most of us, however 33% of people also agreed that once stress levels start getting high it starts to impact their productivity.
Here's some quick ways you can de-stress when things start to get too much:
- Take a 5 minute breather and go and make yourself a hot drink
- Go and get yourself a glass of water and sip it slowly
- Take a few minutes to focus on your breathing and calm yourself down
- Go for a walk on your break – make sure to get away from your work space during your lunch and go and get some fresh air!
- Go and have a quick chat with a colleague and take your mind off your work for a few minutes
- Organise and clean your workspace – clutter around us can also make our head feel cluttered too
- Take a quick walk around your office or working environment to give your head and eyes a few minutes rest from looking at your screen
- Scribble down how you’re feeling on a piece of paper – take everything out of your head and onto paper, you’ll feel a whole lot better afterwards!
- Make yourself smile. Smiling helps us to reduce stress, which will help to keep you calm. Smiling also elevates your mood, so you will instinctively be more happy
A breathing exercise
- Take in a deep breath, through your nose, and let it flow down into your belly
- Hold the breath and count steadily to 5
- Breathe out slowly through your mouth
- Repeat the steps for 2-3 minutes until you feel calmer
Take a moment to hydrate
Drinking water reduces:
- Anxiety
- Mood swings
- Brain fog
- Stress
3 easy desk stretches to relieve stress
Head Tilts to avoid headaches
Release the tension in your neck and upper back.
- Sit up straight, place your hand on your head and gently pull your head towards your shoulder until you feel a gentle stretch. Hold this position for 10-15 seconds before releasing. Repeat on the other side.
Wrist and Forearm Stretch
Typing all day can leave you with tense wrists and forearms
- Extend your arm forward with your wrist facing up, extending your fingertips downwards. Use your left hand to gently pull your hand back towards you.
Neck Swings
Relieve the tension in your neck
- Roll your head gently from shoulder to shoulder. Repeat 3-5 times.
Another tip that may benefit you massively is how to better manage your workload...
One of the best ways to digest your workload and help if you can’t ‘see the wood for the trees’ is by using lists. If you list your daily tasks it gives you a much better way of visually seeing what you need to achieve. This helps you to organise your workload and make sure nothing is missed!
Order your list of duties in order of priority. If you complete your most urgent tasks first, in a morning when you are more alert and productive, then this will help to take the pressure and stress of yourself. Don’t ignore your more taxing duties – the worst thing you can do is to keep putting something off that you don’t want to do!
If you are experiencing high levels of stress at work daily it may be time to speak with your Line Manager about extending deadlines or sharing your workload. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
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