As many of us know, April 1^st is known and celebrated internationally as April Fool’s Day, a day when it is considered socially acceptable to pull a prank on someone without any serious consequences.

Since 1992, April 1^st also marks the start of Stress Awareness Month, a month which aims to increase the public’s knowledge of the causes and effects of stress, as well as provide helpful guidance on ways to manage and reduce stress.

Let’s begin …

Stress can be defined as ‘the adverse reaction people have to excessive pressures or other types of demand placed on them’ – HSE UK website.

Causes

Stress may be work-related or non-work-related.

HSE UK have identified 6 principal causes of work-related stress:

• Demands – e.g. multiple challenging tasks that all require urgent attention
• Control – e.g. not being given the flexibility to complete tasks in a way which best suits them
• Support – e.g. not receiving adequate support from colleagues and managers
• Relationships – e.g. being bullied at work
• Role – e.g. not receiving clear information on their role and responsibilities
• Change – e.g. not being informed of organisational changes and how their job may be affected

Non-work-related stress may be caused by the following:

• Health issues
• Unexpected life events
• Personal relationship issues
• Financial issues

Effects

Stress can cause many emotional, mental, physical and behavioural changes in the human body.

Emotional changes: (Source: NHS UK website)

• Anxiety
• Irritability
• Self-esteem / self-worth issues
• Feeling overwhelmed

Mental changes: (Source: NHS UK website)

• Lack of concentration
• Inability to make day-to-day decisions
• Constant worrying
• Racing thoughts

Physical changes: (Source: NHS UK website)

• Insomnia
• Constant tiredness
• Feeling dizzy
• Headaches
• Muscular pain
• Changes in eating habits (eating too much or too little)

Behavioural changes: (Source: NHS UK website)

• Excessive drinking
• Excessive smoking
• Anger / irritability
• Avoidance

Managing and reducing stress

I recently returned from a holiday to Cape Verde (or Cabo Verde as the locals say) where the islands’ life motto is ‘no stress’ – wouldn’t it be great if more people adopted this mindset? While I can attest that a holiday is an instant stress reliever, it is not always possible to drop everything and fly to warmer climes.

Here are some helpful tips to reduce stress: (Source: NHS UK website)

• Exercise
• Find the solution to the problem
• Find a support network
• Look after yourself
• Learn a new skill or commit to a hobby
• Avoid unhealthy habits and people
• Learn to say 'NO!'
• Volunteer
• Manage your workload
• Be positive
• Concentrate on the things you can change

Recent Posts

Tags