Therefore, Mayo Clinic specialists share recommendations to help you control the situation.
Identify the triggers of stress
Your personality, your experiences, and other unique characteristics influence the way you respond to stress and cope with it. The situations and events that are worrisome to your colleagues may not bother you at all, although you may also be particularly sensitive to certain stressors that do not seem to bother other people.
Starting to deal with stress at work requires, first, to identify triggers.
For a week or two, record the situations, events and people that provoke a negative physical, mental or emotional reaction in you. Include a brief description of each situation, while you find answers to questions such as the following:
- Where it was?
- Who was involved?
- What was my reaction?
- How did I feel?
Then, evaluate the answers. You may discover obvious causes of stress, such as the threat of losing your job or obstacles in a particular project; although you could also notice subtle but constant causes of stress, such as the time you spend going to and from work or an awkward work environment.
Face stress triggers
Once you identify the factors that trigger your stress, consider each situation or event and look for ways to solve them.
For example, suppose you are late at work because you have to leave before picking up your child from school. Maybe you can ask other parents or a neighbor if they could take turns picking up the children from school, or maybe you can start working earlier and take a shorter lunch break or work at home at night to put yourself at day.
Frequently, the best way to deal with stress is to find a way to change the circumstances that cause it.
Maximize your ability to manage time
In addition to addressing certain specific stress triggers, it is also worth improving the ability to manage your times, especially if you tend to feel overwhelmed or under pressure at work. For example:
- Set realistic goals. Work with colleagues and supervisors to set realistic expectations and deadlines. Set up regular progress reviews and modify your goals as necessary.
- Make a list of priorities. Prepare a list of tasks and classify them in order of importance. During the day, check the priority list and work on the tasks in the order established.
- Protect your time. If you have a project difficult or particularly important reserve time to work on it without interruption. In addition, divide large projects into smaller tasks.
Keep things in perspective
When your work is stressful, you may feel that it absorbs your entire life. To keep things in perspective:
- Get other views. Talk to trusted colleagues or friends about your work problems, because these people can give you opinions or suggestions to deal with the situation. Sometimes, simply talking about a stress factor can relieve it.
- Take a break. Make the most of your workday breaks, because up to a few minutes of personal time during a busy workday can be repairing. Also, take a break when you can, whether it’s a two-week vacation or a long weekend. Also, try not to think about work at certain times; For example, don’t check your email at home at night or turn off your cell phone at certain times when you’re at home.
- Have a relief method. To avoid exhaustion, reserve some time to do activities that you enjoy, such as reading, socializing or practicing a hobby.
- Beware. Pay attention to your health. Incorporate physical activity into your daily routine, sleep well and eat healthily.
When should you seek help?
If none of these measures are effective for you, the recommendation is to consult a specialist who will teach you effective ways to manage work-related stress or will refer you to another doctor who can help you.