Estimates suggest that at any one time, around 500,000 UK workers are suffering from a stress-related illness of some kind. From chronic tiredness to poor working conditions to general anxiety, there is a lot that can lead to illness at work.
Even when a work-related illness is not formally diagnosed, working full-time can take a toll on physical and psychological wellbeing. It is therefore difficult to estimate exactly how many people are adversely affected by their jobs, but anecdotal evidence suggests the number is much higher.
How Working from Home Can Help
Of course, working from home is not always a silver-bullet solution for all types of work-related stress. If you have a particularly stressful or demanding job where working long hours is the norm, working from home will not solve all of your problems.
From a more general perspective however, working from home can have a wide variety of health benefits. Both in terms of physical and mental wellbeing, there are several unique advantages to the home office lifestyle.
Just a few examples of which include the following:
- Elimination of the commute to work and associated stress factors
- More private time freed up by not having to travel to and from work
- Avoidance of all potential accidents and injuries while commuting
- Better sleep quality by not needing to get up as early
- No exposure to potential hazards and risk factors in the workplace
- A better overall work-life balance and more time with family
- Lower tendency to eat unhealthily and rely on fast food at work
- The ability to customise your workspace exactly as you like
- More free time to exercise and keep fit
- Elimination of distractions for heightened focus and productivity
- The option to do almost anything you like during break periods
Setting up a home office means being able to select only the most appropriate furniture and accessories, rather than dealing with the generic hardware available in the workplace, you can set-up a comfortable workstation with an economic chair and so on.
Achieving a Better Work-Life Balance
Where the option exists, setting up a garden room to use as a home office can significantly enhance many of the above benefits. In particular, achieving the best possible work-life balance is much easier with an external office space at home.
Simply by placing a small amount of physical space between your office and your home, you rid yourself of distractions and become more productive. You also benefit from a comfortable and private environment, bathed in natural light and fitted with everything you need to perform at your best.
An interior home office can be great, but nonetheless makes it difficult to separate your professional life from your personal life; the smaller the home, the bigger the benefits of setting up an outdoor office in a fully-functional garden room.