Work Stress

Stress at work happens to just about everyone who has a job. In fact, more than half of employees in a 2021 survey reported that work-related stress was having negative impacts on their physical and mental health. Despite the fact that stress and work often coincide, there are various techniques you can try to help manage work-related stress levels in your life. 

Tracking the causes and effects of work stress

Identify your stressors. You already know you have stress at work or related to your job. You may feel it as you get ready for the day, once you get there, or on your way home. Do you know specifically what is making you feel stressed in these moments? Keeping a journal where you write down a list of people, situations, and events that make you feel stress from work could help you pinpoint key causes. Over time, you may be able to identify patterns that cause stress such as unrealistic deadlines or certain co-workers.

Workplace stress, anxiety, and depression

Notice the effects of stress on your mental health. It could be useful to keep track of how workplace stress is affecting your thinking and behavior. Are you missing a lot of work when you’re feeling most stressed? Does it seem like you might be experiencing anxiety or depression? Does your self-esteem decrease or your negative self-talk increase when your job demands too much? Again, being aware of your symptoms could help you find tailored coping mechanisms to address specific workplace stressors and general job stress.

Take note of how you react to stress. The way you react to work-related stress could jeopardize your job, your relationships, and even your health, so being aware of your responses so you can better control them could be a good place to start. For example, defaulting to angry outbursts, self-medicating with alcohol, or isolating yourself socially are all examples of ways to relieve stress that could negatively influence your life and health.

Get active for workplace stress relief

Practice yoga. Research suggests that the ancient Indian spiritual practice of yoga may be so helpful for stress management in the workplace that many companies around the world offer classes to help improve employee health. If your company has that option, you might consider taking advantage of it. If not, taking an in-person or virtual class in your free time could produce mental health benefits. The breath work that accompanies yoga is majorly stress relieving for many.

Take a group exercise class. Research suggests that engaging in group exercise in particular can help increase well-being and a sense of social connectedness in addition to offering the well-known health benefits of exercise in general. Whether it's a kickboxing class, a spinning class, or a running group, getting active—especially with others—could help reduce stress hormone (cortisol) levels and help you feel calmer. Making sure that your time outside of work is fulfilling can help you balance stress.

Take a walk or a jog. Even if it’s just a few minutes each day, taking a walk—especially if you’re able to do so in a park or other natural area—could help you control your mood and release tension. Light exercise is a time-honored way to reduce stress and forget about work when you're off the clock.

Use relaxation techniques for job stress management

Practice deep breathing

Deep breathing helps get more oxygen to your body and brain and more fully releases carbon dioxide, and it may even lower high blood pressure. Closing your eyes and taking a few deep breaths—whether at your desk or on public transport to or from work—as needed could help you control your work-related stress response.

Try a body scan

When you’re feeling the pressure, you might also take a moment to become more aware of stress symptoms throughout your body. You might start by sitting quietly or lying down if you can. Next, direct your attention to each part of your body, one at a time, noticing how it feels. This may help you realize where you’re holding muscle tension and what you may need (food, water, rest, exercise, stretching) to help your body and mind better cope with work related stress.

Consider meditation

Practice meditation. Meditation is an ancient spiritual practice with roots in Indian culture, but it’s becoming popular around the world as a result of the health effects it may provide—including better stress management and calming the nervous system. When you feel overwhelmed from work, you can practice simple meditation by taking some deep breaths and letting thoughts drift in and out of your consciousness, noticing them without judging them or trying to hold onto them.

Practice gratitude. Some studies suggest that engaging in a normal gratitude practice could help you increase your emotional resilience to stress. This can be as simple as thinking of three things you’re grateful for before you go to sleep each night or writing a few in a notebook each morning. 

Eat nutritious foods. What you eat could affect the way you respond to certain emotions and help with disease control. Incorporating nutritious foods when you can could help you respond more productively to stress.

Get enough sleep. High levels of perceived stress can contribute to poor sleep, and vice versa. Practicing good sleep hygiene could help you get enough quality rest despite work-related stress so that your body and mind can be better equipped to face a new day.

Avoid or limit alcohol. Although some people turn to a drink or two to unwind after a stressful workday, this habit could be counterproductive. When consumed too close to bedtime, alcohol could decrease sleep quality, which could decrease stress resilience, emotional control, and cognitive performance.

Boundaries at work

Aim for work-life balance. Many companies talk about work-life balance as core to their organizational values. Separating work from your personal life as much as possible is best for many people. This can look like avoiding answering emails on the weekends or on days off or practicing relaxation exercises to calm yourself down after work and before engaging with your family or friends. Try to keep work stress from polluting your free time.

Identify your top three work stressors. Although it’s not possible in all cases, Sometimes, you can eliminate or reduce sources of stress. First, you might try making a list of three to five top work stressors that could potentially be dealt with. 

Begin practicing promising job stress management techniques

Follow up with action where possible. Finally, you might choose the solution for each stressor that seems the most promising and put it into action. Even if it only helps a little, the process could help you feel more in control and less stressed at work.

Recharge and maintain physical health

Unplug from digital work chores. When you go home from work, it may help you recharge from the day if you disconnect from the digital world of your workplace and release unnecessary stress. If you need to check work emails at home, you might set a specific time frame in which to do so, and then do your best to put your device down and put that stress out of your mind.

Get outdoors. Studies indicate that spending time in nature could help reduce stress levels. Going for a hike or a walk around your local park are examples of ways to do this in your off hours.

Laugh with your friends. Laughter may help decrease stress and anxiety, so spending lighthearted time with friends, attending a comedy show, or watching a movie or show you find funny could be useful.

Spend time with your loved ones. Social support can be a crucial element of overall health and well-being. It may even increase stress resilience, which points to the importance of prioritizing connections with friends, family, neighbors, and others.

Get mental health support

Talk to a trusted friend. The act of simply opening up to friends or family members about the stress you’re feeling at work could help you feel heard and may even help you find resolutions to your key stressors.

Join a support group. If you have a particular challenge that's increasing your stress at work, going to a support group could help you get your feelings out and enable you to find new solutions to your problems. For example, if you work in a caring industry like healthcare, meeting with others in the field could offer you a space to commiserate and heal.

Talk to a therapist about work stress and its negative effects (such as anxiety and depression)

A mental health counselor may help you develop better ways of coping with stress at work. For instance, they could help you accomplish many of the other ways of dealing with stress listed above. For example, they can help you track your stress, use relaxation techniques more effectively, learn to set boundaries, and generate potential solutions for key stressors. They are also trained to provide support if you are also experiencing an emotional disorder such as depression or anxiety due to the negative effects of workplace stress.

Treating work stress

If you’re stressed at or because of your workplace, commuting to and from in-person therapy appointments difficult. In cases like these, you might prefer meeting with a therapist through a platform like BetterHelp. All you need is a device that connects to the internet so you can speak with them via phone, video call, and/or in-app messaging. Research suggests that online therapy can be as effective as in-person therapy for challenges like chronic stress, so you might consider this option if it’s more convenient for you.

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