Is your job making you crazy? Are your co-workers like those off of The Drew Carey Show? Do you feel like everytime you turn around someone else has added another task to your list? Spending 40+ hours a week in a stressful environment can take a serious toll on both your mental and physical health. Anxiety, depression, obesity, ulcers and high blood pressure are just a few of the common conditions linked to stress at work. How do you make it better, how can you stay sane at work?
1.) Plan a vacation – Its been proven that workers who take regular vacations have lower stress levels and are less likely to experience burnout. A vacation is a way to get your battery recharged so you can work to your full potential when you return to work.
2.) Take a walk – This is more of a mental health break than exercise. If you only have 15 minutes, get away from your desk and take a walk around the block. Combine this with the deep breathing and you’ll be relaxed and ready to get back to work in no time.
3.) Make time for activities that energize you – If you’re not getting the fulfillment you need at work, you have to make time for your passions after hours. Without a regular dose of joy in your life, burnout is inevitable.
4.) Take a mental health day – A day away from the insanity can be a great way to get some perspective. This is the same concept as taking a vacation, you will perform better when you have had time away to refresh.
5.) Take time to breath – Deep breathing can amazingly calm you in just minutes. We tend to breath more shallow when we get stressed, causing less oxygen to flow to your brain cells, making it difficult to think clearly or calmly.