Beware the Gradual, Relentless Nature of Chronic Stress (and what you might do about it).

As I delivered my LinedIn Live this week (you can see a recording in my profile) I made the comment that we are often not the first person in our group / family / team to notice that we are stressed. One of the reasons is that we mostly lack a lot of self-awareness, but potentially a bigger reason is that chronic stress, and the route to burnout is a slow burn. In some cases it progresses so slowly that it is possible to get used to it until …it’s too late.

Most people go through life without suffering from burnout. We all have stress and anxiety enter our lives and for the most part we can deal with it and move on. That said, it's easy to let relentless stress sneak up on you. It is, in some cases, gradual and slow-moving. This makes it virtually invisible and easy to underestimate if it is noticed

Think of it like a slowly dripping tap (without that annoying dripping noise).

Place a bucket under that tap and you might believe it will take a long time to fill up. Watch as the tap slowly releases one drop of water at a time every few seconds. If the bucket is big enough, it might take seemingly forever to get to the point where overflow is a consideration. It is surprising though, for anyone who has had this happen to them how much water can be lost in time through a simple drip drip drip. Think of that as your inner energy, dripping away, almost imperceptibly.

The progress is so sloth-like that you decide to turn away. There are better things to do than spend the next few days of your life monitoring the progress. You can surely come back in plenty of time to empty the bucket and force the slowly dripping tap to start from scratch to fill it.

That's what you think, anyway. Upon returning, you discover that the water long ago overflowed the bucket. Even though you knew it would eventually be full, you couldn't stop the tap from filling the bucket before it was too late to do anything about it.

Burnout really is that sneaky

That watery analogy between a persistent drip and burnout is important. In the example I just used, it would be easy enough to grab a mop and clean up any mess that was made. That's not the case when constant and unrelenting stress and other factors lead to burnout.

The damage caused by someone with a burnout-induced breakdown can be awful and include low self-esteem, social withdrawal, excessive exhaustion, depression and the inability to perform simple tasks and lead a normal life. Sometimes, a person might turn to self-harm and even attempt to take their own life.

These are reasons burnout needs to be spotted and then treated quickly. The best-case scenario is to prevent it before it happens, monitoring stress and addressing it in the best possible way. If you have a lot of stress, get help to alleviate it. If you're not careful, a slow but steady exposure to chronic stress can negatively affect many areas of your life.

A work stress study conducted in 2013 (yes I know it’s 10 years ago but believe you me things have not improved since then. In fact they have got worse…but read on) showed that 80% of employees felt stress while at work. That study, Attitudes in the American Workplace VII, also revealed other startling information. For example ...

• Almost half of the respondents said they wish they could get help learning how to deal with stress on the job.
• 1 in 4 felt like shouting or screaming out loud because they were so stressed out
• 18% (about 1 in 6) experienced verbal intimidation or a physical threat in the previous year
• 14% (roughly 1 out of 7) admitted that they felt like striking a coworker in the past year
• 10% (1 in 10) were fearful of an individual at work, and they believed that person could become violent

What's going on here? Why are people so stressed out at work? For that matter, what can be done about it?

Now let's look at the good news.

There are simple techniques to lower your stress level. This means if your coworkers, your job itself, or some other issues are stressing you out in the workplace, there are steps you can take to prevent suffering from burnout.

By the way, what does burnout mean?

It's a phrase psychologist Herbert Freudenberger coined in the 1970s. Put simply, it describes stress (usually workplace-related) so severe that it leads to mental, emotional, and/or physical exhaustion, which then causes a mental breakdown.

This is unlike the normal stress of having a rapidly approaching deadline on the job. It's much more serious. Untreated, burnout has been linked to a greater risk of developing psychological illnesses, heart disease, and even diabetes.

What Can You Do About It?

Here are a few proven ways to prevent and treat workplace stress so it doesn't become full-fledged burnout.

• OK, I’ll go first! GET A COACH, and one that specialises in helping people be at their very best everyday WITHOUT burning. One that has all the resources to help you negate the burnout before it happens. One that can connect with you as a human being, an Emotional Alchemist, heart to heart. (OK, enough about me, what else?)
• A deceptively simple yet powerful breathing technique, like Heart Focused Breathing (ask me) is enough to bring you back from the edge and think more clearly in the moment.
• Consult a human resources manager if possible or access your Employee Assistance Program (EAP). They are incredibly helpful, fully paid for and confidential.
• Think about the situation when you are away from work. Are you causing the issue or making it worse in some way? Be honest with yourself. You can't treat a problem until you know where it originates.
• Solve the problem that's causing stress. Sometimes you can come up with a solution that improves productivity, workplace morale, or employee interactions in such a way that it reduces stress for everyone.
• Remove yourself from the environment. Ask for a transfer. Don't spend unnecessary time with the people stressing you out. Even getting outside, preferably in nature, over a lunchtime can help.
• Talk to your coworkers. Form a support network, compare notes, and then approach your boss with your concerns. Your company may also have trained Mental Health First Aiders who can offer support in times of need. (If not, I know who offers top class training for MHFA)
• Exercise and eat right. Regular physical activity and healthy eating habits can dramatically lower your stress at work and home.

If these burnout-busting tips don't help, you might consider getting a job with a different company. Given that our behaviour is a function of our personality and the environment we are in it’s hardly surprising that can't enjoy peace of mind in a particularly hostile workplace. Rather than constantly facing a stressful environment that threatens your emotional, mental, and physical health, put the situation behind you and move on.

Need to know more, please do get in touch. There’s a booking link, for a free first meeting, in the comments.