Let's Talk About Stress

Another month, another awareness.

And, April is the mark of Stress Awareness Month .

So, let's talk openly about stress.

Be honest, right now as you read through the list below ?? - how many do you 'tick' off?

• Easily agitated
• Feeling overwhelmed
• Finding it hard to relax
• Suffering from low self-esteem
• Avoiding others
• CBA aka Low energy
• Headaches
• Tummy troubles
• Aches, pains, and tense muscles (and you've not even been to the gym)
• Chest pain?and/or increased heart rate
• 'Can't get no sleep' - Insomnia
• Frequently getting sick
• Clenched jaw and grinding?teeth
• Constant?worrying
• Racing thoughts
• Forgetfulness and disorganisation
• Inability to focus
• Poor judgment
• Being pessimistic
• Changes in appetite
• Procrastinating
• Wine on Monday, because it's Friday somewhere... right?!
• You've started to bite your nails (nervous behaviours)

Disclaimer: This isn't an exhausted list.

But I'm curious how many of those symptoms did you recognise with? And I'd say if you have even selected one, you my friend could be stressed.

Here's the thing - stress can affect all aspects of you and your life, from your emotions and behaviours to your thinking ability, and even your physical health.

No part of you is immune.

And depending on the person will depend on the symptoms.

Another disclaimer for you: Symptoms can sometimes be the same as serious medical conditions. So it is important to discuss them with your GP.

But, why are we so stressed?

Much like the symtoms, the root cause also varies. There isn't a one-size fits all, which normally I'd be here for but on this occasion, it is rather unhelpful.

Mind , an organisation that provides advice and support to empower anyone experiencing a mental health problem, shares:

"Many things can cause stress. You might feel stressed because of one big event or situation in your life. Or it might be a build-up of lots of smaller things.

This might make it harder for you to identify what's making you feel stressed, or to explain it to other people.

You may experience stress if you:

• Feel under lots of pressure
• Face big changes in your life
• Are worried about something
• Don't have much or any control over the outcome of a situation
• Have responsibilities that you find overwhelming
• Don't have enough work, activities or change in your life
• Experience discrimination, hate or abuse
• Are going through a period of uncertainty"

Stress affects people in different ways and what one person finds stressful can be normal to another.

So, always show empathy. Just because you can wear your superhero pants, doesn't mean that everyone can.

Did you know, that women are more stressed than men?

'Great', I say sarcastically out loud as I do my research for this edition.

One of the articles I found, from Priory Group , a leading independent provider of mental healthcare and adult social care in the UK, shared:

"Among the 35-44 age group, 68,000 of women reported stress, compared to 46,000 men.

In the older age group, 45-54, the figure for women rises to 78,000 compared to 58,000 men.

The HSE figures are based on a survey of more than 40,000 households with the results extrapolated to give an estimate for the UK as a whole.

Overall, there were 590 cases of stress per 100,000 workers for men and 920 cases for women, meaning that women workers are one and a half times more likely than men to be stressed."

My research continued.

In the article Women Continuing To Face Alarmingly High Levels Of Burnout, Stress In The “New Normal” Of Work by Michele Parmelee in Forbes - I read:

"Fifty-three percent of women surveyed say their stress levels are higher than they were a year ago, and almost half feel burned out. While this year’s respondents rate their mental wellbeing as slightly better than last year’s, almost half say their mental health is poor/very poor. One-third have taken time off work because of mental health challenges, yet only 43% feel comfortable talking about these challenges in the workplace. Additionally, the “always on” culture remains—more than one-third of women rate their ability to switch off from work as poor/very poor...

...The majority of women (59%) have experienced harassment (such as?unwanted physical advances or repeated disparaging comments) and/or microaggressions (such as being interrupted or talked over or being patronized, for example) over the past year at work. Exactly half of women say they have experienced microaggressions, and 14% have experienced harassment. As in 2021, the majority of these behaviors—69%—don’t go reported, with microaggressions much less likely to be reported to an employer. Only 23% of microaggressions are reported compared to 66% of harassment behaviors. An overwhelming number of women still fear reprisals for speaking up: 93% believe reporting non-inclusive behaviors will negatively impact their careers, and most feel that their employers won’t take action even if they do report these behaviors."

The plot thickens. ??

What this means for Women in Tech

A number of global studies have shared that?two in five ?IT professionals are at high risk of burnout and as many as 42% of women were consistently burned out at work, compared to 35% of men.

Looking back at the causes laid out by Mind, we know that women who work in tech are:

• Feeling under lots of pressure to perform like their male counterparts.
• Are worried about job security. We have seen the tech sector go through shifts and changes over the last few months.
• Don't have much or any control over the outcome of a situation - being talked over in meetings is playing into this.
• Have experienced or experiencing discrimination, hate or abuse - need to say anymore?
• Are going through a period of uncertainty - errr, all of the above?!

And as a result, as Jadee Hanson, CIO and CISO, Code42 said : "We’ve been slowly making strides to equality in the workforce. Since the pandemic, we’ve seen women leaving the workforce at a much higher rate. Which is sad and scary because our workforce is not going to look quite the same. It’s going to be a lot less diverse if women keep opting to pull themselves out of working in this industry."

[Note: I'm not using stress and burnout interchangeably. Stress is the reaction people have to excessive pressures or other types of demands placed on them. Burnout is experiencing long-term stress or severe stress can lead to feeling physical, mental and emotional exhaustion. (Both definitions are from the NHS).]

Remedies

There is no magic potion. And, just like the symptoms and the causes - the remedies will depend on the person.

To start with, we need to be aware of stress. And I hope this article has given you some food for thought not just for yourself but to even understand others.

To help yourself at work:

• Talk to your manager, colleague or HR. There is no shame in saying that the current pressures that are on you, are causing you to feel stressed. It is always best to take some examples with you that include the situation when you have felt stressed and even document you current workload. By talking, you are highlighting the problem. You never know, you might be able to recruit someone to support you.
• Get a priority list together. Have you ever used a Kanban board? For me, this is a great way to visually see what you need to do and what you have achieved. (also GREAT for reporting) You can use Trello which is a free online tool.
• Be part of a culture change. Do you have an idea to help improve team performance? an Idea on how to feel calmer at work? Maybe introduce a well-being Wednesday? Be the change you want to see.

And to just give back to yourself:

• Have you thought about a change your job or career direction. This one will take more time and planning. However, if you really are struggling this might be the option.
• Take a break. Please! Stop! Put down your phone and do something for you.
• Yoga. Give it a try.

Do you have a story of stress? Or do you have any suggestions of remedies? Share your experience and advice in the comments, you never know who you will be helping.

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