- Stress occurs when you cannot cope and you do not know how and what to focus on. Stress at work can increase chances of sickness, absence from work, staff turnover and other issues such as errors. Understanding how to spot the signs of stress in your team, and then know what to do to reduce stress, will help you achieve this.
- It is up to you and your managers to recognise that behaviours have changed. Be aware that something is wrong and take prompt action.
We often tend to overlook the symptoms since the reason for it is very basic, like the fear of being laid off, or the pressure of meeting deadlines due to which one tends to sit overtime, the pressure to perform better, and meeting the ever increasing expectation levels and targets.
Take care not to over react to small changes in behaviour:
Emotional symptoms:
- Negative or depressive feeling
- Disappointment with yourself
- Increased emotional reactions – more tearful or sensitive or aggressive
- Loneliness, withdrawn
- Loss of motivation commitment and confidence
- Confusion, indecision
- Can’t concentrate
- Poor memory
Changes from normal behavior:
- Changes in eating habits
- Increased smoking, drinking or drug taking ‘to cope’
- Mood swings effecting your behavior
- Changes in sleep patterns
- Changes in attendance such as arriving later or taking more time off.
Here are some tips to build your resilience:
Confidence: Will help you build effective strategies in coping with stress. A resilient person promotes self-esteem; they focus on their set of skills and abilities and take control of a situation.
Purpose: Setting your values in place will help you develop a strong drive which will set you in the right direction in establishing your goals.
Social Support: Building strong and good relationships with others will help you in seeking support in the time of crisis. Work on building a positive attitude and emotions
The author is a Clinical Psychologist at Hiranandani Hospital, Vashi, a Fortis network Hospital