Given our country’s culture of overwork, it’s easy to see why so many of us are constantly contending with job-related anxiety. With millions of people regarding working oneself to the point of exhaustion as a virtue, there’s little wonder as to why work has come to dominate countless lives. Unsurprisingly, this approach to working is highly conducive to stress and anxiety.
However, this is not to say that you have no choice but to accept job stress as an inescapable fact of life.
Seek Professional Mental Health Assistance
Anyone contending with job-related anxiety stands to benefit from professional mental health assistance. When seeking out the right therapist or counselor, make sure to look for someone who has ample experience dealing with the type of anxiety you’re currently battling. Additionally, if your work schedule doesn’t provide sufficient time for in-person appointments, keep an eye out for people who offer their services remotely.
A qualified mental health professional will be able to provide you with practical advice, effective coping mechanisms and other tools for keeping job-related anxiety at bay. They may also recommend getting involved in charitable endeavors as an effective form of anxiety-relief.
For example, if you’re interested in organizations that support human rights, don’t hesitate to seek out relevant opportunities.
Set Clear Boundaries
It’s no secret that employers often seek to exert an unfair amount of control over employees’ lives. As a result, many members of the workforce never truly clock out of their respective jobs. For example, you may have come to view your personal hours as an extension of your workday. Similarly, your weekends – provided, of course, you get weekends – may simply be viewed as days where you work from home.
If you let your employer burden you with such expectations, they’re likely to take full advantage. So, as difficult as it may be to stand up for yourself, make an effort to set clear boundaries with your employer. This entails sticking to clearly-defined work-hours and not answering emails or taking work-related calls during off-hours, weekends and other periods of downtime.
While working may be an important part of your life, it should not be your entire life, and no employer is owed this level of commitment.
Don’t Allow Yourself to Become a Doormat
It seems like all of us have worked with someone who consistently refuses to do their fair share. Such individuals often coast on the efforts of others and rely on harder-working colleagues to pick up their slack.
In some cases, these people are in over their heads and genuinely unable to deal with the lofty expectations associated with their respective positions. Other times, the offending parties simply see no point in doing work they can easily foist onto coworkers.
So, if any co-workers regularly take advantage of you in such a manner, it’s imperative that you put your foot down. The longer you allow them to get away with unloading their work onto you, the more likely they are to continue doing it. While there’s nothing wrong with occasionally stepping in to loan a colleague a helping hand, their work is ultimately their responsibility.
Report Any Abuse You Suffer
Workplace abuse is a frustratingly common problem that comes in a variety of forms. From basic bullying to physical intimidation and sexual assault, the number of forms workplace abuse takes is anything but limited. Unfortunately, due to fear of retaliation from the offending parties, many victims of workplace abuse opt to keep quiet about the injustices they’ve suffered.
Needless to say, you should never allow yourself to be silenced when it comes to workplace abuse. If you’ve ever been harassed or abused by a colleague or superior, don’t hesitate to report the incident to any relevant parties. Should your employer refuse to take appropriate action, consider getting in touch with a good attorney.
In many respects, working and anxiety go hand in hand. Many employers have unrealistic and unreasonable expectations of their employees, thereby serving to create work environments that are relentlessly stressful.
However, while contending with job-related anxiety can eat up a lot of energy, keeping it in check isn’t as difficult as you may think. So, if you’re ready to prevent job anxiety from dominating your existence, put the advice outlined above to practical use.
Also read: Does Melatonin Help Anxiety?
