Focusing on Occupational Stress

Stress is often used as an everyday word to describe particularly trying situations such as a hectic day at work or being late for an appointment.  Normally such events come and go without any real harm being caused.  However, sometimes the pressures we experience can build up and begin to breach our coping thresholds – resulting in a more harmful stressed state.

 Key signs and symptoms of a stressed state include the following:

• Physical level

(stomach/digestive disturbances, heart palpitations, muscle tension, headaches, skin complaints, hand tremors and sweating);

• Emotional level

(includes anxiety, low mood, easily angered);

• Cognitive level

(poor concentration, memory difficulties, changes in thinking);

• Behavioural level

(irritable with others, over/under working, being less sociable, increased use of alcohol, over/under eating, sleep disturbances).

Of course such symptoms need to be checked out by a doctor to rule out any underlying medical causes – if no obvious physical cause can be found then a stress reaction is a distinct possibility.  Also when we are referring to being stressed we may actually be experiencing specifically depression or anxiety conditions, thus highlighting the importance of a proper assessment by a qualified health professional as a good starting point.

 According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE)[1], the risk of occupational stress may be increased if certain workplace conditions and practices are not present to a satisfactory level.  These are what the HSE calls its Management Standards and comprise of the following six components:

1        Demands (relating to workload, shifts and environment);

2        Control (relating to how much control/say employees have in managing their work load);

3        Support (relating to the availability of support systems from managers and colleagues;

4        Relationships (relating to the level of positive behaviours between staff);

5        Role (relating to having clarity and understanding of role and no conflicting roles);

6        Change (relating to how organisation change is effectively managed and communicated to staff). 

 Research has indicated that jobs with high demands and low control are particularly potential stress hot spots (especially if there is also inadequate social support systems/behaviours in the work place too)[2].

 Whilst a good organisational framework can be a protective factor against occupational stress, there are also important factors at the individual level too.  For example the habitual ways in which we think about situations we find ourselves in and how these thoughts influence our coping strategies and emotions can generate and maintain a stressed state.  If we persistently experience problematic thinking and coping strategies then certain talking therapies such as cognitive-behavioural therapy have been found to be effective[3]. 

Lifestyle behaviours such as exercise and nutrition are also beneficial to the management and prevention of health problems.  In fact tackling wellbeing issues from a multi-dimensional approach which take into account medical, psychological, organisational and social factors is an ideal one (i.e. a biopsychosocial approach)[4].

 We should, however, caution against automatically linking stress with work as current evidence supports the notion that employment is overall beneficial to our health and wellbeing.  Temporary respite from work is sometimes necessary, however, longer term absence and unemployment especially is linked with poorer health outcomes.[5]  

Jamie Patterson

(Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist, BABCP)

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