Given the expectation of discrimination and even dismissal, many people with stress go to great lengths to prevent colleagues and managers knowing they are or have been ill. This attempt at concealment can make people reluctant to request time off for hospital or therapy sessions and reduce their chance of obtaining appropriate help from occupational health, counselling services or employees’ assistance programmes. Some people stop taking medication for fear that it will impair their work performance or that its effects might alert colleagues to their illness.
Making stress a commonly talked about topic, can help the workplace become a safe place, some wellbeing tips that should reduce stress in the workplace and encourage people to discuss their stress are;
-Have a friendship with your colleagues. Try to rely on at least one of your colleagues. Having someone to turn to can allow you to get things off of your chest
-Encourage your colleagues to take breaks, sometimes even reminding your manager that they need a break cane be beneficial.
-Establish a quiet zone in your office, where people who are stressed can go to calm down
-Ask if there’s a counselling service provided by the company you work at
-Approach your manager in a proactive and positive way, shape your stress in a way where you can say for example, I have so many things on my bridge at the moment that I feel as though I can’t finish all of my tasks to the best of my ability. Ensuring they understand that you can either; finish things half-heartedly with more chance of error, or finish a few tasks brilliantly. Many managers would rather delegate some of your tasks to other colleagues.
For more tips click here A Guide to Communication and Stress
