Early diagnosis best way to overcome work stress

By JULIE MIDDLETON

Not all stress - our physical and emotional response to a demand - is bad; a certain amount keeps us primed and performing well.

And everyone handles stress differently, simply because we're all wired differently.

We should see stress as a continuum with different danger points for different people.

"One person's challenge is another person's stress," observes Auckland psychiatrist David Codyre.

But the general symptoms of stress that have accumulated to the point of distress are often common: among them are a loss of zest, changes in sleeping patterns, nervous twitches or muscle spasms, frequent illness, irritability, tearfulness and tension.

And more stress than you can handle can tip you into conditions that fall under the heading of mental illness, including depression and anxiety.

But many people fail to act on the warning signs. A study of 450 European workers has found that 76 per cent of people thought their career prospects would be damaged if they complained of work-related stress.

Hot Under the Collar, by international consultancy Cubiks, also found that:

* Just over half of the workers described stress as having a negative influence on performance. Major stresses were work overload, job insecurity, a poor relationship with bosses and a lack of control over one's role. For managers, dismissing staff, announcing redundancies, disciplining staff and presenting to senior managers caused most stress.

* Just one-third of those surveyed said stress was recognised as an issue at work, and only 27 per cent said their company had any formal processes for handling stress-related concerns.

* Eighty-seven per cent of bosses admitted they would be less likely to promote an employee if they doubted their stress-handling ability.

Maintaining mental good health in the face of stress, says Cordye, starts with exercise, eating and sleeping well, and knowing yourself and your genetic inheritance.

If you are feeling unhealthily wired, start "by using your resources and supports - your partner or spouse or another supportive person - and talk about it". Identify the source of stress. If you don't feel you can cope, seek professional help.

Codyre says that while many people can identify when they are stressed, a worrying amount of mental illness goes unrecognised, often because symptoms wax and wane and people write symptoms off as "vague physical complaints".

Early diagnosis and treatment mean minimal impact on work attendance, he says. If conditions go unrecognised and untreated, under-performance is often the result.

"The bottom line is that these are very common conditions in the workforce, as in the broader population that, undetected and untreated, can cause personal and work difficulties."

Codyre says the Mental Health Foundation's figures that one in five will suffer are on the low side - his pick is one in three.

"Sixty-six per cent of us in the workforce will have a period of one of these conditions. We're talking about most of the workforce.

"But people who have or have had mental illness are just as good workers as anybody else."

Among the foundation's suggestions on eliminating the sources of workplace stress are:

Trust workers. A lack of control, says the foundation, is top of the stress list. Trusting workers allows them the freedom to make decisions about the tasks ahead, "fusing a pledge between employer and employee to do good work and receive the benefits of it".

Include everyone. Isolation at work - for example, your work going unnoticed, your boss playing favourites - leads to insecurity, a loss of self-esteem and even depression. Inclusion, information and a sense of belonging all help. Ensure the social environment at work is safe and don't tolerate discrimination or harassment. Put posters advertising staff help in the lunchroom. Offer employee assistance programmes.

Give people space. Help staff members get off the treadmill. Many people are getting ill, not from having too much to do, but from their sense that they have too much to do all at once, all the time. Encourage them to take breaks during the day and annual leave when it's due.

Make expectations clear. Paint a clear picture of what workers' jobs are and what is expected day by day.

Offer fulfilment. Give people something more valuable than money, that is, appreciation for doing good work.

Listen to colleagues. Ensure you hear and understand.

Redistribute workloads. Heavy workloads are major stresses. Staff worry that their workloads prevent them from doing a quality job. Hear concerns and interpret them wisely.

* Working Well, a guide to building mentally healthy workplaces, is available from the Mental Health Foundation. To get a copy contact enquiries@workingwell.co.nz or phone (0800) 4 working (496-754).

* The Employers and Manufacturers Association holds its annual occupational safety conference on March 19 and 20 in Auckland. It also runs one-day courses on doing stress audits on April 17 and June 10 in Auckland. Details from www.emaevents.co.nz