Career Chat // Managing anxiety at work // Fri. 30 June, 12pm AEST

According to Anxiety and Depression Association of America, workers who have are impacted by an anxiety disorder have reported that they have turned down an opportunity because it involves taking public transport, or make excuses to not attend office parties or staff lunches, or struggling to deal with workplace problems or even participate in meetings.

Or perhaps you are having trouble sleeping, experiencing poor memory, loss of confidence in your abilities or even experiencing fatigue. Does any of this sound like you?

Getting stressed out at work happens to everyone, and it perfectly normal. However, stress where it is persistent, irrational and becomes overwhelming for an individual to the point it starts to impair daily functioning may indicate an anxiety disorder.

It is important to learn to manage your anxiety at work and there are a number of ways that this can be done such as:

• Education yourself – learn to recognise the symptoms of when you may be feeling anxious and how to manage this effectively for yourself
• Take breaks. Use this time to go for a walk and take deep breathes to clear your mind
• Set boundaries for yourself. Don’t bring work home and avoid checking emails or taking calls after work hours
• Take a moment and celebrate all the good work you have done in your job
• Take advantage of you work’s Employee Assistance Program
• Maintain your health by eating well, get enough sleep, exercise regularly and limit your caffeine intake.

I would be interested to hear if any of these techniques have been beneficial for anyone else? Or would anyone else like to share what they currently do to manage anxiety at work?

Just looking at the above list of some of the ways anxiety can be managed at work I am not sure this is going to be a useful discussion for me as most of those things are unattainable in my job - and some of the issues that exacerbate my stress and anxiety at work are more complex.

@Zoe7 thank you for your response. These are just some suggestions that have been reported by individuals of techniques that has assisted them to manage stress and anxiety. In your situation, it might be meaningful to explore a little further on the triggers in your workplace that may exacerbate stress and anxiety to get a better understanding of which techniqies may work for you. Or alternatively, is there anything you may do outside of work to help you destress from the day to day grind of your job?

I am presently not at work - on long-term leave - but do have a job to go back to when I am 'well enough'.

My work situation is very complex and not really something I feel able ot talk about here.

As a teacher - work does not stop AT WORK. There are too many additional requirements that require alot of extra hours outside of 'normal' work times.

Thankyou for you response but I really do not think this is something I can even consider 'talking about' or even 'looking at' at the moment - I really am nowhere near ready to think about going back to work.

@Zoe7 you mentioned something really vital in your response and that is "when you are ready" which is equally important. I understand that there are many jobs out there, including mine, where hours of work extend beyond the required 9-5 grind.

In any situation, it is important as individuals to identify where work can be overwhelming and how we can manage this effectively for ourselves. Here is a link with more great strategies which i also use for myself such as breaking up my projects into smaller steps so it does not seem overwhelming, delegating tasks and being honest to my employer about over committing myself to projects

https://www.cbhs.com.au/Health-Well-Being-Blog/Blog-Article/2015/10/08/managing-anxiety-at-work

Also exploring alternative career options with a qualifed career practitioner can be beneficial to determine other employment options where one can use their skills, qualifications, experience and also most importantly passion and interest in other fields in a role that is less demanding.

Workplace stress can be a major factor contributing to anxiety and depression. Stress in the workplace can often be caused from situations where there is a mismatch between the requirements of your job and your capabilities and the avaialble resources. Hence putting individuals under unsustainble level of pressure.

A range of factors can contribute to stress and prolonged stress which can lead to an increase in anxiety. These can include:

• Working long hours or not taking breaks
• Time pressure or unrealistic targets
• Limited supports from direct supervisors
• Job can be dull or boring
• Conflict in the workplace
• job security
• Bullying or discrimination

It is important to be able to recognise the signs of when you may be experiencing symptoms of stress and anxiety and seek the assistance that you require. Talking to someone is a really good start. Talking to a professional to seek alternative solutions can be of great benefit. Implementing self-care strategies will also aleviate stress and anxiety.

https://www.headsup.org.au/docs/default-source/resources/stresstipsheet(aps).pdf?sfvrsn=2

Hi @Zoe7. I'm a teacher too and your post really resonated with me. I have been becoming very anxious over the last few days about completing all the work I have brought home for the holidays, which I haven't started, and all the prep to do for next term. I was perusing the forum for an idea of when to quit or take a break from work when I came across your post.

Teaching used to be so rewarding. It has always had long hours and overtime but I cannot do what is expected of me in the 50 hours a week I have been trying to limit myself to this term (as opposed to the 60-70 I was doing). I am a long-term teacher and I am open to change but the expectations are so great now that I don't think it's possible to meet them. I am losing all confidence in myself, even over little things. There is absolutely no support at work and I have been begging for over a year.

You don't need to respond, but I understand the complexities you allude to. I hope things have been better for you.

Hi @MaryMahem I am still off work and nowhere near even considering going back at present in any capacity. I am still both physically and mentally very unwell - even attending appointments is exhausting. It has now been a year since I became unwell and began leave from work. I am definitely not likely to be back this year - and to be honest - I don't even know if I want to go back. As you have said yourself - teaching used to be rewarding but the extra pressures and expectations are now taking us further and further away from actually teaching/spending time with the kids.

The amount of 'paperwork' and meetings expected is unrealistic - we are essentially now doing two jobs concurrently - teaching and admin - and there is not enough time in the day to do both - so what gets pushed aside? - the kids do as the demands for all those 'checks and balances' further increases.

We need to go back to our core business @MaryMahem - getting to know our kids - their strengths and weaknesses, their individual learning styles, their lives outside of school and what would benefit them in their learning best, and be able to apply that to our planning for lessons - I know I am dreaming