The stress at workplace is an increasingly important topic, and we are concerning ourselves about it. The question is how we can define stress, what are its historical, physiological, psychological related issues ,and how will be the coping techniques?
Firstly, the occupational stress; the work-related stress are both terms used to describe stress at workplace while the dictionary define it as the response people may have when presented with work demands and pressures that are not matched to their knowledge and ability to cope. On one hand, Psychologists distinguish between two kinds of stress one which is harmful and negative (Distress) and another which is positive (Eustress). Related to psychological disorders, the stress can be acute and chronic and can intensify morbidity from anxiety disorders. On the other hand, behind stress, there are stressors that could be physiological, psychological or socio-cultural. In reality, Stress is highly individualized and depends on variables such as the novelty, rate, intensity, duration, or personal interpretation of the input, and genetic or experiential factors. At this point, we can define stress at workplace as the limit of energizing ourselves to cope with different life and work pressures.
Secondly, each period of human history has its proper stressors, but stress as an outcome is associated with the nature of late –twentieth century life in western society, a period characterized by intense scientific and industrial progress. Early in 1903, Roosevelt had referred to the emphasis on job satisfaction which has given way to, long hours, and short term contracts, new methods of working and constant change which has shaped the working life. The term stress firstly used by Walter Cannon relating to his work the fight-or –flight response in 1932. Later, the adoption of the term as a psychological concept is attributed to Hans Selye in 1936. During this period , the world war has derived different kind of stress and soldiers had suffered from war stress assumed to be a neurological dysfunction or as emotional breakdown. Recently this symptom of war stress has been qualified as the post-traumatic stress symptoms. More recently in 1988, Professor Cary Cooper and his colleague have described their stress equation as follows:
Life stress + Work equation + Individual vulnerability = Stress symptoms
Thirdly, the above equation shows that stress may drive different kind of symptoms: The stressed people in workplace may experience different physiological ones at the same time, they describe their physiological symptoms that may be disturbing without initially attributing them to the stress. In fact ,it happens to fill sick in our stomach during an assessment test, to experience troubling sleeping when we are so loaded with urgent work or to end up with a terrible headache when we have been so worried about job related subject. In practice, the practitioners encounter many physiological symptoms such as headaches, indigestion, palpitations, nausea, etc...
Fourthly, such physiological are unlikely to occur in isolation of psychological symptoms. This later symptoms may be freely volunteered by the stressed person, or created by a further concern about the physiological symptoms. Stressed people at workplace may experience anxiety, worry, hopelessness, fearfulness and feeling unable to cope. Furthermore, according to practitioners, stress can change behaviors which will have great importance to people whose job or career are under threat. These behavioural changes can take different forms such as agitation, poor concentration, anger and shooting. These different stresses related symptoms have increased the attention paid to cope with stress at workplace.
Ultimately, during acute exposure, stress increase our autonomic arousal, so the techniques used in treating these cases has as main purpose is to reduce this autonomic arousal. Fortunately, many methods allow the stressed person to begin to regain control of his or her autonomic nervous system. These methods are based on a range of well tried behavioral and psychological techniques. Relaxation is one exercise to consciously intense and releases a group of muscle to help the stressed Person to relax. Another exercise is breathing, which help to restore normal breathing patterns and reduce the severity of symptoms. Adding to that, the lifestyle changes such as the control of smoking, alcohol use and the coffee consumption also help the stressed people. Depending on the severity of stress, the help of practitioners and the wellness of stressed person to make right decisions could help resolving the stress generated problems.
To sum up, we are aware that workplace related stress can take a toll on one’s health, and the literature about stress has provide us with a clearer picture of how stress and physiological and psychological symptoms are linked but the personal changes and flexibility are an essential competency which can help to better managing stress and create greater health and opportunities for life growth and career success.
In light of these findings ,a quote by Charles Sprugeon may be of interest to face our daily workplace related stress with happiness and full energy « It is not how much we have , but how much we enjoy that makes happiness. »
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