It’s #stressawarenessmonth so it feels right to give you some practical information about identifying stress in yourself and others and let's be honest there's plenty for us to be stressed about right about now.
Whilst thinking about what to write for this post I remembered a conversation I had a while back with a friend of ours who is a dog trainer. We’d brought him in to teach our dog some new behaviours and I was fascinated by how similar dogs and humans are when it comes to developing healthy behaviours and also how similar they are when it comes to lashing out attacking.
Most of the time dogs will never simply lash out for no reason, there’s always a series of smaller behaviours that lead up to it which often get ignored.
The same thing happens to us.
We will exhibit smaller, more subtle behaviours that tell us we are experiencing the negative aspects of stress. But we tend to ignore them and pass them off as something else. The sore neck and back you have probably isn’t because you’ve slept funny the night before, it’s probably your body telling you that something isn’t right and that you need to take a step back for a moment.
There can be numerous signs and symptoms and in this post I want to share with you a selection so you can assess yourself and understand when the pressure of your work or personal environment is having a negative effect on your well-being.
These are some of the more common signs as developed from ISMA.org
Psychological Signs
Inability to concentrate
Memory lapses
Easily distracted
Less creative than usual
Undue worrying
Negative thinking
Prone to accidents
Insomnia
Emotional Signs
Tearful
Irritable
Mood swings
Extra sensitive to criticism
Defensive
Feeling out of control
Lack of motivation
Angry
Frustrated
Lack of self esteem
Physical Signs
Constant aches and pains, muscle tension
Frequent colds
Skin rashes
IBS
Weight gain / Loss
Ulcers
Dizziness/palpitations
Panic attacks
Physical Tiredness
Menstrual changes
Heart problems
Behavioural Changes
Not wanting to make time for pleasurable activities
Increased reliance of alcohol, caffeine or drugs
Becoming a workaholic
Poor time management/ poor standards of work
Absenteeism
Self neglect /Change in appearance
Social withdrawal
Recklessness
Anger
Nervousness
If you are seeing these signs in yourself more then you do normally then you may be experiencing the negative effects of stress. We have stress management experts on hand here at The Business Health Group who are more than happy to talk to you.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to us at; support@thebusinesshealthgroup.com