Prevention of Stress

To abet reduce stress and improve the quality of life, galore(postnominal) organizations be becoming much involved in wellness programmes. With increasing health care costs, many employers are concentrating on disease prevention and health promotion. By putting a wellness program in place, it leads to a healthier croakforce which increases its productivity level, reduces employee absenteeism, creates less overtime, and it also cuts the cost of health benefits (Kizer, 1987). another(prenominal) reason that many companies are developing a wellness program within the organization is the effect it has on the bottom line.By preventing stress, an organization has happy healthy employees which means t quality and total of action will be improved. For example A middle manager may be a companys shining star, but if he is living in constant disharmony at home, or if his teenage daughter, whom he suspects is using street drugs, did not come home until 3 a. m. last Saturday night this brilliant manager is not going to be particularly efficient at even routine daily tasks. A swear outsite wellness program could help (Kizer, 1987, p. 36). Another contributing f exertionor to higher job related stress is less leisure and vacation time.Throughout the 1980s, the amount of paid time off for employees is act shrinking. Many European workers are gaining vacation time, while Americans are losing it. In the last decade, U. S. workers have gotten less paid time off on the entrap of three and a half fewer days each year of vacation time, holidays, sick pay, and other paid absences. (Schor, 1991 p. 32). Many companies faced an economic condense in the 1980s. Vacations and holidays were among the cost-cutting efforts. DuPont reduced its top vacation allotment time from seven four weeks.They also eliminated three of their paid holidays a year. With the new trend of downsizing, many employees are fearful of job loss and therefore, spend less time away from the workplace (Schor, 1991, p. 32). Individuals who experience high or frequent levels of stress call for to learn to cope. High levels of stress can effect job performance and it can also be unhealthy. To maintain a healthy lifestyle, people contract to attempt to take responsibility for stress. Those individuals need to learn more astir(predicate) stress in general and how it effects them.They also need to develop technique. for observe ad hominem levels of stress and develop techniques to mass with job related stress. Employees should look within the organization on ways to alleviate stress and how to cope more effectively. Organizations an often unnecessarily stressful and should be changed to reduce the negative impact on individuals physical and mental health (Paine, 1982, p. 21). Three major strategies for strengthening individuals are workshops, stress management skills, and tensenessed short term counseling. Introductory workshops are essential to communicate and educate to be mor e mentally and physically healthy.such(prenominal) workshops which specialize in topics as time management or relaxation techniques help to alleviate the stress in ones life (Paine, 1982, p. 22). Finding techniques that deal with individual(prenominal) stress can also be useful in dealing with job stress. Regular aerobic exercise to deep breathing techniques are potentially useful in stress management. Many specialist agree that there is not any one method to overcome the problem. One needfully to confirm their own self needs and strengths in dealing with stress management (Paine, 1982, p. 23). There are many different ways in which you can deal with job stress.Individuals can take on simple self-help countermeasures. There is also help from friends, colleagues, spouse, or other relatives. Professional help is available from clergymen, physicians, or counselors. The worksite offers several(prenominal) advantages for employees interested in making healthy lifestyle changes. The ad vantages include Most employees go to a worksite on a regular schedule, thus providing opportunities for regular community in wellness programs. Contact with co-workers can provide strong social support which is believed to be a primary force in sustaining lifestyle changes.Opportunities for strong, steady support of the program, as well as for promoting the concept that good health is good for everyone. Programs at the worksite may be less expensive to the employee than comparable programs in the community or may even be offered free as an employee benefit. Because of the varity of data systems available, it is possible to evaluate changes in an employees health status or other measures resulting from the program. The most attractive feature from an employees viewpoint is the fact that the program is convenient.From the employers viewpoint the benefits of worksite health promotion for stress include amend employee relations Improved retention Improved community relations. Reduce d absenteeism Reduced number of hours lost to late arrivals and sick davs. Since theres no getting around lifes problems, the better way to manage stress is to learn better coping skills. First pinpoint the reasons for stress in your life. Then try changing your attitude about them. Learn what you can control and accept the things you cannot. Practice self talk (this to shall pass, Some day we will laugh about this, or Its a acquire experience).Keep your perspective. Ask yourself, Will I remember this in five years? Try to find the positive side to a stressful situation. Do not worry about things that may never happen. Practice positive self-talk, for example,I can do this,or Im in control. Negative self-talk such as, I have to be perfect, or I cant do this, produces more stress. Take action to manage stress. Changes and stress create energy. Are you using that energy to hatch toward your goals? Or are you letting stress make you unhappy and unproductive? Take action to control your stress, both at work and at home. manipulate your time better- make a to do list. Make it realistic so you can do the things listed and devise priorities. Break task into bite size chunks. ascribe as much as possible. Keep in mind that tomorrow is another day and accept the fact that you may not get everything do today. Make sure you are communicating effectively- Go into stressful meetings as fully prepared as possible. Organize your thoughts, establish eye contact and harken for the whole message, including content feelings, and meanings. Remember that solving problems depends on give and take. Be prepared to negotiate and compromise.Break the tension cycle-At your desk, close your eyes, breathe deeply and relax. laugh with co-workers, go out for lunch. At home, read a book, take a walk, chat with next door neighbors. Gets plenty of regular exercise and sleep-they will help you cope better. Get organized at home-Set daily and weekly routines for household chores. Delegat e about chores to other family members. Cook meals in large quantities and freeze some for later. Plan for emergencies, hang on first aid supplies and an extra set of car keys around. Stress can affect your self-esteem and your health, if you let it.Be kind to yourself. Relax, keep a positive attitude and get involved in activities you enjoy. Build on your strengths, take care of yourself Also team to reach out to others. Everyone needs a support system, a network of trustworthy people you care about and who care about you. Share your feelings so that they dont build up. Then focus on building positive energy. Stress is a normal, involuntary response to any demand made upon the body. Stress is very complex. Sources of stress may be made either more positive or more negative by a range of factors related to a given situation.Stress has plump a widely used yet poorly understood term. As a result, a number of misconceptions about stress exist. Three of the most set misconceptions a re that all stress is dab, stress is a part of life and there is nothing you can do about it, and stress is caused solely and on the whole by environmental factors. Stress is very much a personal condition, and individuals vary in their ability to cope with different forms and levels of stress. An example of this stress on a personal note would be co-worker conflict. When this stress occurs co-workers should discuss this matter privately.If possible, arrange your meeting on neutral grounds. Approach the person in a non-threatening manner. Respond to them with I would like to talk something over with you. Try to make the other person feel less defensive or angry. Do not blame the other person. Listen closely to the other person. Understanding the other point of view may help you feet less stressful. Focus on ways to solve the problem. In this I mean do not revisit every past negative incident, this may distract from the resolution. Finally if no(prenominal) of the above work, seek help.If necessary talk with an employee assistance counselor who can help develop ground rules for such discussions and promote respectful communications. Stress is a complex process. It can arise in white collar as well as in blue-collar workers. Surveys have found little expiration between white and blue-collar workers in terms of complaints, health, life satisfaction, depression, or other indicators of stress. Shift workers are thought to be more susceptible to stress-related illnesses. Because of personal involvement with the disruption in basic steep patterns and disruption in social life.Since every situation is unique, there are probably as many separate sources of stress as there are work situation. This may is important to recognize when seeking to evaluate working environments for sources of stress. Never the less sources of work related stress can be grouped into four general categories. Work load-which means stress resulting from to much work, to little work, work that is to hard or to easy. Work conditions-refers to a wide variety of factors including organization structure, such as job loss, change in work, and similar factors.Work patterns- pertains to shift work, repetitive work, and paced work Work roles-, which can be stressful because of role expectations with efficient use of resources and staff. Employers may also wish to introduce an EAP, which provides an effective strategy for assisting employees with personal and work related problems. Where organizations believe it would be necessary to make decisions about the quality of the proposed program. Such decisions should be made on the basis of a well-defined set of criteria. The following set of eight criteria for evaluating and selecting a stress intervention program is suggested.