As a clinical psychologist, I work with many clients experiencing stress due to workplace factors, including bullying and harassment, staff shortages, and under-resourcing of services, as well as working long hours. Some describe feeling chronically stressed both at work and at home.

What is stress?

Stress occurs when you perceive that the demands of your environment or what is expected of you outweigh your ability to cope, whether at work or at home. It is often an ongoing feeling of anxiety, trouble sleeping and eating, and mood changes such as being easily agitated or just feeling unmotivated to do anything. It often makes people withdraw from others and engage less in pleasurable activities. Stress also weakens the immune system, making a person more susceptible to illness and disease. For example, it can result in a longer recovery time from colds.

When I have worked with people experiencing workplace bullying and harassment, their stress often doesn’t subside until they leave the workplace. This can be especially traumatic if the job provides them with a strong sense of meaning and purpose. It’s important for a person to be supported in finding a healthier environment and also learn strategies to cope with workplace situations. Of course, it’s crucial that workplaces are active in creating positive environments in the first place and take a no-tolerance approach to bullying. Bullying can have lifelong effects for some, leaving them unable to work due to the fear of being bullied again.

When the source of stress is removed or resolved (such as recovering from a loved one’s illness or moving into a new home), or the person removes themselves from the stressful situation (such as leaving a job), there is often a sense of relief. However, the body may remain in a heightened state, taking time to recover. People often describe feeling unwell, experiencing headaches, muscle tension, and difficulty relaxing.

Set boundaries within your workplace

We need to set clear boundaries in the workplace in terms of how we are treated and the amount of work we take on. Learning to call out behaviour that is not acceptable as well as looking after our needs for breaks and manageable workloads is important but can be hard. Seeking support from supervisors and human resource departments can help.

Recovering from stress

It’s important for a person to actively participate in relaxing activities to help their body and brain recover from a period of stress. However, sometimes a person may remain stressed, anticipating that the stressor (trigger) will return. In these cases, seeking help is important to learn ways to manage. Clinical psychologists often help people learn to relax, be more present during pleasant events, improve sleep and develop more helpful ways of thinking.