Jobmarket is looking grim everywere; companies lay people off resulting to burn out some of their remaining employees. No one should feel obligated to fill out for lack of staff in the workload. Still, when opening up social media you don’t have to scroll far to come across promotion of hustle culture. And it’s making me sick – literally. Have you ever stopped to think how much long-term stress can affect your health?

This is a gentle reminder of why you should care more about life outside of work and some ideas to help you to break the stress cycle. Social pressure aside – you deserve to have things just for your own enjoyment!

There are numerous studies about stress impacting health and depression can make a person passive. Overworking and thinking about work constantly on your time off sacrifices the quality of your not work-related interactions and can cause poor sleep. And sleep affects everything – especially your mood! And did you know stress can actually accelerate your biological aging?

“The study concludes that working 55 or more hours per week is associated with an estimated 35% higher risk of a stroke and a 17% higher risk of dying from ischemic heart disease, compared to working 35-40 hours a week.”

The Work-related Burden of Disease and Injury -study
https://www.who.int/news/item/17-05-2021-long-working-hours-increasing-deaths-from-heart-disease-and-stroke-who-ilo

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Study “The Work-Related Burden of Disease and Injury” was published by The World Health Organization and International Labour Organization, September 17, 2021. It covered global, regional and national levels. The study was based on data from more than 2300 surveys collected in 154 countries from 1970-2018.

The article “Psychological and biological resilience modulates the effects of stress on epigenetic aging” about a cross-study is also insightful. It was published by Zachary M. Harvanek, Nia Fogelman, Ke Xu, and Rajita Sinha in the journal ‘Translational Psychiatry’ on November 17, 2021. According to its findings, stress can be harmful even to people who are otherwise healthy.

“In this study, we report novel findings that cumulative stress is associated with accelerated epigenetic aging in a healthy, young-to-middle-aged community sample, even after adjusting for sex, race, BMI, smoking, alcohol use, income, marital status, and education.”

Psychological and biological resilience modulates the effects of stress on epigenetic aging – article of cross study
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-021-01735-7


Ideas to shift your focus from work

An unfinished acrylic painting

  1. Separate work devices and services from your personal ones
    If company wants you to make phone calls on work you need a separate work phone for that. Shut the phone up after you are finished with your working hours. If you are working from home put the working equipment out of your sight after you have clocked yourself out. Nobody should be avaible for work 24/7 – the cost is greater than the pay in the long run.

  2. Re-direct the subject that is exhausting
    When you haven’t seen someone for a long time or meet a new person replace question of “What do you do for living” with “What do you do for fun?” If you were already asked about your work you can always try to re-direct the conversation. For example: “I rather not talk about work when not working. But I’d love to hear what do you do for fun!”

  3. Prioritize attending to an event that offers you something new
    An activity or event on somewhere you don’t usually go to is a great way to renew your thoughts. It’s about re-programming yourself and remembering that you are more than a person that works. Check the event calendars and advertisement for events. Choose the kind of that interests you – a stand up evening, a book club.. Your choice! It’s like taking yourself on a date.

  4. Build and develop relationships outside of work
    “Work buddies” are not that likely to stick around if you end up working somewhere else. Call you family members or friends to catch up? Most people are happy to be remembered and gladly have a talk. Make plans with people outside of work. If you haven’t got many active friends think of what kind of activities you enjoy and try to take part on communities leaning towards those things.

Sleeping is really important for your health and should never be overlooked. And aim for a good sleep! If you have difficulties with sleeping contact a doctor for medical help. Poor sleep keeps a person stressed.