Did you know that the UK has one of the most dissatisfied workforces in Europe? According to one report, a staggering 90% of workers have minimal enthusiasm for their jobs.
While it might provide a paycheck, employment can bring a whole host of issues that can impact your overall physical and mental well-being, sometimes in an obvious way, sometimes more subtly. Even people who generally like their work can find that everything that comes along with their jobs — such as staring at screens or a long commute — can impact their happiness levels.
The best way to combat the risk of your job impacting your well-being is to be aware of the dangers. In this post, we’ll run through a few key ways your work can impact your physical and mental health, and offer advice on how to avoid those issues.
High Stress
A little bit of stress is fine, or even recommended. People tend to work better when they have slightly raised cortisol levels. However, in general, it’s best to be wary of stress. High stress levels not only make it more difficult to enjoy life, but they can also have both short- and long-term physical implications, such as high blood pressure and a weakened immune system.
Workers with demanding jobs should take additional measures to keep their stress levels in check. Working out, doing yoga, and practicing meditation or breathwork have all been scientifically proven to lower stress levels.
Physical Injuries
We’ve come a long way since the extremely dangerous working conditions of the early industrial revolution, but that doesn’t mean that the issue of workplace safety has been solved for good. It’s still a major concern, with some 600,000 UK workers experiencing injuries each year.
Work-related injuries are a leading cause of back injury compensation claims, while even people who work at desks are at risk for repetitive strain injuries and musculoskeletal issues relating to poor posture. Your workplace should have sufficient safety measures in place, but it’s also important to understand how you can impact your workplace safety, too. Taking the time to learn correct posture while at a computer can help prevent many aches and pains.
Toxic Workplaces
It’s not just the work you do that counts, but the environment in which you do it — and to be more precise, who you work alongside. Toxic workplaces can be draining at best, outright damaging to one’s mental well-being at worst. Even if you’re a direct recipient of a toxic work environment, it’ll still likely affect your mental well-being. Given how much time we spend at work, it’s inevitable that the energy of the place has an impact. While there are ways to mitigate the effects of working in a toxic workplace, most people eventually discover that it’s simply easier to find a new job.
A job can be just a paycheck, but sometimes, it’s important to assess what impact it’s having on your overall well-being. If you’re no longer happy, or it’s causing physical pain, then it’ll be time to reconsider.
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