No-one is immune
from an invisible killer which stalks silently through every
office, factory floor and work-place. It doesn’t
discriminate against age, sex, race or occupation and its
grip tightens as the social and economic pressures of 21st
century life increase.
An epidemic of
stress-related illnesses has driven unprecedented numbers of
the population to bail out of the workplace. Countless
others resort to antidepressants to help them face the day.
So, just what is going on in this age of unparalleled
prosperity and comfort?
Heart disease, stroke,
hypertension, irritable bowel syndrome, migraines, crohn’s
disease, psoriasis, allergies, insomnia, depression, anxiety
and even cancer can all be triggered or aggravated by
stress. It compromises the immune system and symptoms like
exhaustion, muscular tension and an increased heart rate all
put tremendous pressure on the body. Health is further
undermined by mood swings, poor eating habits, lack of
exercise and an inability to concentrate, which all take
their toll on emotional wellbeing.
Most employers now
recognise the commercial benefits of keeping employees happy
and legislation goes some of the way towards offering
protection from stress factors like overwork and poor
working conditions. But corporate culture often demands long
hours and there is no such thing as a job for life any more.
Add to that our ‘buy now pay later’ credit-funded lifestyle
and you have a recipe for stress overload.
On the one hand, stress
gives us our drive and motivation to get out there and
achieve our potential but too much of it has the opposite
effect. Once there is a gap between our ability to cope with
stress and the amount of pressure we are under, problems
appear overwhelming, confidence shatters and performance
goes into meltdown. Job security is compromised,
relationships suffer and habits can easily turn into
addictions.
Ask around among friends
and colleagues and you will find this grim scenario is all
too commonplace. Being in a job which doesn’t make the best
use of your skills, working for a company which doesn’t
provide adequate training and being given too much
responsibility causes stress (too little causes boredom
which is also stressful). And so do ‘toxic’ companies where
bullies thrive and staff are motivated by fear. It only
takes one or two insecure, unsupervised personnel in key
positions to make the working day an absolute misery for
their colleagues.
Throw into the mix poor
internal communication and exclusion from relevant
decision-making and a business could be severely compromised
by de-motivated under-performers missing targets. And, of
course, the most talented will get out quick, adding the
expense of high staff recruitment costs to the burden of
failing productivity.
So whether you’re a
credit-crunched boss or debt-laden worker, workplace stress
is unremitting torture, with days spent in frustration and
despair often followed by broken nights of sleepless worry.
I see many examples of this in my hypnotherapy clinic at
Helios in Tunbridge Wells, people with different jobs,
different issues and experiences seeking solutions to their
distress. They share the same sense of hopelessness in many
guises, varying from nail-biting or teeth-grinding to the
heart-pounding terror of panic attacks or gut-wrenching
urgency of IBS.
Their recovery can be
rapid with the use of NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) and
CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) strategies and
techniques. These can take the form of coaching in methods
of dealing with a difficult manager, honing communication
skills to deflect bullying behaviour, setting goals for
career development, building confidence and encouraging
assertive behaviour. All these changes become embedded in a
positive mind-set with the support of hypnosis.
My final job before
becoming a hypnotherapist was at a big publishing firm. I
was bullied by a mediocre middle-manager in a dead-end job
whose career had peaked many years before. He took great
pleasure in humiliating and undermining me at every turn. I
didn’t deserve this treatment and did nothing to invite it.
I carried out my duties to the best of my ability but it
made no difference.
He was vile to me and if I
bumped into him tomorrow I would shake his hand. This nasty
piece of work gave me the drive and impetus to take the
plunge into a completely different career, to take a risk
with no guarantee of success. I may never have done so if
I’d been in a nice cushy number with supportive colleagues.
Now, I help people learn
to avoid becoming victims, achieve the best they can and
create the right circumstances for success. Sometimes, I’ll
coach them in job-seeking skills so they can escape from
situations which give them little reward and no respect.
They then have the opportunity to find their ideal career,
just as I have. My work is inspiring, fascinating,
challenging and stimulating. The job satisfaction is immense
when I am able to help those who come to me achieve positive
changes. My nemesis is still a mediocre middle-manager in a
dead-end job.
Be
confident, more relaxed and in control. Be successful in
love, work and so much more! 
