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Stress Relief Ideas for Work

Too much stress for you is just plain bad… everyone agrees. Even employers and industries agree that stress is the leading cause for the accidents in the workplace. And you know what? Stress is ALSO the leading cause of accidents at home too!!

And the simple reason for this is that too much stress just overwhelms your brain and short circuits the thinking process. So what was reasonable and simple to understand about safety… can become more tenuous for your brain to grip and think things through.

I noticed that the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health or for those who prefer simple acronyms… NIOSH, found:

Seventy-five percent of the everyday workers think stress is much, much more now then the previous generation of workers.
Almost forty percent of the working folks describe their jobs are extremely stressful.
About twenty-six percent of these folks already have job burnout which is generally caused by too much stress.
And twenty-five percent of the workers consider the job as the biggest stressor in their lives.

Just wow! I really never realized how much impact stress has on our daily lives and I bet you didn’t before reading this article.

So how can you “protect” yourself from stress… especially in the workplace when you can’t really avoid the causes for stress? This is why I decided to write a post about some stress relief Ideas for work…

Well, my research revealed some stress advice and tips that you can use when you start to feel that dreaded building up of stress in your mind and body:

First of all, slow things down… and double check everything that you do to prevent errors. Because like I said earlier, if you are really stressed out… chances are your mind will not be thinking very clearly… and this is the time to force yourself to make sure you do NOT make a mistake that can cause harm to yourself or other workers.
Take a moment to reread the safety manuals or Standard Operating Procedures so that you can be more certain about the steps to take to do the job. Even though you probably already know them… when you are stressed out… your mind may “forget” and a good way to reeducate your mind to prevent distractions… which can lead to accidents.
Be sure to ask for help if you feel the task you are doing is too much for you. It is much better idea to ask for help now before you ever reach a point of no return and someone get hurt.
You could also ask a fellow worker or a colleague to double check the process to make sure everything is being done right and most of all, safety.
It goes without explanation that you probably shouldn’t be learning new tasks or operate new equipment when you are very stressed. It is just common sense because when stress is bothering you… your mind won’t retain new information very well.
Be sure to take your breaks or make the time to take a break every once in a while to practice some breathing or do some quick exercises to help yourself relax. You see, when you relax, your mind gets some important time to step down from the high alert status. Then you can try going back to resume the task with a more alert mind.

The key thing to remember is that stress in the workplace can be very dangerous if you try to “tough it out” or prove your mettle. It doesn’t work out well in the real world because you are putting yourself and others at risk for accidents.

So learn to relax and give yourself the gift of living,

Kate