How high stress jobs impact us and how to de-stress
It’s no secret that many people have multiple different areas of life that can cause stress but today I want to focus specifically on high stress jobs. Many, many people experience significant stress daily within their jobs. I know this was my experience for a long time so I wanted to speak to this and equip you with a strategy to be able to deal with these stressors in real time.
The cool thing about us humans is that we have the ability to process stress on the spot if we know how to. When you are able to stay connected to your environment: you’re aware of your sit bones on the chair, you can hear noise in the background, you’re able to orient, connect and be present in your environment, you’re going to be be more grounded and resilient to stress.
Alternatively, if you’re not connected to your environment and your body and all of your attention is placed on the phone call you’re on or meeting you’re in, well this is going to naturally be extra stress inducing because everything will be solely mental activity. When you’re caught in your head, the energy isn’t being distributed throughout your entire body because you are disconnected. You’re not feeling your sit bones in the chair, your feet on the floor, and you’re not aware of your environment.
So when you find yourself in a meeting or on a call or writing an email, I encourage you to practice these neuro-sensory exercises—move around a bit in your chair, or maybe even get up and walk around the room if you’re on a call. Bring your awareness to the contact between your body and the chair or the earth below your feet. Can you look around the room a bit or bring your awareness to the background noise outside of your office? Maybe bring your hands to the tops of your legs and feel your body, connect with your body. Bring your awareness to your breath. All of these little connection points are so subtle but they really help reconnect you back into your body and back into the environment.
When you are more connected, it will also impact the person you’re connecting with. You’re in a more grounded, resilient space and this energy will come through. Especially when you’re in a high stress situation. For example, putting out a fire with a client. Your ability to navigate and diffuse the situation will be greater.
I also want to add here that when you’re able to stay connected, this builds your capacity to handle stressors in real time. So instead of dumping into this cup of stress all day, imagine a glass of water that is just filling and filling and then is overflowing by the time you’re done work and having to deal with it when get home, just by staying more connected to your environment and your body, you’re actually building the capacity to move through these stressors as they come through.
Okay secondly, when you’re able to take a break, I want to encourage you to take an actual break and again get really present. Ideally get outside and get some fresh air and move your body. If you can’t get outside, I still encourage you to move your body or even just stretch. When we get hit with stressors, our physical body is often impacted. Maybe there’s tension building and when you’re able to move and reconnect with your body, your awareness of where this tension is happening or being stored increases and you can work to release it.
I would also invite you to ensure you are nourishing your body with really good food. I know that when stress hits, it’s extra tempting to indulge in more comforting foods that aren’t as nutrient dense but this is when it’s even more important to have a really nourishing meal. Staying hydrated is also key because when your system is under stress, your body may be producing a lot of adrenaline and cortisol so it’s important to stay hydrated so you can flush these hormones out of your body.
And then I highly encourage you to take another break between leaving work and going home. Or maybe this is something you do when you get home. But if you can put aside a little bit of time in between work and home life activities, even if it’s just 10 minutes, where you disengage from work and check in to see if there’s anything in your system that you need to process. Maybe you had a frustrating call with a client or your boss and you’re feeling a charged energy in your body. Maybe you’re feeling angry. I really want to encourage you to do something to release it. Maybe you need to spend some time in nature. Maybe you stomp your feet. Maybe you go for a run or a walk or lift something heavy. I find physical movement extremely helpful in this situations but do whatever feels true to you. You don’t have to overthink this as a strict form of ‘self care’—just whatever allows you to disengage from work and then process anything that you feel needs to be released. Maybe listening to a podcast or some music while you go for a brief walk would help you disengage. Maybe it’s followed by watching an episode of The Office for the 100th time while you cook dinner. I love incorporating comedy into my evening if I’ve had to release some anger or sadness.
It’s important not to ignore whatever emotions came up for you that day and it may have not always been possible for you to feel into them in the moment so it’s important that you feel into them as soon as you’re able to find some time and process what comes up. Tap into the emotions that you felt in the moment and allow the tears or rage or whatever comes up to come up and be released.
Okay so just to review. When we are experiencing stressful moments or situations in the workplace:
Bringing your awareness to your environment and to your body.
Making sure you’re taking intentional breaks, Even if it’s just for a few moments, to reset your system. Try to avoid scrolling on your phone or getting back to texts or emails during your break. Take this time to really take a break.
3. Ensuring you take a little bit of time between the end of your work day and your home time to do something to process your day.
Maybe you create some sort of ritual that you do everyday or maybe it looks different depending on your schedule. Some days you may have an hour of time to dedicate to this and other days maybe you only have 5 minutes. That’s okay. Whatever amount of time you have is great to just really intentionally disengage from work and allow yourself to feel into what you were maybe not able to feel into earlier in the day. And again, like I said earlier, all of these practices really start to help you build capacity to process stressors in real time and to avoid that overflowing cup at the end of the day.
So often you don’t even realize you are storing these stressors in your body until you start having trouble sleeping, or you have digestion issues, or you are clenching your jaw all the time. That’s why it’s so key to allow yourself to move through these each day. It really doesn’t need to take a lot of time and over time it becomes easier to consistently stay connected with your body and your environment. It’s like strengthening a muscle.
K xo