New survey results show local employees are experiencing rising stress levels, leading them to lose sleep over their jobs and report a rise in anxiety.
The Nutra-Life Organic Magnesium survey found 40 percent of employees are more stressed than this time last year and 70 percent expect their anxiety to be the same or worse in another year’s time.
Results show that the main source of stress affecting 84 percent of workers is money-related, followed by anxiety over jobs and work-life balance.
The survey of over 1200 employees aged 18-64 shows women are more likely to admit being stressed whilst 18 to 24 year olds believe they will experience greater stress levels in the future.
Naturopath Lisa Guy said that when faced with stress, the body goes into fight or flight mode and the by-products of stress compound.
“Your body starts pumping out adrenalin which at first helps provide you with energy and makes you feel more alert. But when stress is ongoing, the coping capacity of the biological systems designed to help you deal with the pressure become impaired and a negative spiral ensues.”
Sleep deprivation was the most common by-product of stress reported, with 77 percent of respondents saying they’re having trouble sleeping because of stress, followed by lack of energy and trouble concentrating.
Guy advocates a holistic approach to dealing with stress, saying diet, exercise and identifying causes of stress are all important factors.
“Massive workloads and bullying are major sources of work stress. Look at whether you are managing your time effectively, find out if there are other resources that could be supporting you and in the event of bullying, make sure you speak with your co-workers or supervisors, your HR department or union.”
