Combat work anxiety like a pro

By Divya Bhonsale | First Published Feb 7, 2022, 7:00 AM IST

Work anxiety can have a huge impact on one and their career. People who feel anxious at their workplace might even make career decisions based on it. Counselling psychologist Nivedita RS Panwar suggests ways to tackle anxiety at work.

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Work anxiety can drastically affect our quality of life by leaving us worried and anxious most of the time. Anxiety can affect performance at work, quality, relationships with colleagues and supervisors, and also with family members.

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Indore-based counselling psychologist Nivedita RS Panwar highlights the problem related to work anxiety, its triggers and also ways to tackle it. While speaking with this reporter, Panwar said, “Conflict at a workplace evokes many different reactions. Lack of effective communication at the job can cause quite a bit of anxiety.”

She said that the level of stress at work can feel more contagious when a lot of people in the office appear to be affected by anxiety. “People begin to avoid more work; the quality of work goes down and co-workers begin to gossip rather than work together to solve problems. People stop talking to one another and avoid any type of gatherings. The biggest cause of work-related stress is attributed to work deadlines and dealing with difficult people,” she added.

“In a state of anxiety our brain is affected by the stress hormone 'Cortisol' which can lead to a decreased ability to regulate continuous negative emotions, excessive negative thinking and difficulty in relaxing,” said Panwar.

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Look out for these symptoms to know if your work is making you anxious:
• Avoiding friends and family
• Constantly worrying and crying
• Feeling irritable, tired, and tensed
• Having trouble sleeping
• Difficulty in remembering things or lack of concentration or difficulty in remembering things
• Losing interest in work

Ask these questions to yourself:
• Do you hide from your boss?
• Do you gossip with your co-workers?
• Do you wait to speak up until you are full of anger or bursting into tears?

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Follow these strategies that will help you overcome anxiety:

1. Make sure to take out time for yourself.
2. Find things that make you laugh and feel happy.
3. Take lunch breaks and share a meal with others outside of your work.
4. Focus on life outside work such as family, friends and hobbies.
5. Try to reflect on good things in your job and life.
6. Practice mindfulness exercises and yoga.
7. Break your task into small tasks and finish them one by one.
8. Set honest deadlines.
9. Ask a trusted co-worker for help if needed.
10. Practice time management.
11. Plan and prepare in advance.
12. Be more realistic and face the challenges.