Did you know that more than 60% of working people cite their job or work as a factor that causes the most stress for them? If you’re one of them, know that a certain amount of work related stress is normal, however it’s also important to learn how to cope with it. Otherwise it can develop into anxiety disorders, depression, or even physical ailments such as headaches, hypertension and gastrointestinal problems. Chronic stress can lead to even more severe mental and physical illnesses, if ignored.
Some of the reasons that can create work stress are unreasonable deadlines, uncomfortable work environment, being overworked, lack of management support, job requirements being different than skillset, and lack of morale or motivation. If you can relate to any of these stressors, continue reading. We’ll talk about using mindfulness as a way to reduce stress.
What is Mindfulness
Mindfulness is the practice of placing your awareness on the present moment, rather than letting the mind focus on anxiety inducing thoughts and worries. By gradually training our minds to focus on the present moment, we can create new neural pathways in our brain.
A regular practice of mindfulness can help defend against overthinking, negative attitude, burnout, and other stress causing factors. Over time, mindfulness practices can help enhance productivity, improve problem solving capacity, foster creativity, boost your immune system and increase energy.
4 Mindfulness Practices to Try
1. Learning to be Present
Trying to become aware of the present moment is central to practicing mindfulness. When you notice that your mind is getting overworked, you can take a pause and check in with your surroundings. You can do this by becoming aware of where you are, what you see and hear around you, what you are feeling. By simply noticing the present moment, your mind shifts away from the all-engrossing thoughts and worries to just the one moment right in front of you.
2. Learning to Uni-task
Most of our jobs these days seem to demand multitasking. It’s not uncommon for someone to have three different devices on and active, alerting you to someone’s request to do something all the time. Our time is therefore splintered into jumping from one seemingly urgent task to another, without truly focusing on any of them. An effective mindfulness practice is to try to do one thing at a time. Shut off/out everything outside of the one task you’re focusing on, and you’ll notice your mind becoming centered and calmer.
3. Learning to Eat
Of course we all learn to eat the moment we’re born, but those of us who work seem to eat at our desks, while working. That’s not really eating – it’s working. For one thing, it’s important to take regular breaks from work. And lunchtime is a good time to practice mindfulness by eating when you eat. Notice the taste, the texture, what the food makes you feel while you eat. The practice of eating mindfully can also help reduce overeating and stress eating.
4. Learning to Feel
Have you ever noticed that just like thoughts, our feelings are always on? We’re constantly feeling something, whether we consider it feeling or not. In fact, almost all of our conscious awareness is feeling, not thinking, and we are largely unaware of this. A mindfulness practice allows you to distinguish feelings from thoughts and then to simply notice them, sit with them if you must, and most importantly, to let them pass. Ignoring them can lead to repressed feelings, causing stress. Instead, learn to notice them and release them. Horizon Counseling Services offers professional therapy sessions designed to help individuals and couples improve their mental health and relationships.
