STRESS AWARENESS MONTH

How stress can impact your life:

Did you know April is Stress Awareness Month? The past two years have been some of the most stressful any of us have had in our lifetime. Therefore, it is completely normal and expected if you are feeling overwhelmed. Especially as it feels that the world is going back to a new normal. We wanted to give you the knowledge you need regarding stress so that you can manage any you face to maintain your mental and physical health.

What is stress:

Everyone can experience stress. Stress is an individual’s response to change in a circumstance or threatening situation. It can be viewed as a personal reaction to an external or internal stimuli. However, when it is affecting your life, health, and wellbeing, it is important to tackle it as soon as possible.

Stress can impact how you feel physically, mentally, and how you behave but it’s not always easy to recognise when stress is the reason you are feeling or acting differently. When you are stressed, you may experience many different feelings, including anxiety, irritability, or low self-esteem, which can lead you to become withdrawn, indecisive, or tearful.

Signs and Symptoms:

Physical signs and symptoms: Too much stress can lead to physical problems including lower immunity levels, digestive and intestinal difficulties i.e., irritable bowel syndrome, headaches, muscle tension, pain, nausea, indigestion, dizziness, fast breathing, palpitations, various body aches and pains. Long term effects are risk of strokes and heart attack.

Mental signs and symptoms: Stress can also impact your mental health. Feelings of constant worry or anxiety, feelings of being overwhelmed, difficulty concentrating, mood swings or changes in mood, irritability or having a short temper, difficulty relaxing, depression, low self-esteem, eating more or less than usual, changes in sleeping habits, using alcohol, tobacco, or illegal drugs to relax.

Tips to manage stress:

It’s not always possible to prevent stress as it often comes from an external source. However, there are certain steps you can take to prevent it from taking over your life and having negative impact on your mental and physical health. 

• Speaking with friends or family or health professional
• Take control by using time management techniques
• Breathing exercises
• Putting boundaries in place at work
• Setting aside time each day for yourself
• Ensuring a healthy sleep schedule
• Stress Awareness: understanding what stress is can help deal with the impact it has on your life 

How can the Doctors Clinic Group Help?

The Doctors Clinic Group offers many mental health supports and services for employees including:

• Same-day GP appointments – all GPs have mental health training
• Rapid referrals to our consultant psychiatrist and other specialists covered by all major PMI insurers
• Mental health wellbeing questionnaire for a company-wide benchmarking exercise
• Wellbeing workshops and webinars
• Mental health first aid training