KNOW THE SIGNS

 Feeling a bit anxious in stressful or unfamiliar situations is normal. Feeling so anxious it interferes with everyday life, or triggers panic, is not. You may have feelings of dread or persistent anxiety. You may overthink everything or find that you’re spending time and energy working out how to avoid anxiety-inducing situations. Anxiety takes its toll on your body, too. Physical symptoms such as a racing heart, dry mouth, tense muscles, dizziness, difficulty breathing, sweating, shaking, feeling sick or a full-blown panic attack can all be triggered by anxiety.

 Depression is incredibly common.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), it is now the leading cause of disability worldwide, but because it can develop gradually, many people don’t recognise the signs. Feeling persistently down or sad, having a lack of interest and pleasure in things you normally enjoy, being low on energy, having sleep problems and poor appetite (or comfort eating), loss of libido, aches and pains and memory problems should all ring alarm bells.

 Everyone gets stressed at times but if you feel constantly anxious, irritable and worried, have problems sleeping, focusing and concentrating or you develop headaches, muscle tension or digestive problems, it means that positive pressure has tipped over into overwhelming stress. The WHO now recognises workplace ‘burnout’ as a medical condition. Take stress seriously. A recent study of nearly 7,000 UK workers in their mid-40s found that those who felt stressed or overworked were more likely to develop mental health problems. By the age of 50, those who had reported high levels of job stress were more than twice as likely to be diagnosed with mental health problems as those reporting low stress.