Sometimes the problem is at home – a sick child or parent, financial troubles, marital strife.
Sometimes it’s the workplace: a tough environment, overwhelming demands, conflict with a colleague or boss.
Much of the time, it’s trying to balance it all.
The stress builds up, and it gets to people. They walk around anxious and unhappy, and feeling that way makes things all the worse. They become less productive, less focused on their jobs, more difficult to work with.
It has been well documented, stress actually makes people sick. It can weaken the immune system, raise blood pressure, aggravate chronic problems such as asthma, upset the digestive system.
A study published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine found health care expenditures are 50 percent greater for workers who report high levels of stress. And when health insurers do risk assessments at workplaces, stress often comes up as a top risk factor.
Lisa Edenbaum, national director of wellness business marketing for UnitedHealthcare, said she would rate it No. 4, after lack of physical activity, poor nutrition and being overweight.
Stress is widely perceived as a growing problem in American workplaces, as they become more fast-paced and demanding and promise ever-less job security.
A 2004 survey by the Families and Work Institute found one in three American employees reported being chronically overworked, while 54 percent had felt overwhelmed at work at some time in the past month.
Several other surveys over the last decade also have shown stress is a major issue for workers: Northwestern National Life found 40 percent of workers reported their jobs were “very or extremely stressful,” and a 1999 study called “Ask the Children” found that, when asked their one wish to improve how their parents’ work affected their lives, most children wished their mothers and fathers were less stressed and less tired.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has declared that job stress “poses a threat to the health of workers,” and since 1996, it has sponsored a multidisciplinary team from industry, labor and academia to study how the “organization of work” can create or reduce stress. With the American Psychological Association, the agency has sponsored six conferences so far on this topic; a seventh one is scheduled for this March.
A widely cited NIOSH publication, “STRESS … At Work,” notes that job stress involves two major factors: work conditions, and the workers themselves. The agency has taken the stance that working conditions play a primary role.
Specifically, NIOSH has identified six areas of concern:
• The design of tasks: heavy workloads, infrequent breaks, long hours, and hectic but meaningless-seeming work.
• Management style: poor communication, lack of family-friendly policies, and lack of participation by workers in decisions that affect them.
• Interpersonal relationships: poor social environments or lack of support from co-workers.
• Work roles: conflicting or uncertain job expectations, too many responsibilities.
• Career concerns: job insecurity and lack of opportunities to grow and advance.
• Environmental conditions: crowding, noise, poor air quality, ergonomic problems.
At the same time, NIOSH has said, a good work-life balance, a support network of friends and co-workers, and a relaxed and positive outlook can help people overcome work stress.
The ideal approach for an employer trying to address job stress, the agency says, is to work on both fronts at once: help employees better manage stress by teaching them coping skills and providing supports such as an employee assistance program, but also – most important – correct the problems that create stress at work.
Yet as employers focus more and more on wellness, they are increasingly offering stress-management seminars, yoga classes and other such programs. But almost all focus on how individuals can better cope.
Heather Provino, president of Provant Health Solutions, an East Greenwich-based consultancy that helps companies set up comprehensive wellness programs or sponsor individual wellness events, said stress is “one of the top five risk factors for most employer groups,” so it’s often addressed in wellness initiatives.
But it’s treated in the same way as nutrition, exercise, weight loss, heart health, etc. – as something you learn to deal with more effectively as a person.
“I think a majority of the stress is life stress,” Provino said. “Anything from financial issues to child care to elder care is going to create more of an issue … Yes, there are some stressful industries, some stressful cultures, but typically it’s everything else that’s compounding.”
What often overwhelms workers is “trying to take care of everything else while holding down a full-time job,” Provino added. “We find that if we can even bring financial planners in, it is a stress reliever,” because money woes are such a stressor for workers.
Every company is different, Provino said, so the programming has to be tailored to the people and workplace involved. And one-time events won’t make as big an impact as long-term efforts, because people need multiple exposures to these concepts to really embrace them.
Employee assistance programs – which provide 24/7, confidential help for workers going through a crisis – should also be promoted, Provino said, because they are a big help. And most health insurers offer plenty of stress management programming, she noted.
UnitedHealthcare’s Edenbaum remarked that employers “have very little money to spend” on these programs, but insurers can help them find “cost-neutral solutions that will make a big impact.” The obvious ones are educational events and Web-based materials, many of which are free to fully insured United members. But health plans can also offer advice.
For example, Edenbaum said, letting workers listen to music (on headphones, not disrupting the workplace) can make a big help. “Over 64 percent of Americans say they use music to reduce stress,” she noted.
Allowing – even mandating – breaks can also increase productivity, Edenbaum said. Just walking around the building for a few minutes, she noted, will get the blood flowing again, clear people’s heads for a bit and even give their eyes a rest. And correcting ergonomic problems is key, she said.
One of the most popular strategies being embraced by workplaces, Edenbaum said, is offering on-site massages – which United itself does for its employees.
“There are high satisfaction rates with that, it’s very relaxing, and five to 10 minutes with the massage therapists can really regenerate those employees,” she said.
Yoga at work during lunchtime or directly after work hours is also a good idea, Edenbaum said, and nutrition initiatives can also reduce stress – too much caffeine or candy can aggravate stress.
Don’t forget the work environment, though, Edenbaum said. Good air quality and natural light make for better workplaces, she noted. And being able to personalize one’s work environment, to the extent the job allows it, can be very motivating.
Edenbaum’s own office, in Warwick, is decorated with photos of some of her proudest moments on the job, and with family photos. When she’s feeling stressed out, she said, she takes a moment to look at them.
“I know what motivates me,” she said. “I can say, ‘I’m working for my family.’ ” •
