The Warning Signs That Your Job Is Affecting Your Health
It’s easy to get so caught up in our work that we neglect some warning signs. We work so hard every day, and we devote as much time to our careers as possible. This happens to all sorts of people, but it’s particularly problematic for business owners. A lot of the time, you neglect signs that perhaps you’re letting your job get ahead of your personal life. As such, lots of relationships have broken down over work-related problems.
It’s easy to get so caught up in our work that we neglect some warning signs. We work so hard every day, and we devote as much time to our careers as possible. This happens to all sorts of people, but it’s particularly problematic for business owners. A lot of the time, you neglect signs that perhaps you’re letting your job get ahead of your personal life. As such, lots of relationships have broken down over work-related problems.
As well as this, there are also issues relating to your health. To be specific; your job is harming your health in multiple ways! If you’re not careful, you will make things worse and worse until you reach a terrible situation. So, you must be aware of any warning signs that your job is damaging your health and wellbeing.
Keeping that in mind, here are a few signs you should be looking out for:
You’re stressed all the time
No matter what job you have, you could end up very stressed. Working is mentally and physically demanding, so stress in the workplace is outrageously common. Some people refer to stress as the silent killer because it can cause so many health problems. Primarily, it wreaks havoc on your mental health. Stress leads to anxiety, which can lead to depression, which can put you down a dark path. Not only that, but it can also cause high blood pressure, which results in issues with your cardiovascular health as well.
So, if you feel stressed every single day, then it’s a sign something has to change. You’ll know if it’s work related because you feel better on weekends or when you’re on holiday. The best course of action is to try and de-stress by trying meditation and other stress relieving techniques.
You don’t get enough sleep
Contrary to what some people say, sleep is most definitely not for the weak. If you don’t get enough sleep, then your body won’t function as properly as it needs to. You don’t recover as well as you should, you don’t get a natural detox, and you wake up feeling groggy and tired all the time. Needless to say, this is so bad for your health & wellbeing! Your job might force you to wake up early or work deep into the night. Or, you might have so much on your mind that you struggle to sleep. Either way, you’re not getting enough shut-eye.
Don’t sacrifice sleep for your career. Try your best to get at least 8 hours per night – even if this means going to bed super early. It’s a good idea to practice relaxation methods before you sleep as well. This can help clear your mind of any negative work-related thoughts, making it easier to drift off the sleep. There are also apps like Calm that are proven to help with sleep as well!
Your back, neck, and shoulders are sore
Are your days plagued with aches and pains all over your body? In truth, you could experience all sorts of soreness as the result of your work. If you’re in a manual labour job, then you could well experience lots of different physical injuries that plague your health. But, I’m talking about your back, neck and shoulders because they’re common problem areas for a lot of the working population. It’s all to do with sitting at a desk and using computers all day long. A lot of us do this every day, particularly if you’re in the freelance business and spend your time working on projects or emailing clients. Before you know it, you’ve spent a good 8/9 hours sitting down.
When you spend all this time sitting at a desk, you ruin your posture. It makes your shoulders round forwards, which leads to a curve in the middle of your back. As a result, you get terrible achy pains between your shoulder blades and at the front of your shoulders. Along with this, your neck can jut forward, putting increased pressure on the muscles and making your neck very sore. Your lower back also suffers as it becomes increasingly arched and your hips get really tight from sitting. Tight hips lead to a sore back as your hip flexor muscles attach to the lower part of your spine and pull it out of alignment.
I know, there’s a lot to take in here! But, the overview is that your body is all out of position, and your posture is messed up. As such, you get chronic pain and inflammation. So, work on avoiding these problems by sitting less and improving your posture. Here’s a video with some exercises you can do to prevent this soreness:
You’re putting on weight
Your job can dictate what you eat, which may lead to excessive weight gain. If you find that you’re putting on weight, then it could easily be down to your work habits. Mainly, you start looking for quick ways to eat, rather than healthy ones. This might mean a few cheeky takeaways for dinner as you’re tired from a long day at work and want to eat right away. Or, you buy unhealthy food for lunch because it’s quick to eat, so you don’t waste your whole break eating food.
It’s very easy to slip into bad eating habits that cause you to consume far too many calories. The easy way around this is to try and prepare your food in advance. Spend time cooking on the weekends, and you can have meals lined up for the week ahead. Now, you have nutritious fast food.
Don’t let your job harm your health. As you work your way down this list, you may be stunned at how many of the warning signs you recognise in yourself. Be aware of them, and you can take action. The sooner you take action, the easier it is to stem the tide and keep yourself healthy. The worst thing you can do is ignore these signs. If you do, then you could make yourself incredibly unhealthy and reach a point where it becomes a severe issue.