The recent work-related incident that led to the death of a 26-year-old Ernst and Young (EY) employee in Pune has prompted debates on how the pressures arising from work may cause adverse health effects. Unfortunately, this young chartered accountant died in a tragic incident after working for only four months in the company. Her death has led to social media outrage, with people expressing their worries about inadequate working conditions and the impact of toxic work culture on the health of the employees.
The girl’s mother wrote a letter to the Indian head of Ernst and Young blaming ‘workload, new environment and long working hours' for her daughter’s death. This heartbreaking incident shines a light on the broader question: has anyone ever found a way of measuring stress or is it deemed to be happening no matter how much we try?
Is It Possible to Quantify Workplace Stress?
People perceive stress as a subjective experience that can manifest in various ways among individuals. Something that might work out well for one person may make another person uncomfortable. Nevertheless, it is important to search for methods of measuring stress because it can cause complete paralysis.
To date, it is not possible to identify a special test that has the precision of quantifying stress. However, health professionals note that one should take into account the following: heart rate variability, EEG-brainwave analysis, and cortisol levels through blood samples. The methods help the person understand how their stress manifests in their body, but implementing them in practice proves to be challenging.
Signs of Stress Accumulation:
The body provides hints of stress before one can identify it or interpret it in other ways. Some common physical symptoms include:
Frequent headaches or migraines.
Conditions like hyperacidity or irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
Spasms, tenderness, or a few types of aches.
Interference with the person’s normal sleeping pattern, thus experiencing either difficulty in going to sleep, waking up often during the night, or even oversleeping.
Fatigue or tiredness, energy loss.
Adverse changes in appetite or significant changes in body weight.
Failure to recognize these signs may result in future devastating ailments, including heart disease and diabetes, among others.
Emotional and Mental Signs of Stress
Physical symptoms can be easy to identify as opposed to emotional signs which are usually harder to come by. Some emotional indicators of stress include:
Lack of motivation or a decrease in interest in one’s work and other hobbies.
These feelings, if left unnoticed, lead to other associated mental health disorders, such as depression, anxiety disorders, and burnout.
Signs of Behavioral Changes
Both the affected person and people close to them may notice most behavioral changes as the first indicators of stress. These changes may include:
Relapsing into undesirable means of dealing with stress, such as cigarette smoking, alcohol, or binge eating.
Such behaviors are usually indicators of stressed employees or a high level of stress in the workplace that requires intervention.
Stress and Its Long-term Effects on Health
Constant stress may have complex effects on an individual's physical and mental health. Long-term exposure to stress can lead to:
Heart disease
High blood pressure
To most, the warnings are rather unobvious; nevertheless, negative effects on the health of a person may stem from such experiences.
Coping with Workplace Stress
Stress in the workplace is most often not easy to handle, but it plays a critical role in ensuring that one’s health and well-being is in good condition. Here are some strategies to help cope with stress:
Set Clear Boundaries:
We can set up a clear distinction between working hours and off-working hours. Do not reply to work messages or take work home where one lives, if possible.
Prioritize Self-Care:
Take part in exercises that help you relax by exercising, meditating, or being around the people you love. Abstinence from some foods, physical activity, and proper rest are some of the basics of human Health.
Practice Time Management:
People should use work-related tools like to-do lists or task management applications that break down the work into small parts. It may also reduce feelings of being overwhelmed.
Learn to Say No:
In other words, if you are saturated with work, do not shy away from declining other requests, while being polite. Forcing yourself to pull all-nighters and take on as many tasks as possible will result in burnout.
Seek Support:
Stress should be discussed with friends and family, and even a professional may help to gain the necessary perspective on the subject.
Conclusion:
Job stress in today’s world is one of the largest problems.
The death of the young EY employee has made a focus on the problem of workplace stress topical. Stress is a concealed pressure that may lead to a myriad of horrible consequences, including the decay of an individual’s physical and psychological health. In the case of stress, although we may not quantify what, it becomes important that we manage it before it gets worse.
Work-life balance is essential for an individual, and the plans must remain socially sustainable over the long term. Finally, concentrate on the things that you can do; establish your limits, and ensure that creating a guardrail is important in managing stress in a wholesome manner.
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