stressful job takes it toll !

[druv]

hi all, have been working like crazy for the last few months, keeeping deadlines and working round the clock.. there has been practically no break for me and now the stress is showing on my health.. Cant take it anymore .. feel extremey fatigued and drained.. what should i do..

[arkain101]

I work at an extremely stressful enviorment as a diamond driller worker. I often end up in camp for 42 days. I work 12-14hours per day every single day of the week for the 6 or more weeks in camp. There is alot of stress. Flying hundreds of thousands of dollars of equiptment by helicopter, and it is my job to hook things up properly and land them safely in posistion and direct the pilot. Also, unravel and ravel up thousands of metres of waterline down embankments with enough blackflies around you that you lose your bearings at times. Plus the actual drilling where you lift and twist heavy rods and things for hours on end with grease and slime and water spraying on you at times or cooking in the hot sun, meanwhile paying attention to the machinery and water pressures and depth markings and making sure all the core extraction is perfectly placed in the right order and not lost.

The thing that I realized that keeps us from stressing right out is the intense physical work also involved. If you have alot going on in your mind it is good to be physical and let it out. I find myself having stressful points throughout the day but by the time the day is done and I fly to the camp and eat. I am relaxed but exhausted and ready for sleep.

So its good to meet your mental activity with physical activity. Much of llife is about balance. But everyone does need breaks from harsh routine to remind you that you are human again. Thats my 2 cents bud. good luck.. take the docs advice too.

[j_p]

Stop all drugs, except for coffee within four hours of waking up [if you try to give up caffiene now, you will have a psychotic break down].

 

Keep to some regular sleep pattern; either go to bed or get up at the same time every day. Consistency is more important than the amount of sleep.

 

Consistent daily exercise; if you are really exhausted, you can probably do this right before going to bed.

 

Stretch out your muscles when you go to bed and before you get up.

 

Maintain personal hygiene; never think you are too busy to take five minutes for a shower.

 

When you have trouble falling asleep, read paperback editions of late 19th, early 20th century Russian novelists; the combination of small print and complex structure is overwhelming.

[Green]

What i would suggest is 5 minutes of meditation in the morning and evening!

It is a boon to mankind I am tellin ya.

[papia]

hi all,

 

hi green, good info.

 

Have tried captol too.. this is an excellent destress agent and relies anxiety too.Treatment of Captol should not be stopped abruptly. The dosage should be gradually reduced. The heartbeat rate should always be checked before raising the dosage of the drug. The dosage should not be increased if your heart beats 50-55 / minute. These tablets should be swallowed as a whole with liquid to avoid occurrence of high peak concentrations in the plasma.

 

of course yoga, exercising and meditation are naturally proven ways of treating fatigue and stress.

[Glider]

hi all, have been working like crazy for the last few months, keeeping deadlines and working round the clock.. there has been practically no break for me and now the stress is showing on my health.. Cant take it anymore .. feel extremey fatigued and drained.. what should i do..

Stop doing it. Take a break. Try not to think "But I can't, there's still so much to do". Find a way. If you collapse (and you will in time), then nothing will get done.

 

There are a number of different things you could do, depending on your precise situation. For example, you could delegate more, if you are in a position to do so. You could be more selective in your prioritisation, again, if you are in a position to do so.

 

There are two things you should do soon. First, it is important for your state of mind that you find a way to take back at least the perception of control. You could do this by making a conscious desicion to change things, and then acting on it (the changes don't have to be big, but just making them will demonstrate to you that you have the power to affect things and this will help). Second, you need to reduce the total demand on your resources, at least for a while. Often, both these targets can be achieved through the same action. Decide to take a short vacation, and then do it. Decide to take a weekend away somethere, and then do it. Decide to reduce your load a little, and then do it.

 

If things get too bad, you should approach your employer. Employers have a duty of care to their empoyees, and whilst it is reasonable for them to expect people to work hard, they are not entitled to expect people to drive themselves to breaking point.

[BobbyJoeCool]

My crew (slightly different situation) has found out that by talking to me (or one of the other supervisors) that dispite the slave-driver nature that we typically show on the floor (where stuff gets done), that when confronted in the office, or if taken aside to discuss a problem, the management works REALLY hard to try to accomidate whatever special needs that particular crew memeber needs. From needing a day off to go to a funeral, to needing a vacation because of stress or something (work related or not).

 

Talk to your boss (it goes over better if you do this on your time and not the companies). Usually, they will try to help you find a way to make it so your job isn't so stressful and isn't driving you to the point of breaking.

 

Otherwise, Glider is right. As the supervisor of many people, and it felt like I was losing control, the best thing I did for myself was take it back. I was never really losing control, I just had a couple of insuborninates, and when I figured that out, and felt like I had control back, it wasn't so hard anymore. Also, delegation is a key. However, it really does depend on your situation.