Everybody experiences some tension or stress from time to time. For example tension for a deadline at work, for your wedding, to catch your train in time or to go to a party where you don’t know anybody. You can feel this tension in your head, your mind and your body. Your heart starts to race, you get a dry throat, a rushed feeling or butterflies in your stomach. This tension is understandable: your body prepares itself for a reaction. However, to understand what tension does to you, it is important to know what it is.

Experiencing stress

Tension or stress is a physical reaction to a possible threatening situation. Whether you experience something as stressful, depends on how you assess and deal with the situation. What’s stressful for you, can be the opposite for somebody else.

Origin and function of stress

When you are in a situation that is exciting, two systems are activated in the brain and body. The first system is being activated by the hormone adrenaline and activates your body so it is ready to react. This is known as the ‘fight- fright- or flight reaction’. This system is set in a way that it rather reacts too much than too little, because reacting 10 times too much, is evolutionary better than reacting once too little. Back in the days this could lead to dangerous situations with a predator. Due to the production of adrenaline, the second system is being activated: the adrenal glands (attached to your kidneys) produce cortisol, also known as the stress hormone. This hormone increases the blood sugar levels and the boosts the metabolism, so there is more energy available in the body to deal with stress and react optimally.

Healthy stress

Stress is merely a natural and healthy reaction of the body, because it makes sure you can react properly in an emergency situation. Nowadays this stress reaction does not only occur as a reaction to physical stress, but also to psychological stress. This stress usually lasts somewhat longer. Short term and healthy stress helps you to achieve things, because it makes you alert, concentrated and efficient. The body recovers quickly from this type of stress.

Unhealthy stress

When your body is unable to recover because a new stressful situation occurs, the amounts of adrenaline and cortisol remain at high levels. If the stress continues to persists, the hormone levels rise even more, which is unhealthy. When stress is persisting or severe, your body needs more time to recover from it. If you do not give your body this time, the stress accumulates. This can lead to several complaints. These can be physical complaints, like high blood pressure, tiredness, headache, neck- and back pains and insomnia, or psychological complaints like irritability, depressive feelings, problems with concentration or making decisions. Also unhealthy behavior can arise, like eating too much, smoking or drinking alcohol. Consider these signals as warnings: these are precursors of burnout!

So, is stress always bad?

The answer is… no, stress is not always unhealthy. A short term stress reaction of the body is very healthy, but when your body suffers from longer periods of stress, it can go wrong.

When should you intervene?

On this article you can find a list of signals that can indicate short term or long term stress. Do you recognise more of these mentioned complaints? Than it is possible that you experience too much chronic stress and it is important to intervene. Talk about it with your social network or your colleagues or employer, eat healthy and pay attention that you get enough sleep, exercise and rest. We advise you to look for activities that you find calming or receive energy from (something creative, walking, reading, etc.) and try doing this more often. You can find some more tips here. Adapting your lifestyle and paying attention to healthy and calming behavior is an important base for the “recovery” of your complaints. The NiceDay app can help you with finding this balance by planning activities, registering your feelings and setting notifications.

Do these signals or complaints last longer? Consult your general practitioner. He or she can evaluate the situation with you and will help you finding the right help.

“You can do anything, but not everything”

NiceDay actions

Try writing down your thoughts and feelings in the ‘Feeling Registration’ to get insight in what goes on in your mind and body. Plan a relaxing activity in your ‘Daily Planner’ and reflect on what doing this activity brought you.

”Have a notebook next to your bed, if you wake up at night with a mind full of thoughts, you can write it down immediately! Within no time you will be sleeping again.” I got this advice a while ago. And as a true thinker, this is exactly what I needed. We all have a lot to do: at work but also at home. Writing things down, in the broadest sense, helps tremendously. Thoughts, feelings, events but also ‘just’ tasks! Here are some benefits of a to-do list:

1. Peace of mind

   Making a list of what you have to do helps you to make peace in your mind. Because once you put it on paper, it is ‘out’ of your mind. This automatically means more rest and being able to focus on the task at hand. You will worry less about everything that still needs to be done, because you have the list as a ‘second’ brain.

2. Work more efficiently

   Besides that you will have more rest, it also ensures that you work more efficiently. You can go directly to task 2 when you are done with task 1. And if you get distracted in the meantime, because you received an email to which you had to respond immediately, you can go back to your list to see what you were doing!

3. Cross that task!

   You might recognize it; crossing a task feels good. It gives satisfaction. You can see how much you get done in a day! Tasks, big or small, fun or less fun, you do it all. You get insight into what you have already done, and that gives a boost to your confidence level!

4. More time and energy

   Rest, the boost of crossing tasks but also working more efficiently ensures that you have extra time and energy! You can use this for example to get ahead at work or to do nice things with your friends, family or maybe something for yourself. Because who works hard, should get rewarded, right?

NiceDay app

At the end of the day, write in your NiceDay-diary what you got done and how you feel about it. Also write some to do’s in your Daily Planner!

Lately you feel less and less happy. You often feel sad, you have little energy and you experience sleep. On top of that, you find yourself feeling constantly tense and you suffer from unexplained physical symptoms such as a headache, back pain or nausea. You decide to go to the family doctor, and he refers you to a psychologist. The psychologist advises you to take things a bit easier at work, and asks if you can come in every week during office hours. However, how are you going to talk about this at work? Will they take you seriously? You are not ‘really sick’, right?

Unfit for work

It is not so long ago that people with psychological problems were declared unfit for work almost automatically. There are still many prejudices about people with psychological complaints or disorders. It is being said that they do not handle their work well and are ill often. In this way, you are doubted as a person. It is therefore quite logical that many people still prefer not to talk about their mental complaints or illness at work.

Being open about your psychological complaints at work

However, it is best for your recovery to be open about your psychological problems at work. In this way, it can be taken into account for work-related issues. What can help with this is to first talk about it with a close colleague. This colleague will probably understand and support you. This lowers the threshold for telling your boss and possibly other colleagues.

What to tell your boss?

Before you tell your boss, there are a number of tips that you could take with you. Consider what you want to say exactly in advance. Also think about what you need within your job for your recovery. So make clear agreements about this and do not be persuaded to do something that you do not fully support. For example, do you want to work on fewer projects, fewer responsibilities, or focus more on what you really like? Who knows, maybe you can also work a little less if this helps you. Do not be afraid to discuss this with your boss, because your boss also wants you to recover quickly. This does only good to your productivity! Maybe your boss can also help you to tell other colleagues, for example during a meeting or in an e-mail. This promotes understanding in most cases. Who knows, maybe there are more colleagues with psychological problems and you can help each other.

What to do in case of a negative reaction?

Maybe you are worried that your boss will react negatively to your psychological symptoms. In this case try to empathize with his role: how would you react if you were in his position? Probably you would only be worried about your employee. Keep this in mind during the conversation. Yet it is possible that his first reaction is not as positive as you had hoped. Be aware that from an outside point of view, you can not see how you feel. Maybe your boss finds it hard to understand that you are have trouble. Try to explain the situation as well as possible. Give him enough time to respond. Probably he needs to get used to it for a while and will react differently later on.

Going to work with psychological complaints: is this possible?

Sometimes, working can also help a lot in recovering from psychological problems. Work offers structure, social contacts and appreciation, all points that can contribute enormously to psychological recovery and quality of life. From 2013, more and more is being done to get people with a mental illness to work and to keep them at work, and people talk about it more and more. Fortunately, psychological problems are understood and supported better and better on the work floor. Being open about your complaints can help tremendously in creating understanding within your boss and your colleagues. In this way, you can be more accountable if, for example, you would like to work less or would like to do less demanding assignments.

NiceDay app

Plan in your Daily Planner when you want to discuss your psychological complaints with your boss and / or colleague. Write down in your Diary what exactly you would like to discuss during this conversation. Do you find it difficult?

Of course, there are moments you have to put a hold on a task. However, this can very easily lead to a habit of procrastinating. ‘’I’ll do that tomorrow’’ or ‘’I’ll finish that some other time’’ are classic examples of procrastinating. Because let’s be honest, do you actually finish your task the next day?

What makes someone a procrastinator?

A procrastinator is someone who can’t resist the temptation to procrastinate. This often goes hand in hand with negative feelings such as insecurity, guilt and anxiety because the task has not been solved yet. Furthermore, a procrastinator rationalises his behaviour with excuses. This is a form of avoidance behaviour because you temporarily avoid confrontation with yourself. The negative feelings accompanied by procrastinating also have a negative impact on your self-esteem. This in turn, leads to less activity and more procrastinating.

Am I a procrastinator?

You could be. However, no one is born as a procrastinator. Procrastinating is a form of self taught behaviour that serves as a short term solution to relieve anxiety and fear when having to perform a confronting task. The positive side about this is that because the behaviour is learned, it can be unlearned. A negative point is that it’s not that simple to unlearn it. However, there are a few points that can help you with this.

Tip 1: What is causing the procrastinating?

Find the cause or reason. Being easily distracted or fatigue are possible reasons. Also, people who are perfectionistic have problems with procrastinating because they are afraid that they aren’t able to complete the task in the perfect way. It’s important to find the reasons behind your procrastinating because only this way you can solve the problem.

Tip 2: “Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.”

A quote by Mark Twain (famous writer) that is also used as a rule of thumb in many books on procrastination.‘Eat that frog’ shows you that beginning with the least liked task will help you do the tasks that you procrastinate the most. Did you know that the tasks you procrastinate the most, have most often the biggest (positive) influence on your life?

Tip 3: Stay motivated!

Stay motivated by rewarding yourself and by taking breaks when you are confronted with a tough or annoying task. Both big and small rewards can help you to stay motivated. Furthermore, it’s important to evaluate your thoughts to stay motivated. Negative or critical thoughts won’t help you to become or stay motivated. If you experience these thoughts, try to test them to reality. Most of these negative thoughts are exorbitant or just not true.

NiceDay: Try to write down the thoughts you have about yourself during the execution of a task. Do the same when you feel the urge to procrastinate a task. Reflect on these situations together with your professional to get a better understanding of your procrastination behaviour.

During summer time we are bombarded with sunny photos in far away places, photos of beautiful views and very pleasant moments. On social media you see how everyone fully enjoys the sunny weather and life, and you … are sitting in the office. Or you are working on your thesis. It seems that everyone can do what he or she wants while you are at work, school or other commitments.

Working in this heat is no fun, whether you are at home behind a fan or in a room with air conditioning. Or worse, in the kitchen or on the roof of a building. It is warm and extra tiring. After your obligations you are tired and you prefer to rest in your bed. But then, when do you have time to enjoy?

Nothing is what it seems

Try to remember that not everything on social media is what it seems. Yes, you might think ‘open door though’. Yet it is nice to hold this thought while you are scrolling through a timeline. The photos you see are perhaps ‘throwbacks’ or maybe they spend the previous days at school. Maybe they had a terrible day yesterday, so they wanted to get back in balance today. And, that is not what most people show!

Keep track of the fun moments you have

In addition, you may forget the nice moments that you have experienced relatively quickly when it seems that others experience the time of their lives ‘every day’. You may feel as if you are doing something wrong: how can he travel for a whole year? Why can she go to the beach every day? No matter how you turn it, everyone has to go to work at some moment (except special cases, of course). And there is nothing wrong with that: saving for that beautiful trip may only make it more beautiful! And that one day off that you spend on the beach is super nice. These are the things for you to hold dearly.

Memories are forever

But how do you hold them then? Memories of beautiful days, trips or moments will almost always be in your memories forever. Yet they are not always ‘top of mind’, so it can work well to discover for yourself how you can experience that happy feeling again. This can be nice when you are a bit overwhelmed by all the great photos and videos on social media. For example, you can make your own photo collection of your beautiful memories: physically, on your own Instagram or in a folder on your computer. Scroll through it!

Notes, quotes and short stories

Besides footage, it is also fun (and nice) to make short notes, quotes or stories of your good memories. For example, did you have to laugh because of some comments from someone you hold dear? Write it down! Did you feel unexpectedly well because of something that happened or something you did? Write it down! Do you see a nice quote somewhere that gives you a good feeling? You guessed it: write it down! In addition, it is good to keep a diary, so you see what both positively and negatively influenced your mood. That way you can handle all those great photos and videos on social media much better!

What are you doing to not get overwhelmed by all that ‘beautiful lives’ on social media?

NiceDay: use your NiceDay diary to keep track of what you have experienced and take a look at it when you can use a reminder of some good memories. Use your Daily Planner to schedule fun moments for yourself, that way you make time for it and you can enjoy the summer too!

I don’t feel happy sitting in front of the computer all day. In fact, it makes me feel tired, lazy and drowsy. After such a day you can sweep me up! Fortunately my work is very flexible which makes it possible to work from home. On those kind of  days I will go out for a run midday, or if that doesn’t work, I try to walk for half an hour. Exercise during your workday is important.

Here’s why!

1. Movement promotes creativity and enhances brain activity
   Are you scrolling through your social media apps, checking the news or answering your private mail  during the lunch break? Your brain is still processing information from your work, it’s much better to clear your mind. After a run you will feel better, think clearer, get creative and be productive.

2. Running and moving fights stress
   1 in 7 people suffer from burnout complaints. Shocking! By reducing stress you will prevent the chances of a burn-out. When you go for a run during your workday (cycling, playing football, walking, etc. is also efficient) you will use your body instead of your brains. Your body will produce hormones and substances such as endorphins and BDNF (brain derived neurotrophic factor), which will lower your stress level. In addition, you will wake up your body which gives you energy to work for the rest of the day.

3. Fresh air, the sun, vitamin D!
   This is especially helpful for people who don’t get out a lot, because they are in an office all day. Not getting outside can cause a vitamin D deficiency, since your body receives this vitamin via sunlight. Possible consequences of a deficiency are: feeling lethargic, low energy levels and even anxiety attacks. During the night the sun has already set, so it’s important to go for a run during the day.

4. Not to mention: your body
   Exercise promotes mental health, but obviously it’s also good for your body. You can lose weight, improve your fitness levels and / or get stronger. That’s why it’s advised to exercise 150 minutes moderately intensive (walking, running, cycling) each day.

5. Finally: it saves time
   When you work out during the day you will have time to do other things in the evening!

Are you active during the workday? Discuss this with your colleagues or employer. Look what you can do to create a healthier and fitter workplace.

Having a job is often accompanied by work stress. Anybody who has ever had a job can tell you that. Deadlines, high work pressure or other work related issues can cause higher stress levels.. Most people can handle a stressful workweek if this doesn’t happen too often. However, a lot of people suffer from chronic work stress these days. Chronic work stress often goes hand in hand with both mental and physical health problems. Chronic work stress is becoming quite a common problem in different work fields.

Do you experience work stress?

Work stress is quite easy to recognize. However, work stress is usually preceded by a few factors that elicit the problem. A high workload, unresolved conflicts at work or a lack of growing opportunities are quite common predecessors for chronic work stress.

Symptoms of chronic work stress are quite divers. Beginning symptoms are often seen in the form of returning headaches, stomachaches or sleeping problems. Most of the time, nothing is undertaken to counter the stress in this phase, which causes the symptoms to worsen. High blood pressure, a weakened immune system and insomnia are often the consequence. This symptoms are in turn related to health issues like depression, obesity and sleeping disorders. A burnout is usually the consequence.

Dealing with work stress

Chronic work stress is often something that can be prevented by dealing with it in the right way. First, it’s important to set clear boundaries for yourself in this digital age. A good example is setting the rule that you don’t work at home or outside office hours. This way you create a work free zone where you can recharge and relax. This is only effective if you can let all work related thoughts and actions go too.

If you suffer from returning work stress, it’s important to keep track of this. Map the situations that cause you to experience stress. Also write down the accompanying feelings and reactions. This can help you to raise awareness of the stressful situations and to find connections between stressors and your reaction. Talk about this with your supervisor so you can work towards a solution with him or her. Your superior should also be motivated to find a solution because a sick employee will only raise his or her stress levels too.

NiceDay: Map the situations that cause you to experience stress in your Daily Planner. Write down the accompanying thoughts, feelings and reactions. Talk to your professional about this and see if you can work towards a solution.

How can you move in a way that suits you? Of course this can be different for anybody. As long as you hold a certain pattern for a week or two, you will find out what’s the most beneficial for you, concerning your energy and mood.

Extra movement during the day
If you want some extra movement at work, you can take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator. Did you know that with the up and down walking of four floors, your chance of heart problems decreases by 30 percent? And that walking the stairs for an extra two-minute per day can stop an average weight gain? So go to the toilet on another floor, walk to your colleague, take a walk around the block during your lunch break, or grab your bike to work!

Home workouts
When you’re home, you have a lot more freedom to do exercises to get some extra work out. Get a workout video from YouTube, or teach yourself to squat 15 minutes every day. For your blood flow and burning calories, it’s best to activate large muscle groups, like your leg muscles. To lose weight, activities such as running, squatting, or doing exercises that appeal to multiple muscles at once, contribute the most. Such as a burpee: after squatting, you jump to push up, and when you get up again, you make a jump! Start easy so you can keep up with this habit and slowly increase your level of difficulty.

Visit the gym
At the gym you are free to do anything you want. An important tip is to vary your moves to get the most out of your sport session. Begin two weeks with half an hour cycling, alternate with two weeks of moderate strength, focusing on the correct exercise and the production of heat in your body. This ensures that you achieve the greatest health benefit, because you are more likely to stimulate blood flow, rather than straining your joints and tendons.

Try this mini-workout!
Getting the most out of 10 minutes?

-Allways warm up by walking for around 2 minutes, or lifting your knees one by one in place.

– Take a 30 seconds break.

– Continue with 2 minutes push ups, use your knees as a beginner.

– Take a 30 seconds break.

– Do squats for 2 minutes, pausing one second at the bottom of each squad.

– Take 30 seconds break.

– Do 2 minutes back extensions: Lie on your stomach and raise your shoulders and legs. On top, hold for a second and relax your neck.

– Take a well deserved break. You may want to end with crunches for your abdominal muscles, but with the other exercises you burn a lot already!

Whether you are at home, at the gym or at work, you can always move. Moreover, you can decide how much you want to move. Challenge yourself to move more during your day  and, in time, it will be easier for you. Good luck!

Goals: Set your ‘Move Goal’ to the number of minutes you want to start with, for example 30 minutes a day. If you notice after a week that you can easily achieve this, you can expand to 60 minutes. In Do Goal you can set a location (gym, home) where you will do your exercises. Make specific what you want to do that week and how of

Mostly people suffering from a burn-out or workstress have difficulty saying no. They are perfectionistic and want to be a good colleague. But how do you change this mentality? And why is it so important? We will tell you.

Lifestyle
You do not only get satisfaction by finishing your workday, you also need to feel well. Instead of focussing on the problem (being tired, too much stress, too much work, disruption of a colleague) you should focus on the thing that you DO want.

For example: people who are tired do not necessarily benefit from extra hours of sleep. Sometimes they miss a challenge in their work or a long walk during the lunchbreak will help already. People who experience a lot of workstress, do not benefit from having ‘less work’. Less work grounds less of a challenge and therefore less need for cooperation and creative thinking and not per se less stress. So what is needed to reduce workstress and prevent a burn-out?  A different task package? Developing new capacities? A different format of workplaces? Mostly you only know when you try it out … and if does not help, you try something new.

Build it up
Start easy and build it up slowly: choose one goal you want to work on today. Even if you think you do not have enough time or space. The alternative (doing nothing, go on like you would normally do) is not an option, because you will not feel better and your stress will not reduce. And if you burn out, you also can not be there for you colleagues anymore.

For example: to give yourself more space for relaxation and prevent a burn-out, you can start the day with working for two hours on projects. Accept that you need to take the rest from the day ‘off’ to work on your mail and with your colleagues. Do not check your mail in the first two hours, so that you get the important things done.  This gives you rest and makes it possible to relax during your workday.

So give yourself more time and space! It will give you time and rest back in return.

INTERVIEW – Marc Blom, psychiatrist and member of the board of directors of the Parnassia Groep (mental health care provider), discusses the subject of burnout. The statistics do not lie, 1 out of 7 Dutch workers experience burnout complaints. He discussed the definition and cause of a burn-out in part 1. In part two he will describe how to prevent a burn-out.

People ignore signals for too long, but why is it important to react rapidly?
“It is important to react rapidly to reduce the impact of the complaints and to prevent a burnout. If you notice that you sleep poorly and you work on that, there is a big chance that your sleep improves. If you notice that your work is starting to resent you, then is it your job to figure out what it is that causes this. Why do you get so tired, how do you get energised and how does your energy level change over the week? Every job has it cons, no job is perfect and that is OK. But there should be a balance! If it only takes energy instead of providing energy, you should figure out whether you could work on that: do you have to vary more, do you have too many to do’s, et cetera. Career planning is gaining more attention, which is a good thing. We work longer and keep the same job for longer. Thinking and planning a career switch should be part of our life.”

How do you cope with this theme as an employer? How do you do it at Parnassia?

“I am afraid that we are just as good or bad as everybody… It is a difficult subject. But a couple of things you can do is: notice frequent absence. When someone is shortly absent, frequently, it is an alarm signal. Also, talk with your employers often and ask how they feel and whether they still like their job. The atmosphere at work should be open, people should feel like they can tell if they are not feeling well. A lot of organisations think of absence as a first signal. I think that at the point of frequent absence you are already too late. Starting a conversation in time with your employers and notice how they are feeling every once in awhile is important. Are they still challenged and does their job energise them? Next to that it is a job for colleagues, they notice it first when things get bad.”

What could, next to monitoring frequent absence, contribute to preventing a burnout?

“Sometimes the employer can change the character of work, but that is not always possible. What you could do is provide the tools to tackle other difficulties. Simple things, such as sleep hygiene, do you prepare for sleep? Do you exercise enough? A lifestyle coach is important. We have to focus on prevention: if we want to be healthy and happy with our job, then we should work for it. Exercise enough, eat healthy, stop smoking and vary your work. Also we should feel like we can influence the content of our job. That we contribute to the organization.”

And what is the role for modern technologies?
“There are tools that can help you signalling a burnout, giving you early insight that you are not doing too well. People often realise it when it is too late. You go on and on, up until you get sick. Afterwards, people admit they saw it coming. Also the people in our environment: ‘The way you worked, it is not weird you got sick.’ You want to prevent that, for example a monitoring app can help you do that. Registrate your mood and get objective feedback. Apps can also help you live a healthier life.”

Sense Health’s NiceDay (where you can monitor sleep-, movement- and eating pattern, note emotions and contact a personal coach) is provided for clients of Parnassia. How could NiceDay help to prevent a burnout?

“Monitoring helps: how many hours do you actually sleep each night, statistics about your sleep and notifications telling you that you did not have enough sleep last week. This means you need to focus on your sleep in the upcoming week. Go to bed early, relax before sleeping, read a boring book, no television and no other screens before sleeping. NiceDay helps you set goals for a healthier lifestyle and monitors it.”

In NiceDay you can connect with a caregiver, how can the combination of technology and a human coach help to reduce complaints and prevent a burn-out?

“A strong point of NiceDay is that it sets personal goals. Together with a coach you can monitor your goals and get a clear insight, which helps you to reach your goals. A change in behavior is only effective when you stick with it. Next to that, is unhealthy behavior mostly habitual behavior, you do not even realize you are doing it. People do not know how poor their sleeping is, or if they know, how that can affect your energy level and mood. We do not know the patterns over the week. You may feel energized at mondays, but it may reduce from wednesday’s onward. Even more important is you see whether you can influence your complaint. A coach can give you insight: monitor for two weeks and look for patterns and things standing out. Together you see more than one. The coaches are like mountain guides: you have to walk yourself, but they have been there before and will help you find the way. To make things clearer for you and plan the next steps.”