Home Articles Work Anxiety? These Practical Tips Will Help You Feel Better – Opinion

Work Anxiety? These Practical Tips Will Help You Feel Better – Opinion

Let’s face it — modern life is stressful.

Did you know that over 40% of Americans consider their workplace to be extremely stressful? Or that around 35% find their jobs so stressful that it impairs their sleep? Pretty crazy, right?

Now, what if I told you that an incredible 18% of Americans are currently suffering from a diagnosable anxiety disorder? I know, it’s shocking.

What we really need to acknowledge is that these two things are not unrelated. In fact, evidence would suggest that they are closely intertwined, with this stress being a key driver for the onset of workplace anxiety.

Work anxiety

Work anxiety simply describes anxiety caused by work-related stress.

This type of anxiety can be brought on by a number of distinct factors. A dispute with a colleague, an overbearing boss, or a poor working environment can all contribute to the onset of work anxiety.

I know that some people will be sitting here thinking “so what — nobody likes work.” But what they need to appreciate is the work anxiety is so much more than just disliking work.

It is a sense of dread that hits you every morning when you wake up. A sense of overwhelming unhappiness that impacts every part of your personal life. It is a debilitating issue that can wreak havoc with your work performance.

Terribly, it can even lead to social isolation, job loss, and declines in physical and mental health. Like I said — it is much more than just disliking work.

Tips to Fight Work Anxiety

Something that I really want to hammer home is the fact that work anxiety is not a death sentence. There are certain things you can do to help fight stress in the workplace, and keep anxiety at bay for good.

1.  Meditation

Meditation has been used to improve mood, enhance wellbeing and even promote longevity. And while this may sound like woo-woo to some, research shows it is true.

Meditation teaches you how to manage your emotions, while simultaneously reducing stress levels. As a result, it improves your self-esteem and happiness, and can even help you fight anxiety.

Traditionally, the hardest part of trying mediation came with finding a decent teacher — but with modern technology, we now have access to apps that walk us through it.

Some of the best apps on the market are:

With these amazing apps, you can use mediation to fight off workplace stress and boost your mental health from the comfort of your own home (or office cubicle).

2.  Exercise

Exercise is renowned for its ability to boost mood and create a sense of emotional wellbeing — and there is a very good reason for this.

Exercise causes your body to release powerful compounds called ‘neurotrophic growth factors’ into your brain. These little guys cause the nerves in your brain to grow larger and create new connections.

Amazingly, this has been shown to boost mood and wellbeing. In fact, simply performing an exercise can increase feelings of confidence, self-esteem, and self-worth. As I am sure you can imagine, this is integral to reducing stress and fighting workplace anxiety.

So why not start your day with a short walk? Your brain (and body) will thank you. 

3.  CBT

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT for short) is a mental health treatment that teaches you how to change your mindset and your behaviors.

Anxiety is thought to develop through a negative (and completely unconscious) change in your mindset. In response, over time you develop a negative outlook to everyday situations – and your stress shoots through the roof.

However, CBT has the power to change your mindset and turn these negative thoughts into something positive.

As a result, CBT can improve your ability to handle stress at work, and even reduce negative responses to work-related situations. With this comes an increase in mood, and improvements in symptoms of anxiety.

Even more impressive is the fact that over the last few years we have seen several online CBT programs popping up. Oh, and they happen to be just as effective as face-to-face options.

4.  Antidepressants

One option that is fairly common in today’s society is antidepressants.

These compounds simply provide a potent dose of important brain chemicals (or “neurotransmitters” for you science geeks out there) directly into your brain. These guys alter the chemical makeup of your brain, improving your mood in the process.

This can come with a reduction in stress — which is why they have been used successfully for decades to treat diagnosed anxiety disorders.

However, while they can be effective, it is important to note that they can have some potential side effects. These can include:

  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Weight gain
  • Loss of sex drive
  • Fatigue and drowsiness
  • Insomnia
  • Blurred vision
  • Constipation
  • Dizziness
  • Anger and irritation

While these side effects will not occur in everyone, it is important that they are acknowledged.

5.  TMS

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is an amazing treatment that stimulates your brain using magnetic fields. During a TMS session, a magnetic pad is placed on your forehead. This pad then sends a number of magnetic pulses into your brain, activating the areas that control your mood and emotions.

This activation improves your mental state, enhances your emotional well being, and acts to reduce stress. All of which is why TMS is such an effective treatment for work anxiety.

TMS is an effective method and it’s becoming more and more popular, here are a few locations for TMS Treatment Centers in Florida alone. A TMS session combined with the professional guidance of a Certified Psychiatrist will ensure the best possible results for your mental wellbeing.

Know Your Rights

With these great anxiety tips, I wanted to make sure that you understand your rights as an employee.

One of the worst things about workplace anxiety is that people try and hide it. They bottle it up and ignore it because they fear that, if they do bring it up, they will get fired.

The fear of getting fired is actually a common sign of workplace anxiety, and it only acts to make your stress levels worse.

But you shouldn’t be worried. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has been designed to protect you from job discrimination. This means that if you do tell your boss that you have anxiety, they are required by law to keep you on.

More than that, they also need to provide you with  “reasonable accommodation.” This means that your employer should change your work environment to help you perform the duties of your job.

So make sure that if you are suffering from workplace anxiety, you speak out — and don’t bottle it up, because it will just make it worse.

Fortunately, by using the practical tips outlined in this article you can keep your stress at bay and fend off anxiety for good.

After all, bottling it up just makes it worse.


Dr. Lindsay Israel

Dr. Lindsay Israel is a board-certified psychiatrist. Her goal is to help patients feel empowered because their symptoms can leave them feeling powerless. She specializes in Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) therapy for the treatment of various psychiatric disorders. TMS is FDA-approved for depression and is a non-invasive, non-medication alternative to traditional treatments. Dr. Israel’s depression treatment center, Success TMS, focuses on this advanced therapy which allows patients to achieve remission from depression and return back to their best lives.