How to deal with stress

By on February 18, 2020

Regularly, I see patients suffering from ‘stress’, by which they mean they feel knotted up inside, are anxious and unhappy, cannot relax, have difficulty enjoying normal activities, and whose family and other relationships are under strain. To these problems may be added symptoms of insomnia or excess alcohol consumption.

Who are the people who suffer from this condition, and why are there so many of them?  

Typically, they are men at or near the top of their professions, working in the banking and financial service industries, or in recruitment companies or language schools, though no field of work seems to be exempt.  

I find it useful to ask such patients to describe a typical day. It tends to be similar in many cases. They work from early in the morning to late at night.  As for lunch, they eat some ‘takeaway’ food at their desks or allow themselves only time for a hurried bite at the restaurant in the basement of the building. In addition, they may participate in conference calls late in the evening and at weekends.    

In other words, it’s all work and no play. This situation arises because of a self-imposed work ethic – or the expectations of the Asia-Pacific boss – that the corporate samurai must spend every God-given hour of every day at his desk. It’s a situation of not being able to see the wood for the trees, because he is so involved in it. That is where it can be very helpful for someone objective to point out some obvious truths.   

You cannot expect to work at this level of intensity for long and feel well. It is essential to have regular breaks to ‘re-charge the batteries’ – perhaps 10 minutes every hour. Take a proper lunch break of one hour, including going for a walk, and do not take a telephone with you! Then you will feel refreshed when you start the afternoon’s work. It is counterproductive to work late at night. Try to finish at a reasonable hour – in spite of the pile of unfinished work sitting on your desk! Understand that even if you were there 24 hours a day, it still wouldn’t be finished. Learn to delegate, accepting that someone else may not be able to do the task as well as you could do it yourself. If there are not enough support staff, insist to head office that these be provided.    

Once a week, draw a line under your appointments and leave at 6pm to spend time with the family, or go to the kabuki – this is so fascinating (with the English commentary) that it is almost impossible to think of anything else while the extraordinary drama is unfolding in front of you.  

In other words, the balance between work and recreation needs to be adjusted.  Even a small improvement – such as arranging to leave the office a little earlier so as to enjoy some normal social life – can have a big effect on one’s feeling of well-being.

 

 

 

About Dr. Gabriel Symonds

Dr. Gabriel Symonds was the director of the Tokyo British Clinic. The clinic closed down in May 2014 after serving the expatriate community for 20+ years. Dr. Symonds has retired and the Tokyo British Clinic is now closed. Dr Symonds will continue to live in Tokyo and may be contacted by e-mail over any questions concerning medical records or related matters: symonds@tokyobritishclinic.com He will be available from another address for: smoking cessation psychotherapy/counselling circumcision information Tel: (03) 5458-6099 www.tokyobritishclinic.com