A few years ago, my wife was experiencing some health problems. The doctor’s diagnosis was that her job was too stressful. Six months later, she left that job to start her own company, and those health problems completely disappeared (that’s a pretty stressful job if starting a business is less stressful!).
My wife’s job/stress-related health problems are common: According to one study, 40% of American employees feel their job is stressful. In fact, stress related problems are the most common cause of employee absenteeism and the stress-related problems cost about 150 billion dollars in the US.
Unfortunately, most people can’t quit their job to get rid of stress. So what can they do? Fortunately, the list is pretty long: exercise, eat right, take time every day to meditate and relax, and find hobbies that give you pleasure to name a few. And, get regular massage.
A study published in the International Journal of Neuroscience looked at the impact of massage on job performance over a five week period. The study showed the following:
Massaged adults showed:
1) decreased frontal EEG alpha and beta power and increased delta power consistent with enhanced alertness;
2) math problems were completed in significantly less time with significantly fewer errors after the massage; and
3) anxiety, cortisol (stress hormone) and job stress levels were lower at the end of the 5 week period.
In case you’re wondering what the most common causes of work place stress are, they’re:
And the top four most stressful professions are:
(Data from Stress Focus)
One of the biggest complaints that I hear is that people do not get along with their co-workers. If your co-workers are rude, condescending people who are difficult to get along with, your job is going to make you miserable. Move on.
Massage Therapist
August 13th, 2008