Stressed at work

LegacyUser

Can't handle my job anymore.
Worked 12 hours last Friday, no lunch, no breaks and the only calories I had in 14 hours was a can of 7up. No time to go to the shop for 10 minutes even.
Not suprisingly I felt dizzy at the end of the day. Now I wasn't ordered or chained to my desk but I was berated several times to get things done by my new team leader and I take work so seriously I'd do it without complaint. I don't realy care about being talked down to but it was humiliating to be done in front of friends and teammates.

Have spent the entire weekend with a dull tight feeling in my stomach, dreading Monday morning. When things get realy busy in work, my face blushes bright red and I start breathing rapidly, I don't think anyone notices. Hands shaking too.

It used to be a enjoyable place with great teammates and spirit but as happens, several people were let go recently and the remaining staff have to keep up.
I've excellent attendance but I called in sick one day last week as I just couldn't face it.

I asked to do extra training on a new area a few months back and I was told no problem.
But it's gone to staff there less time then me so realy I'm not going anywhere fast. I'll ask about this in my next review.
Not sure what happened and if I'm told to improve I'll do what I can to the best of my ability. I certainly work as hard as I can but it's a complicated (to me!) job with multiple tasks and hundreds of emails and many phonecalls and I'm sure others are maybe smarter and more efficient then me. I do my best, can do no more.....
Just can't cope, maybe I don't have the aptitude and smarts that others do
Leaving work some days after everyone else completed their tasks and feeling stupid.

Basically, how do you deal with stress in the workplace?
I've searched past threads, didn't realy find anything

Thanks for any advice but I would like to pre-empt the "you're lucky to have a job!" comments. Not realy helpful and I'd wish you the best of luck if you are currently unemployed

ForTheLoveOf_Fi

not a healthly lifestyle.
first off, you must know that that kind of work without break is illegal.
but if u need a break, TAKE ONE. its that simple. most likely yourwork will suffer unless there is a balance, you must understand. i know you spent 12 hours on friday, but on your day off i would recommend a recreational activity such as swimming or simply going to cinema.
ill things don t improve, mayb a career change is necessary? but yes you are lucky to have a job so just try and balace it out ok
good luck x

oh and dont feel stupid ok, its just related to the stress. breaks are the key!

ve

I used to work in a place that thought if you wanted more productivity from your employees you just demanded it and it was done. We're human beings we're not able to sustain burning the candle at both ends. Also I think this notion of "just taking it" because your colleages appear to do the same for fear of being made redundant is just blackmail.

I know jobs are really hard to come by these days, and if you still have a job you're considered lucky by many, but surely employment does not justify putting your job before your health. At the end of the day you're doing that job for you, and without your health there is no "you". I left my last job because of treatment that I endured while there, and it was the best move I ever made. One day while there my boss made a snide comment to another employee within earshot of me about how people like me in the company needed to be even more productive (with a cheeky grin on his face). It was the final straw and I lost the head at him big time in front of the other employee. My boss immediately went all red and in the end we both sat down and he became human again. He had tears in his eyes and said that there were "too many cooks" (management at his level) stirring the pot and he was sorry for everything. We made amends, but within the next month he was back to his old tricks so I didn't hang around for much longer.

Best move I ever made, leaving that place. I suggest you keep a diary and when you come home from work if something happened that day, make note of it in detail. Give the incident a severity rating from 1 - 10. This may help you make your decision to stay or go later on.

Look after yourself and best of luck

LegacyUser

Listen, its only a job thats how I see it. Im nobodys slave and no matter what work needs to get done if I want a break im gonna take one. In my job we are given a 15 minute breakfast break in the mornings, it's in our contracts, yet nobody takes them. Sure as hell I do! When 5 o clock rolls round its work down, im going home cause I have things to do...I have a life! Now dont get me wrong, I will work hard during the day and take on others work etc but sure there is more to life than my job. I also think if you havent much fear about the current climate or losing your job then it might help....secretly I wouldnt mind being made redundant cause it would finally force me to just head off travelling for a year or so. Try not to worry too much... its only a job!

professore

Look for another job.

towel401

professore wrote: »

Look for another job.

those are scarce...

estar

12 hour day + no calories + no break = eventual meltdown.

look around you in the work place. is everyone working like this. is everyone stressed? if this is not the case - observe those that are not stressed.

either they are managing their workload better, or clevererer.

as for the team leader - what is their work load like? are they sharing the load, or are they just delegating downwards and sitting around.

take a lunch break. leave at 7 every day. life is too short to be a slave.

and prioritise. surely everything isn't needed straight away. only do those things that are screaming - need to be done.

Lollipops23

you are legally entitled to a lunch break.it sounds like your workplace is undergoing a shift;letting staff go and letting others take up the slack is not right.has anyone had a go at you over it?if not this could all be in your head and putting far to much pressure on yourself,it's not healthy. it sounds like your inducing panic attacks too.

wasper

stressed123 wrote: »

Can't handle my job anymore.
Worked 12 hours last Friday, no lunch, no breaks and the only calories I had in 14 hours was a can of 7up. No time to go to the shop for 10 minutes even.
Not suprisingly I felt dizzy at the end of the day. Now I wasn't ordered or chained to my desk but I was berated several times to get things done by my new team leader and I take work so seriously I'd do it without complaint. I don't realy care about being talked down to but it was humiliating to be done in front of friends and teammates.

Have spent the entire weekend with a dull tight feeling in my stomach, dreading Monday morning. When things get realy busy in work, my face blushes bright red and I start breathing rapidly, I don't think anyone notices. Hands shaking too.

It used to be a enjoyable place with great teammates and spirit but as happens, several people were let go recently and the remaining staff have to keep up.
I've excellent attendance but I called in sick one day last week as I just couldn't face it.

I asked to do extra training on a new area a few months back and I was told no problem.
But it's gone to staff there less time then me so realy I'm not going anywhere fast. I'll ask about this in my next review.
Not sure what happened and if I'm told to improve I'll do what I can to the best of my ability. I certainly work as hard as I can but it's a complicated (to me!) job with multiple tasks and hundreds of emails and many phonecalls and I'm sure others are maybe smarter and more efficient then me. I do my best, can do no more.....
Just can't cope, maybe I don't have the aptitude and smarts that others do
Leaving work some days after everyone else completed their tasks and feeling stupid.

Basically, how do you deal with stress in the workplace?
I've searched past threads, didn't realy find anything

Thanks for any advice but I would like to pre-empt the "you're lucky to have a job!" comments. Not realy helpful and I'd wish you the best of luck if you are currently unemployed

You take your break with other colleagues. And as for this idiot new TL make sure that you have witnesses to his antics. You might have to talk about it with a higher level person.
As someone mentioned it, it's illegal not to have a break. Anyway if you are in a factory environment, it's dangerous to be working alone incase of an accident.
Even machines break down & we definitely break down too.