Being addicted to work can have serious consequences in various aspects of our lives. Overworking can damage our mental health as well as the working environment in our organization. We must make sure we find the balance between our working life and personal life, whether as an individual or as HR managers, for our employees’ mental health.
We are used to talking about addiction as a compulsive and uncontrollable consumption of certain substances that either affects our state of consciousness, relax or alleviate our bodies, amuse us, or stimulate us in any way. However, there are other aspects of life that can contribute to the development of an addiction. For example, we may find ourselves overworking to the point of exhaustion, and soon enough, this “workaholic” ethic becomes a way to relieve ourselves or a way to help us switch off from those other stressful areas of our life.
How to avoid becoming addicted to work
1. If you switch off, switch off properly
Being unable to turn off the computer and leave the office, having to continue sending emails to many people late at night or on weekends, having to voluntarily fill out pages of the agenda with commitments and responsibilities that would originally be shared between three or four people… these are all signs lead to an employee being addicted to work.
It’s not a question of overworking or not (or, in other words, “consuming” too much or too little work), since the units of measurement for this would be quite subjective. If we find ourselves struggling to be addicted to work, the important thing to figure out is how we got there. What consequences led to becoming overworked? What do you feel like when you are overworked? How do you feel if you can’t satisfy your addiction to overworking? In short, what circumstances have led you to become addicted to work? We must not forget that overworking often is overcompensating for other aspects of our lives that are excessive or unbearable.
2. Interpersonal relationships
Pay attention to your interpersonal relationships (family, partner, friends): Do you feel that your workload prevents you from maintaining relationships? Being addicted to work can lead you to become distant from those who are closest to you. Switching off from work and talking to family members or friends can help us find a balance between our professional and personal life.
Your loved ones know you best, and if they have warned you about your unhealthy habits at work, it is best you listen to their advice. However, if you can’t face speaking about your unhealthy work habits with family members of friends, you may need to consider speaking to a professional.
3. Don’t feel guilty about having time to yourself
Be aware of certain aspects such as: Are you going far beyond what is necessary despite what your bosses are asking for? Listen to your body: Do you feel bad, sleep poorly, eat poorly, break out… is your work affecting your physical and emotional health? Do you need more time to yourself?
If you’ve answered yes to one of these questions, then you should take a moment to think about how to improve this situation. If you answered yes to two of these points, then be aware: you are likely to be overworked in an uncontrolled way to avoid facing other difficult areas of your life. If you answered yes to three of these points, then it is time to stop before your body, your relationships, and your work itself do it for you.
Don’t worry, work at changing your habits and loosen your pattern of addiction; coming up with strategies to face our responsibilities is not easy or immediate. If you don’t feel able to do this alone, it’s important that you ask for specialized help. Psychologists are here for that.
Emotional well-being program for companies by ifeel
Ifeel has created an emotional well-being program for companies, designed by its team of leading psychologists to help companies put employee health at the center of their strategy to boost productivity sustainably.
Thanks to this partnership, HR managers can receive personalized, data-driven advice on how to support their employees. For example, by helping those who are overworking and consider they are addicted to work.
In addition, ifeel‘s emotional well-being program for companies offers employees a mental health care service structured at different levels depending on individual needs. This way, employees can access various mental health care tools with ifeel’s app. On level two, they can receive emotional support through a chat with one of our platform’s licensed psychologists. If additional support is needed, they can access the third level of the program: online psychological therapy with a psychologist specialized in cases such as theirs
Get in touch today and ask for more information about our emotional well-being program for companies. Remember, if you think you are addicted to work, it’s time you take a step back and switch off for a bit.
