|
Stress can affect many people in many ways. Stress can come from different sources including at home, at work and in volunteer work. Stress also affects people in many different ways and has many different symptoms but they all affect the person's welfare.
What is stress?
Stress is an adverse reaction to excessive pressure and demands. These can come from all aspects of life and it is common for there to be a mixture of sources of pressure. In Churches and Places of Worship, pressures might be a result of financial problems, falling numbers, a split in the congregation or lack of support from others. Of course, clergy are not the only ones who could be at risk from stress; employees and volunteers could be at risk too.
There are some common symptoms of stress. These symptoms range from issues of work performance, such as reduced motivation or performance, lapses in concentration whist at work and indecision. A person can become very emotional and sensitive when they are stressed and they can be argumentative and personality clashes become inflated.
Some people can become aggressive when stressed, and can criticise others and create malicious gossip. This can sometimes turn violent to other people and vandalism and other outbursts could also be a result. As a total contrast to this, others might become withdrawn and introvert.
While some people feel that they need to spend more time at work when stressed, some people arrive late and leave early, possibly taking longer than normal breaks. Absenteeism is also a sign of stress along with a lack of personal hygiene, an upset stomach, headaches and rapid weight loss or gain.
What you can do
As with most areas of Health and Safety, Risk Assessment is the best place to start. Look for work-relates pressures - some have already been mentioned earlier in this page. You then need to decide who is at risk and think about what you already do – is it enough?
Listen to staff and volunteers. A sign that things are not right would be a general disillusionment and low morale. Ask people to list the best and worst things of the job – tackle the worst things and build on the best.
Skills and training can go a long way as people feel as if they are better equipped to do a specific task. Rewarding someone if they have done a good job – even a simple "thank you" – goes a long way.
People must not be overloaded with work, especially repetitive tasks. As one symptom is under performance, don't assume that someone does not have enough to do if they don't seem to be pulling their weight.
Ensure that there is good communications, especially when things are changing, and let people feel that their voice is being listened to. Staff should feel that they have some control over the tasks that they do and that they have the support of the person they are responsible to.
Stress is a complex problem and there can be many sources of pressure inside and outside their work, paid or otherwise, in their Church or Place of Worship. It is important to consider stress when thinking of people's health and welfare, and to reduce the pressures of work.
|
