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Written By: Editorial Team | Published : May 6, 2014 3:34 PM IST
Have you developed a habit to check emails after office hours on your cell phone? You are heading towards 'stress bomb' that can explode anytime. According to a latest Gallup poll, using cell phones and tablet to read and send work emails outside office hours can dramatically improve your stress levels. The findings revealed that nearly half of workers who frequently email for work outside of normal working hours report experiencing stress 'a lot of the day'. Also, nearly 62 percent of workers said they have employers who expect them to check emails frequently outside of working hours.
Gallup interviewed 4,475 working adults, aged 18 and older, in the US. The survey found that time spent working remotely outside of working hours has similar problems. Nealry 47 percent of those who work remotely at least seven hours per week reported a lot of stress the previous day compared with 37 percent experiencing stress who reported no remote work time. (Read: Which of these 10 symptoms of stress do you have?)
Workers who leverage mobile technology more often outside of work are much more likely to be stressed on any given day. 'Such behaviours can both positively and negatively influence employees' well-being in the long run,' the researchers added. (Read: Beat stress, fatigue and depression with laughter yoga)
What is stress?
Stress generally refers to a state of mind or mental tension that is linked to anxiety, irritability, insecurity, mental disorders like depression or insomnia and physical ones like migraine, cardiovascular ailments andsexual dysfunction. It occurs in the presence of an external stimulus called the stressor. Usually factors like work pressure, personal commitments and working environment act as common stressors in daily life. Our body can handle stress with a mechanism called fight-or-flight response, where certain hormones are released to combat stress. But when the levels of these hormones are increased, several organs and systems of the body may get affected. Increased stress levels commonly affects the immune system, musculoskeletal system, circulatory system and digestive system.It is also linked to heart disease, diabetes and gastro-intestinal disorders. There's a causal link between stress and physiological ailment. However the fact that many individuals remain healthy after stressful events suggests that susceptibility varies from person to person based on genetic, environmental and psychological factors. (Read: A mega-guide for understanding stress and dealing with it)
With inputs from IANS
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