The signs are clearly seen on the face. The eyes look tired and sleepy, forehead is creased, the head is rests on the hands and there are files piled on the desk waiting to be looked at. If you find yourself in this way more often than not; you are suffering from fatigue at work. This feeling of chronic tiredness, frequent headaches, muscle weakness and moodiness are symptoms of fatigue. But you are not alone, according to recent reports about 35% of urban professionals in India suffer from fatigue at work.
Possible Causes:
There could be range of factors that cause fatigue at work. Sleep deprivation, lack of exercise, bad diet choices, physical illness, working in shifts, anxiety, stress, and burnout are some of the factors. These factors when consistently present lead to Fatigue.
Ways to deal with fatigue by changing these behaviors:
Sleep deprivation
Ok, you all know that we need around 7 hours of sleep everyday but only few lucky ones can actually claim to get all of it. But sleep deprivation can really affect your productivity at work. When you work hard and are at your toes daily, you need to get enough rest to recharge your batteries. If you think you can work with just 4 hours of sleep then you are wrong as your body is definitely going to catch up to you. Insufficient sleep has been linked to number of health problems like diabetes, heart disease and also affects productivity, increases errors and accidents.
If you are one of those who sleep for 7 hours and still feel tired, then you might be suffering from Sleep apnea and other types of disruptive sleep, then you should consult your doctor at the earliest.
Here some tips to get good sleep:
- Eat an early dinner which is light and easy to digest.
- Go for a walk after an hour of dinner, this exercise will help you fall asleep fast.
- Do not spend the time before bed working on the computer or watching TV, little soft music will be better.
- Do not drink coffee and tea in the evening. Drinking a glass of milk helps in getting sleep for some.
Physical illness
Sometimes fatigue can be caused due to weakness by some medical condition or ailments. It could be anemia, chronic pains or diabetes that is eating away your energy. If you think fatigue you are feeling has nothing to do with stress or lifestyle then you need to consult your doctor and get it checked.
Working in shifts
If you work in shifts you are more likely to suffer fatigue than any anyone else. This is because our body is designed to sleep at night and work during the day, all our processes like digestion, assimilation, wear and tear happens according to the biological clock or circadian rhythm. Working in shifts affects the circadian rhythm and we fail to get good sleep and feel tired often.
Some tips to deal with shift:
- Try to maintain some routine, that is sleep at a particular hour and wake up at a specific time. This will help your body adjust.
- Eat smart: when you leave for work, make sure you have something to eat like breakfast that is filling and nutritious, while at work- much on dry fruits and healthy snacks and avoid too many cups of coffee and tea and snacking on junk food.
Stress
It is found that people who work in high pressure environment are more likely to suffer from fatigue than those who don’t. You can’t change the work environment of your work place but you can at least change the way you respond to it, by changing your working style.
Some tips to deal with stress:
- Don’t let it overwhelm you- Be in control of your emotions. When things really get tough remember to take deep breaths and just give your best, the results will fall in place.
- Prioritize- When there are hundreds of mails to answer, choose the ones which need urgent attention and then look at those which come in the next level of importance.
- Know your limits- When you are aware of how much can be achieved, your expectations from yourself will be in place and you will not overwork or feel disheartened when you don’t fulfill the expectations.
Job burnout
You work at office, you work at home, you work even on off days, if you find yourself with work all the time; you are becoming a workaholic.
This compulsion with work is unhealthy and lowers your productivity and affects your emotional well being.
