9 Signs Your Job Is Hurting Your Mental Health

Have you ever felt like work is taking over your life, but you tell yourself, this is just what success looks like, or this is just how it has to be? Maybe you constantly think about work, struggle to disconnect, or even feel physically drained, but you push through because you feel like you have to. The problem?

When stress goes unchecked, it can start affecting your mental and physical well being in ways you might not even realize. In this episode, I’m sharing 9 signs your job is negatively affecting your mental health, plus simple ways to check in with yourself and shift towards balance. Welcome to calmly coping the podcast for high achievers who want to feel calm, balanced and confident from within.

I’m Tati, a therapist and coach, and I’m here to help you stop overthinking, stop overworking and crush self doubt every other week. I share actionable tips and strategies you can implement right away to create more balance and ease in your life. Thanks so much for tuning in. Let’s get started. All right, let’s get right into it So sign number one is neglecting self care Maybe you skip workouts or grab fast food on your lunch break all the time or stay up late working Telling yourself that you’ll catch up later or you’ll take care of yourself later, but later never comes So, maybe you used to go to the gym three times a week, but now you tell yourself you don’t have the time, even though you scroll through your phone for an hour before bed.

Or maybe your work and thinking about work is eating into your bedtime because you’re having trouble with winding down. So here’s a way that you can check in if this sounds like you. Ask yourself, when’s the last time that you prioritized your physical health or your self care without guilt? This can be sometimes a wake up call and a way for you to assess if there’s something that needs to change.

Sign number two is struggling to disconnect from work. So this can be just struggling to disconnect literally, like you’re overworking all the time, as well as mentally, like you can’t stop thinking about work. So, maybe you constantly are thinking about work, even when you’re not working, and you struggle to set clear boundaries.

So you might check emails during dinner with your family, take client calls on vacation, or wake up at 3am worrying about an unfinished task. If this sounds like you, then a way to shift towards balance could be to try to set a clear work cutoff time today and stick to it. and ask yourself, how does it feel?

And as a bonus, anytime thoughts about work come up, try the practice of noticing those thoughts and allowing them to move on, shifting your focus to something else and telling yourself, I know that this is something that’s on my mind. I’m going to address this when I go into work tomorrow. If it’s even more helpful, maybe even writing down that thought or that.

thing that to do list tasks that’s coming up for you, adding it to your task list and deferring it to when you are actually spending time working rather than having it permeate throughout your entire life. Sign number three is feeling irritable or resentful toward work. So maybe you used to be passionate about your career, but now you have had it.

You find yourself snapping at colleagues. dreading Monday mornings, which I have an episode for that, that you can check out in the corner on YouTube, in the description as well, or feeling drained before the day even begins. One way to check in with yourself and shift towards balance, if this sounds like you, is to ask yourself, what’s one small thing that you can adjust today to make work feel less draining?

So maybe it is doing something for yourself that you normally don’t take time for. Maybe going to your favorite coffee shop as a mid morning break. Or checking in with colleagues that you usually don’t have time to have small talk with. Or maybe it’s just reducing the pressure that you’re putting on yourself.

Sign number four could be frequent headaches, stomach issues, or any other physical symptoms. There’s a saying that your body keeps the score, and this doesn’t just apply to trauma, which is the original context with which this saying originated from, in the book by Dr. Bessel van der Kolk, but also when it comes to stress.

Our body holds onto stress in the form of physical tension, inflammation, and other physical health issues, such as stomach and digestive issues, headaches, and even more, you know, chronic stress can result in more chronic diseases. Maybe you feel constant fatigue because your mind is always on and thinking and planning and you never give yourself time to rest and shut down.

Maybe you wake up with a tight jaw from grinding your teeth overnight from stress, or you feel frequently queasy before big meetings. A way to check in with yourself if this resonates and shift towards balance and reducing the physical toll that stress takes on your body is to just pause, take a deep breath, and do a quick body scan.

And this just looks like closing your eyes briefly and going through from head to toe. If you have time to do this with me quickly now, if you’re not operating a vehicle, you’re in a situation where it’s safe to do so, maybe you can practice doing this now. And whether you can keep eyes open or closed, whatever feels comfortable, but taking a deep breath in through your nose and out through your mouth.

And then just bringing your awareness to top of your head. Your face and as we go through notice if there’s any areas of tension and as you go through those areas Just seeing if you can release that tightness a little bit. So you’ve maybe your jaw the back of your head your neck shoulders your chest and upper back your arms all the way through to your hands and your stomach, lower back, hips, thighs, knees, and calves, ankles, and your feet and toes.

Now, I just went through this very quickly, but this is a simple way that you can do a check in and notice where there’s areas of tension. And Do even a small amount to release that tension or just to notice this is where your body tends to hold on to tension and doing this can help you to recognize how your body holds on to the stress that you’re going through.

It’s not just something that’s mental, but it’s something that’s physical. And if you can recognize that, then you can start to reduce the impact that this has on you. Sign number five is loss of motivation and productivity. So you might work long hours, but maybe tasks that used to take only 30 minutes, now take 2 hours.

Because you’re finding yourself distracted or unfocused. You might find yourself mentally exhausted and procrastinating more. So maybe this looks like rereading the same email multiple times before replying. Because you’re afraid of saying the wrong thing. Or maybe you’re even missing deadlines because you can’t bring yourself to start and you’re continuing to procrastinate or cram and leave things to the last minute. If this sign resonates with you, then a way to check in and shift towards balance could be to give yourself permission to step away for a few minutes and actually take a break. Sometimes just taking a step away from work for 5, 10, 15 minutes or however much time you have can help your brain to rest and can help you to return even more focused.

The longer we work, the less focused And the more our emotions can tend to get in the way. Whereas if you’re able to work and then take regular breaks, that actually allows you to be more efficient, productive, and do more with your time, even though it might feel like you’re working less. Sign number six is avoiding or dreading work related interactions.

So maybe you are silencing Slack notifications, avoiding answering phone calls. Or you’re feeling anxious before meetings. And maybe the thought of another Zoom meeting just makes you want to throw your laptop out the window. So a way to check in with yourself if this sign resonates is if you’re feeling overwhelmed, can you set boundaries around unnecessary meetings?

Or can you reflect on, why am I wanting to avoid these things? Oftentimes it can be fear or anxiety that can make you want to avoid things. Or it can be just, The energy that you feel like is required to do those things. So maybe setting boundaries can look like setting a time during the day where you respond to your Slack notifications, or maybe it’s just a few times a day so that you’re not feeling like you’re constantly responding to things all throughout the day, but you’re creating specific pockets of time to intentionally put your focus there. Or maybe it is assessing and seeing if all of the meetings that you’re attending are necessary and blocking out time for your focused individual work if these meetings are interfering with you, your time to do the actual tasks and responsibilities that you need to.

Sign number seven is using work as an escape. So maybe you are pouring yourself into work as a way of avoiding personal stress. So maybe convincing yourself that being busy is better than dealing with what’s bothering you. Maybe it’s relationship problems, or maybe it is feelings of loneliness in your personal life, or a lack of hobbies or plans to do in your free time.

So an example could be maybe instead of addressing relationship issues, you bury yourself in work, constantly working late and telling yourself that you don’t have time to think about it. If this resonates, then a way to check in and shift towards balance is to ask yourself, are you staying busy to avoid something deeper?

Sign number eight is feeling like you can never do enough, or it’s never enough. No matter how much you accomplish, it never feels like it’s enough. And you feel like you’re on this never ending hamster wheel. And you might set impossibly high standards and feel guilty if you take a break. So maybe you get positive feedback.

from your boss, but instead of celebrating, you immediately think of what you have to do next or the next responsibility on your list. So a way to check in if this resonates is to reflect on what you did well today. What are you proud of yourself for? The things that you are doing and working through and accomplishing, but you’re probably not even recognizing.

Take time to celebrate that and take pride. Sign number nine is regularly fantasizing about quitting or closing your business or changing your circumstances, whatever it is that applies here. So maybe you dream about leaving it all behind. Maybe you, whether it’s moving to a cabin in the woods or switching careers entirely, you might be desperate for a way out.

And maybe you’re periodically Googling stress free jobs or turning on notifications for job listings. And this especially happens when things start to feel overwhelming and you get to a breaking point. This is when you can find yourself endlessly Googling or going on LinkedIn or Indeed looking for new job opportunities.

So a way to check in is to ask yourself, what’s one small way that you can make your current work situation more sustainable? Or assessing, is this really a change that you want to make? And sometimes we can stay in certain situations because we feel like there’s positive things to it and it can go in waves, like I said.

So maybe you are okay for a little bit, but then when things get really stressful, you’re ready to leave. Maybe this period of time where you’re ready to leave is a sign that something isn’t working. So can you shift this to improve it? Or you need to seriously consider making a change. So maybe some or maybe all of these signs resonated with you.

If so, know that you’re not alone. Recognizing these signs is the first step towards making change and getting out of this place where you’re struggling. Here’s the thing, high achievers often normalize stress and overworking. But that doesn’t mean that it’s healthy. And that doesn’t mean that you need to tolerate it.

If any of these signs resonated with you, give yourself permission to pause, reflect, and take even small shifts towards prioritizing your well being. If this episode resonated with you, then be sure to take my free high functioning anxiety quiz. This can help you to identify if you’re struggling with high functioning anxiety, which if you resonated with some of these signs that could be the case and get personal insights to help you go from just surviving to thriving.

You can learn more and take this quiz for free at hfaquiz.com or the link in the description or show notes. You don’t have to sacrifice your mental health for success. Small shifts can help you feel more balanced and in control in your life. While you wait for the next episode, I have other episodes about calming your mind, improving work life balance, and feeling more confident from within.

Thank you so much for tuning in today, and until next time, be calm. Thanks so much for listening. If you like what you heard, please share this episode with a friend. And please subscribe and leave me a review on iTunes. Also, remember to check me out online at CalmlyCoping. com and connect with me on Instagram at TatianaGLPC.

All content here is for informational purposes only. This content does not replace the professional judgment of your own mental health provider. Please consult a licensed mental health professional for all individual questions and issues. Till next time, I’m Tati, and this has been Calmly Coping.