Feeling Under The Weather? Don’t Ignore It

There are many of us who feel at one time or another that we are below-par, health wise. Some people will go rushing to the doctor the first time they feel even slightly less healthy than usual, and others who will refrain from seeking any kind of medical help until such time as they are simply incapable of functioning. Neither of these states of being are desirable, as in the first case we are unable to function from day to day without constant reinforcement of our state of physical health and in the second we put our very health at risk through stubbornness or fear.

As with most issues, the right answer is somewhere in the middle. We will all, from time to time, be subject to health problems. When these problems strike, they may come in physical or mental form, and both types are worth equal attention. There has been a tendency in the past to assume that just because mental health is somehow “invisible”, any problems that arise with it are less valid than problems with physical health. This impression goes back a long way, and although it is less prevalent today than it has been it still remains for some people.

The key with health problems, whether they be physical or mental, is to take them seriously while not making a mountain out of a molehill. If you have a slight cold, then the doctor does not need to know about it unless you are specifically prone to aggravation from such symptoms. If, however, you are in such pain that it restricts you from going about your daily business, it is important to get to the point as quickly as possible. Early intervention in medical terms can be the difference between it becoming serious and such a state of affairs being averted.

With mental health problems, doctors and psychiatrists recommend a two-week rule being applied. If you find that you have been suffering anxiety or low mood for nearly a fortnight, then it is justifiable to assume that it is more than simply a standard case of “the blues”. Whether it is something that needs to be approached with counselling, something that would benefit from medication or something else, it is important to treat mental health issues seriously. Without such treatment, mental illness can take a very firm hold of a sufferer and make their life very difficult indeed.

If you go to the doctor with every little thing that crops up, then before too long you will gain an unspoken reputation as a hypochondriac. Even if this does not ever become an openly accepted situation, it can subliminally play on a doctor’s mind when they are treating you. Although doctors are trained to, and will, treat every case on its merits, the urgency with which they treat any serious case may not be as present if you are of a mind to seek help for minor issues which could be solved with a trip to the pharmacy. However, if it is a true problem it needs to be addressed with haste. Do not just “soldier on” if you find that your life is being made more difficult by a health issue.

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Work Should Not Be Your Reason For Living

We all have to work hard at times, in order to meet deadlines or to get something done ahead of time so that we can take the holiday we promised ourselves. For one reason or another, it is simply a fact that it can benefit us to really throw ourselves at work at one time or another. What should be avoided, though, is a tendency to treat work as though it is the goal in itself. Too many people in this day and age approach their work as though it is their reason for living, and it ends up just being something that makes them ill – or worse. Yes, there are times when we have to work hard, but the reasons why we do this need to be the right ones.

If you bury yourself in your work, you could find that one day your work buries you. It has been shown that stress has been a major contributor to a lot of conditions that can be at best very detrimental to one’s health and in many cases fatal. If your job is one that features a lot of competition, tough negotiating and long hours, then the real risk is that you could be pushing yourself towards a heart attack or a nervous breakdown. There are other stress-related conditions too, and it is not only weak people who fall victim to them. You can be as competitive and as go-getting as you like, but when your heart tells you that you have to stop, you have no option but to obey it.

It is unfortunate that so many people find themselves in a position where they simply cannot take a break from their work. It may be that their home situation dictates that they make a certain amount of money every week, and that they would be in a worse position if they worked fewer hours. Even in a situation such as this, it is infinitely preferable to look for other solutions to such a problem. Your health is no respecter of reasons, and it will not listen to words and phrases like “eviction” or “loan repayment”. If you can negotiate a way of keeping out of trouble while working normal hours, then you should.

Too many people work too long and too hard out of a misguided impression that they need to be a hero. It is essential that we recognise that sometimes the bravest thing is to admit we need a break. It is not for nothing that the term “workaholic” was invented. Some people are convinced that they need to be working and that they are useless if they aren’t. A good work ethic is certainly admirable, but a good work ethic is not always to work harder and harder until you cannot push yourself any more. Learning to work smart instead of working hard can benefit your health and allow you to appreciate life more. Let the other people race against themselves to prove whatever they have to prove – you have other things that need your attention too.

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Why You Are So Tired?

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Most of us will, at least once a day if not more often, feel a little bit short of energy and experience a desire to stop whatever we are doing and go chill out for a spell. Excessive tiredness is a surprisingly common complaint, and it affects people in all manner of jobs from the highly physical to the mainly sedentary. How often will you hear someone say “I really don’t know why I am so tired – I’ve not even done much today!”?

The reason that people find themselves wondering just that is that they have, as often as not, got too little sleep. In today’s society, the work-life balance tends to be weighted firmly in favour of work – and that leaves many of us fighting to get through the week. “That Friday Feeling” may be about partying for some people, but for many of us it is more about feeling blessed relief that we can crawl under the duvet for a spell.

For many of us, work commitments mean getting out of bed at any time from 5am onwards. To get the eight hours of sleep that the average human being needs, this would necessitate going to bed at some time prior to 9pm. If you have got back from the office at any point after five or six o’clock, that leaves you with a very short window in which to get something to eat, chat with family or friends, and get ready for bed. Although that sounds monstrous, it doesn’t always happen that way, as we often rebel against our body clock and stay up a few more hours to watch TV or whatever else we like to do.

The problem with doing that is that we are simply saving up a “sleep debt” for ourselves, which our body will be looking to cash in at some point. For those of us who have weekends off, this means that as often as not we will spend the mornings of Saturday and Sunday catching up on missed sleep. So much for any plans we had to get things done around the home.

The solution to the sleep debt problem is not immediately evident. Many of us just accept that we will have to deal with the effects of sleep deprivation during the week, get ourselves back on a relatively even keel at the weekend, and then begin the process anew on Monday. If we could all find jobs that allowed us eight hours of work, eight hours of free time (minus travel and preparation times) and eight hours of sleep, we’d probably all be a lot happier. As this is not an achievable situation, we have to look at the options we do have.

It is vital, however, that we all realize that burning the candle at both ends is not a sustainable way of doing things, long term. If you can find a way to increase your window of opportunity for sleeping, then it is a good idea to do so. You will feel a great deal more recharged as a result.

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Honesty Is The Best Policy

Picture the scene: you have been worrying yourself into a blue funk over the course of a week with one subject dominating the horizon and no idea how you are going to deal with it. This worry arises time and again, often at inopportune moments, before sinking out of sight for long enough to give you a shot at cheering up – before the worry appears again and pulls the rag from underneath your feet. As you sit there consumed by the feeling that nothing is ever going to be enjoyable again, it is a level certainty that someone will ask you: “What’s up?”. It is also a fair possibility that you will pause for a moment and then say “Oh? No, nothing, I’m fine.”

Does that sound familiar? If so, don’t worry – you’re one of a great many people who have lived that exact scenario out maybe weekly, maybe even more often than that. We have a tendency to internalize our worries, and when someone asks us what’s going on it is somehow easie r to pretend that all’s well rather than burdening them with some of what is bothering us. Never mind the fact that they may be able to help, we do not want to be thought of as wasting their valuable time. It is a little bit like a dance in a lot of ways – the initial approach, the intricate steps of offer and response, the big finish (where they walk away, perhaps a tad confused).

For politeness’ sake, we are almost hard-wired to decline any offers of help even when we would really benefit from having someone else’s advice. But if they didn’t want to help, they wouldn’t have asked. Whatever the situation you are trying to deal with, there might be something they can do. Maybe they can help materially. Maybe they’ve been there themselves and can offer advice that will fix things. Maybe they know someone who can help, even if they cannot themselves. Either way, it is counter-productive to turn down an offer of help simply because you don’t want to be impolite. If nothing else the act of telling someone, and having them listen to you, can make the problem seem a bit less insurmountable.

The act of “bottling things up” is one that we are all prone to every once in a while, but it is not a good habit to get into. Stress is a major contributor to many illnesses, both physical and mental, and allowing problems to snowball to the point where you cannot see a way out is only going to hurt you in the short and long term. A good friend will want to help you. Solving a problem is a lot easier when you have a second mind working on it. Don’t think that they are only asking in order to be polite, and that by telling them anything you will be ruining their day. They want to know. They want to help. Give them that opportunity, and it will make things a whole lot more straightforward for all concerned.

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