Creating Uplifting Moments Can Ease Work-Related Stress

There seems to be an escalation of work-related stress within society. According to the Occupational Health and Safety Administration, 83 percent of U.S. workers suffer from work-related stress, and 54 percent say that it affects their home life. For the sake of our mental health, it may be important to take an occasional mental health day.

However, we have become a society so attached to our smartphones, socializing, and frenetic activity that we might find ourselves panicked by the thought of nothing to do. For some, a removal from the stress of daily work can be welcoming. For others, a bit frightening. If taking off a day for mental health is not possible, consider making a place for a restorative activity on your personal to-do list. By including moments for yourself that enhance your well-being, you might be able to bring the stress factor under control.

World Mental Health Day recognizes anxiety

With World Mental Health Day on the horizon comes the need to recognize “positive change for everyone’s mental health.” In the U.K., the Mental Health Foundation is focusing on anxiety. Approximately one in five people reportedly feel anxious most or all of the time.

In the U.S., a Kaiser Family Foundation researcher analyzed the latest federal data from the Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey. The survey found anxiety and depression symptoms in 2023 applied to about a third of adults. The data also showed that young adults are more likely than adults of any other age group to experience mental health symptoms.

8 uplifting ideas to add to a to-do list

Consider the opportunity of having nothing to do as a gift to yourself to embrace your creative side and think positively. If you cannot take an entire day, here are some ideas to consider incorporating into your to-do list:

1. Make a wish list that gives you purpose. Fill it with wishes for right now and goals you wish to attain.
2. Free yourself of the “what if” anxiety and be grateful for a day with nothing to do except care for yourself.
3. Embrace nature. Take a walk in park or look out your window to find little miracles in a chirping bird, the beauty of a tree, or clouds making shapes as they float by.
4. Write a serious, handwritten letter to your spouse, lover, friend, relative, parent, or child.
5. Start a gratitude journal so that you can make notes each day of the little blessings in your life.
6. Ponder a favorite saying, such as this one: "Be kind. Everyone you meet is carrying a heavy burden."
7. Think of someone who needs a blessing and silently wish them well.
8. Embrace the words of Carl Jung: “Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.”

Practice gratitude while at work

What if the real stress in your life is from work at your office? Consider this advice by Brendan P. Keegan. Recently named the "World’s Most Innovative CEO," he suggests the practice of gratitude. “Intentionally practicing gratitude gradually trains your brain to see more of the good in your work, making your view of the job more balanced and accurate. With that balance, you might be able to reduce your stress level."