Last Wednesday, in the UK, it was National Stress Awareness Day. In 1999, when I was a member of the Executive of the International Stress Management Association (UK), an idea came to me about creating a special Awareness Day which would ensure the topic of stress would remain high on the national agenda.

Though the idea was well received by everyone, unfortunately, no funding was available as the organisation was, and still is, a registered charity and lead professional body for stress management, well-being and performance, promoting sound knowledge and best practice in the workplace.

However, undeterred by this lack of resources, we agreed our first sponsorship deal, and National Stress Awareness Day was launched on November 3, 1999. It now takes place on the first Wednesday of November each year.

What is industry doing about stress? It is interesting to reflect as to whether a day such as this is still necessary. Do people really still need to be made aware of the signs of stress and know how to take appropriate action? Does management still need to look out for signs of stress in their work-teams and know what organisational interventions are available to counter this? The answer, very simply, is “Yes!” Competition is as intense as ever and there is still an urgent need for a greater awareness of the impact of stress upon organisations and the people working in them. Stress is a fact of life. It may exist at home or at work, when we may feel that circumstances or workloads are outside of our ability to control them. However, what is in our control is how we manage stress and how resilient we can be when coping with pressures that can sometimes overwhelm us.

If we ignore the warning signs of stress, then we can very quickly move into a fatigue and exhaustion zone — either mentally, physically or both. What we do need to appreciate is that the journey from exhaustion to burnout is a short one in instances where stress is prolonged over a period of time.

It is a fact that our bodies can break down in the same way as cars. You probably service your car twice a year because you know you need to rely on it.

However, I wonder how well you look after the far more complex machine that is your body? Stress is ‘a red light flashing on your dashboard’ and when you see it, you must take action. Otherwise those complex human systems will start to crash — like an electricity overload that suddenly causes a power failure.

In both cases, output required must be related to the input resourced. A flashlight with a fully charged battery can last many hours, while one with a depleted power source will fail just when you most need it. An individual who actually suffers from ‘burnout’ will never be the same again because vital systems will have been permanently damaged, and they might never work, full-time, again.

There is still a stigma about mental health issues in the workplace. Despite greater awareness of this highly sensitive issue, there are still those who don’t fully appreciate the impact of excessive stress. Stress is a mental health issue that needs to be recognised and managed with sensitivity.

So what can we do about it?

— Find out how to prevent pressure turning into stress.

— Learn to recognise its causes and effects.

— Know what interventions are available.

— Identify ways to increase individual resilience.

— Seek immediate help if stress is impacting your health.

Going forward, I believe the National Stress Awareness Day is doing what it set out to do — to keep stress management high on the national agenda.

In London, the other day I was looking at an advertisement on a billboard from Emirates airline. It read ‘Master the Art of Me-Time’. I think that sums it all up rather well. Don’t you?

CREDIT: The writer is CEO of an international stress management consultancy and her book, Show Stress Who’s Boss!, is available in all good bookshops.