What does one do if they seem to have physical stress related symptoms that are making you sick due to the stress experienced in a work environment?
First, be merciful and kind with yourself. This is normal. It is actually healthy to notice something that’s troubling you. When we’re troubled in our hearts and souls and we don’t know how to deal with the situation it eventually does come out into physical symptoms. The physical symptoms are like a warning signal or a wakeup call from the divine that says something’s not right here. When this happened to me, I explored inside myself and looked to discover where was I not being true to myself, where was I not being true to my values, and what I was not able to say.
My physical symptoms included a sore throat and depletion of energy. When I explored what was going on underneath the physical symptoms, I realized that I had things that I wasn’t saying and that I felt upset and angry. I didn’t have a respectful way of communicating the emotions so I just stuffed them. I needed to learn to respectfully ask those questions and make those observations. The energy depletion as far as I can tell was due to holding on to all this unexpressed emotion and upset. It takes a lot of energy to carry that around and not do anything with it.
Set your intention to tell yourself the truth. Go inside and discover what is real for you. The first step to deal with the physical symptoms is to be honest and truthful with yourself.
Paul Hamid Werder is a business consultant and faculty at UOS. He co-leads the upcoming telecourse, “Keys to a Fulfilled Work Life: Working with the Heart.” Click here for more information about this telecourse.
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