Take Charge of Your Work Life

By Jenny Stamos Kovacs

Feel better fast by giving these five unhealthy habits the pink slip today.

Call them “occupational hazards”: people, places, and things you come in contact with at work that have the ability to harm your physical and emotional wellbeing. It’s a fast-growing problem, especially since we’re spending more time in the office than ever before. In fact, women have tacked two extra hours onto their workweek since 1980, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. “From your frame of mind to the germs you’re regularly exposed to, your office environment plays a huge role in your health,” says Jane Sadler, M.D., a physician with Baylor Health Care System in Dallas. That’s why we consulted the experts to reveal five ways the daily grind may be wearing you down—and what you can do to keep yourself protected.

1 YOU’RE ALWAYS ON CALL

Out of all the things women stress over, their job is at the top of the list, reports the American Psychological Association. Blame it on heavier workloads and longer days, says Ellen Kossek, Ph.D., a professor of human resources and organizational behavior at Michigan State University.

“More and more, companies are expecting employees to be available around the clock via cell phone, BlackBerry, or e-mail,” she says. Although it’s easy to write off daily pressure as an inevitable part of the job, it takes a toll. “Stress causes surges in the hormone cortisol, which makes your heart beat faster, your blood pressure rise, and your muscles tighten,” says Claire Michaels Wheeler, M.D., Ph.D., author of 10 Simple Solutions to Stress. While this response can power you through a deadline or emergency, our bodies aren’t equipped to be on constant red alert. Chronic stress raises your risk for diabetes, depression, and heart disease.

PROTECT YOURSELF

Have an end-of-day ritual “Bringing work problems home with you can affect your personal relationships, rob you of sleep, and raise your risk for depression,” says Wheeler. To avoid working—or dwelling —on a project all evening, take a few minutes at the end of the workday to decompress. A simple act, like listening to a favorite song on your commute home, can signal it’s time to transition to home life.

Make a date Whether it’s dinner with friends or a session with a trainer, post-work commitments will ensure you won’t linger in the office. “When you know you have to leave at a specific time, you’ll get more done during the day,” says Kossek.

Ban the BlackBerry for an hour
It’s called a CrackBerry for a reason: Some 90 percent of BlackBerry users in one study compulsively checked it on their own time, say researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management. That constant connection is draining; people who frequently take business calls, e-mails, and pages at home are the most likely to report feeling tired and distracted. Reclaim your free time by turning it off after a certain time at night or setting aside a specific room in your house in which to return messages.