As they say, “All work and no play, makes Jack a dull boy.” Work addiction is a real thing these days. You might not know that around 10% of Americans suffer from work addiction. They thrive for perfection so much that unknowingly they develop an addiction to work.
Just like drug and alcohol addiction, an individual who is suffering from work addiction gets a “high” from working. This is why they keep repeating the overworking behavior, which provides them this high.
Individuals, who are suffering from work addiction, might fail to stop the behavior, and as a result, often in negative ways, it might affect their physical or mental health along with their personal life.
Here, in this article, we will only talk about work addiction and its effects on your family and mental health. Before starting with the main topic, let’s get some basic idea about work addiction along with its symptoms and possible treatments.
What Exactly Work Addiction Is
Work addiction is a real mental health condition, which is often referred to as workaholism. Just the way any other type of addiction, work addiction also involves an inability to stop the behavior.
Often, it seems a compulsive requirement of achieving success and status or to escape any type of emotional stress. Often, job success is the major reason for developing work addiction.
Just the way when you or any of your loved ones is suffering from substance abuse or drug and alcohol addiction, you opt for NYC outpatient rehab or an inpatient one; you also need proper treatment for getting rid of work addiction.
Symptoms Of Work Addiction
When you are searching for ways to get rid of your or your loved one’s work addiction, you first need to understand the possible symptoms and identify them to be sure whether the individual has already developed work addiction.
Most corporate houses have a culture of hard-working; getting all the praise and putting in some overtime is also often expected. In this situation, it becomes really challenging to recognize work addiction.
Individuals who have work addiction often justify their particular behavior by explaining that it is actually a good thing and helping them achieve their goals. The patients often simply appear committed to their job or the success of their individual projects.
Here, we all need to remember that addiction and ambition are quite different.
An individual who has work addiction issues might engage in compulsive work to avoid other aspects of their personal life, for example, troubling personal crises or emotional issues.
Just the way other addictions often encourage an individual to engage in several behaviors unaware of the negative effects of the addiction; the scenario is quite similar in the case of work addiction also.
Here are the most common symptoms of work addiction.
- In order to engage in work projects or finish tasks, the individual might lose sleep.
- Spending long hours at the office, even when there is no need.
- Having an intense fear of failure at work.
- Being obsessed with work-related success.
- Because of work, disintegrating personal relationships.
- Being paranoid regarding work-related performance.
- About work, having a defensive attitude towards others.
- In order to cope with depression and feelings of guilt, work too much.
- Using work as a way of avoiding relationships.
- Working to avoid dealing with crises, such as financial trouble, divorce, or death.
Impact Of Work Addiction On Family & Mental Health
We are aware of the negative impacts of drug and alcohol addiction.
If the individual who is suffering from work addiction is not taking medical treatment, the situation can get worse over time. They might experience “burnout” in case they are working to the point of mental and physical exhaustion.
This is the most common result of work addiction. Eventually, burnout from work addiction might lead to damaged relationships, extreme stress, and even drug abuse. If the person does not receive proper treatment, the individual can alienate themselves from family and friends.
So, do not wait longer for getting treatment and help, as it will only damage all your precious relationships permanently. Sometimes, constant working comes with chronic stress, which can be hard on physical health.
Apart from all the above-mentioned things, working also can lead to weakened immune systems along with an increased risk of disease. However, it is really great that work addiction is manageable.
With proper treatment, the suffering individual can restore a healthy work-life balance.
Individuals who are suffering from work addiction often work to avoid the feelings of guilt about not working. Thus, it is extremely crucial for the recovering patient to develop a healthy relationship with their wok.
The Solution
For paying all the bits, most of us have to work. Therefore developing a balance is important. In most cases, simply stopping working is impossible.
When an individual is identifying the symptoms of developing work addiction, it is really effective to take some time off from work in order to realize that life will go on without constant work.
In order to manage the addiction, you might think of a career change. As a psychological concern, work addiction is much easier to control and manage than drug or alcohol addiction. You can consider the following.
- Avoiding triggers and stressors.
- Balancing your life activities.
- Making lifestyle changes.
When it comes to work addiction, the individual can think of the below-mentioned treatment options.
- For personalized treatment, individual therapy.
- Group therapy.
- In order to address a co-existing mental illness, rehabilitation programs are effective.
During thai challenging time, you also need to make wfh easier on your body.
Some Additional Tips For Addressing Work Addiction
We never want you to become a work addict and let your work take some serious toll on your mental and physical health and valuable relationships. That is why we are giving you some tips to address your work addiction.
- Understand that true success in life needs a purpose of living, accept that you can not excel in everything, respecting the need for family, spiritual and physical health.
- You should practice mindfulness.
- Always make both your physical and mental health a priority.
- Reset your expectations.
Read also: EFFECTS OF STRESS ON A WOMAN’S HEALTH
