Blog TLDR
The world has turned to Remote working as it continues to fight the COVID-19 global pandemic. This has left people wondering if remote working is good for their mental health in the long run. In this blog, we will discuss how remote working and mental health are interrelated.
Is remote working a good thing?
While remote working seems a good thing at first because you do not have to travel long distances to your office and can literally jump off the bed and work or even work while you’re about to sleep, most people absolutely hate it. People tend to believe that remote working could be a short-term solution to a problem but constant work-from-home leads to depression. Not only do people get depressed but they also begin to get frustrated because of lack of daily social interaction that they would normally have while working from the office.
Sense of wellbeing
Now that most of the businesses have made remote working compulsory, people have no option but to grind their way out from the corner of their house. You might have to work and complete daily targets from your bedroom and that might not be the most comfortable thing you’ve done. Human beings are defined as social animals and if you take away the social aspect, all you get is a living being struggling to find his or her identity. You begin to lose a sense of well-being. It’s important to not let it happen to you.
Sense of Isolation
If you have studied abroad or are used to staying in hostels or student accommodations during your education, it might not be a new thing for you, but if you are facing this for the first time, believe us, things could go haywire pretty soon. All you need to do is get into video conversations with your friends, go for a walk once or twice a day and maybe talk to your family. There are so many sources to socialize when you have a proper daily office routine, be it the bus or the subway you travel in or be it your close colleagues in the office with whom you have lunch. Remote working takes all that away and within no time, you are isolated and you being to lose out on updates of your social life. The more you talk to people, the healthier you’ll be mentally.
Remote working and fear of burnout
You tend to save a lot of travel time when you are working from the comfort of your house. What do you do then? Sleep more? Watch shows or exercise? Well, we suggest you should do it. Lot of studies and surveys suggest that people tend to work more as they tend to find it hard to understand what to do with the free time. People who get hourly wages push the envelope even harder as they sense the opportunity to earn more by working more hours and do not want to let any opportunity of impressing the office hierarchy. There is a problem with this type of thinking though. You do not want to turn yourself into a robot, isn’t it? It feels good at the start but over-working coupled with isolation leads to a burnout and you start getting a mental block soon. This results into frequent lapses of concentration and affects the productivity of work and the cycle keeps going on. We suggest that you stick to your work hours and find ways to relax yourself and stay fresh.
Some ill-effects of remote working
- Insomnia or excessive sleeping
- Frustration leading to anxiety and stress
- Headache or watering of eyes
- Feeling of loneliness and social exclusion
- Depression and overthinking leading to insecurity
Here’s what you can do to avoid the above ill-effects
- Sick to your routine and be disciplined
- Rearrange your stuff and create a good workspace in your house
- Go for a walk and exercise everyday
- Engage in conversations with your family and friends via videocalls
- If you are being forced into excessive workload, start saying ‘No’
Remote working can be done in a right manner
Even though there are so many ill-effects of confining yourself to remote working only, you can come out of it successfully if you manage to take some necessary steps. Keep in mind that it’s ok not to be ok and that you can express your depression when you feel down and out. Talking your way out is the best solution in such situations. Be disciplined, maintain your routine, take good care of your personal finances, don’t over-work and keep yourself fresh and energetic. That’s the perfect recipe to keep yourself motivated for work every day. If you remain positive, your work productivity will improve and you can allocate some time for self-grooming and entertainment.
Mental health is very important and its often ignored as compared to the physical health. To all the people who are engaged in remote working, stay fit and stay healthy.
Happy remote working! Happy wellbeing!
The post How to look after your mental health while working remotely appeared first on Chango.
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