How To Handle Work-Related Stress (6 Ways To Try This Week)

There are various ways to handle work-related stress, here are some things you can do this week to help you cope at work:

Check your thought patterns. When you’re in a high-pressure moment, pause and examine whether your thinking is adding to the stress. Are you imagining a far worse outcome than is likely? Is this situation truly a disaster, or is it a challenge you can meet? Sometimes the story we tell ourselves about the stress is more damaging than the stressor itself.

Learn to say no. This one is hard for young professionals who feel like they need to say yes to everything to prove their value. But knowing how to say no is an important part of managing workplace stress. If you take on too much, you could end up doing nothing well. It’s better to decline some tasks so you can complete others with excellence. You can be polite and professional about it — “With my current workload, I can take that on after I finish this project” — without apologizing for having limits.

Take your breaks. All of them. Even hourly mini-breaks where you stretch your shoulders, back, and neck can provide physical stress relief that reduces mental stress. And lunch is often skipped at the expense of more stress, not less. Walking away from your desk and avoiding a “working lunch” are practical ways to decompress throughout the day.

Move your body. Exercise is one of the most consistently supported stress management strategies across every source we reviewed. Aerobic exercise — running, swimming, brisk walking — works best for most people. Even 10 to 15 minutes a day can make a measurable difference. You don’t need a gym membership. You need a pair of shoes and a willingness to step outside.

Build your support system. Whether it’s family and friends, a therapist, a support group, or even a journaling practice, processing through your stressors is one of the most effective ways to keep stress from weighing you down. Talking about what you’re carrying doesn’t make you less capable. It makes you human. You don’t have to white-knuckle this alone.

Develop interests outside of work. This sounds simple, but it matters more than you think. Having hobbies and activities on your personal time helps you draw a line between your work identity and the rest of who you are. When work is your only world, every setback in that world feels existential. A life with other outlets — creativity, fitness, community, social connection — gives you somewhere to land when work gets turbulent.

While we encourage you to do all these, sometimes it is not about managing your stress, it’s about getting to the root of it. 

What’s Actually Causing My Stress at Work?

What is causing your stress is the first question worth sitting with, because the answer isn’t always obvious. Stress at work doesn’t always come from one dramatic source. More often, it’s a combination of things that compound over time.

Some of the most common workplace stressors include:

• Challenges in maintaining work-life balance
• Increasing work demands
• Meeting deadlines
• Growing performance expectations
• A lack of social support or community among coworkers. For young professionals specifically, you can add imposter syndrome, unclear career paths, and the pressure of being “new” to that list.

Here’s something worth thinking about: it’s not just the job that creates stress — it’s also how you respond to the pressures and demands of each workplace. Two people in the same role can experience that role very differently depending on their personality, their support system, and their coping habits. That’s not a judgment. It’s actually good news, because it means some of the solutions are within your reach.

What Are Some Signs of Work-Related Stress?

This is a critical question, because stress has a way of normalizing itself. You start accepting the headaches, the sleeplessness, the irritability as just part of the grind. But your body is keeping score.

In the short term, work stress can trigger:

• Headaches
• Shallow breathing
• Trouble sleeping
• Anxiety
• Stomach issues

Left unchecked over time, chronic stress can increase the risk of:

• Heart disease
• Depression
• Back pain
• Lasting muscle aches
• A weakened immune system

It can also impair your ability to focus and make sound decisions — which, ironically, makes the work that’s stressing you out even harder to do well.

The signs tend to show up in three categories. Physically, stress presents as:

• Frequent headaches
• Body aches
• Digestive issues
• Appetite changes
• Sleep disruption
• Recurring illness
• Fatigue

Mentally and emotionally, it manifests as:

• Increased irritability
• Feeling tense and on edge
• Withdrawing from coworkers
• Struggling to concentrate
• A loss of interest in your work
• Anxiety
• Feelings of depression

If you’re reading that list and checking more than a few boxes, don’t brush it off. That’s not just “adulting.” That’s your mind and body asking for help.

What If I’ve Tried Everything and I’m Still Struggling?

Then it’s time to ask for help beyond what you can do on your own, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

If self-help methods aren’t cutting it, talk with a mental health provider who specializes in stress management. Prolonged, unmanaged stress can develop into anxiety disorders, depression, insomnia, high blood pressure, and even increase the risk of heart attack and stroke. These aren’t scare tactics — they’re medical realities. The earlier you address chronic stress, the better the outcomes.

It’s also worth knowing that your employer may have resources you’re not using. More than 85% of employees surveyed said that actions from their employer would help their mental health. Many companies offer Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) that provide free, confidential counseling sessions. Check your benefits package — you might already be paying for support you’ve never accessed.