About the Book

‘Although endemic in today’s society, stress is often misunderstood, belittled, ignored or denied. Melanie King’s welcome book adopts a common-sense approach to provide practical information and guidance for everyone on recognising and dealing with the causes, consequences and costs of stress.’
(Tim Field, author of Bully in Sight)

Surviving Stress at Work aims to educate both employers and employees about the negative effects of stress, and to show how each can play a part in reducing both its causes and the subsequent effects – the epidemic of ill-health and absenteeism in the British workplace. The latest statistics show that 1.2 million Britons suffer from work-related stress and that absenteeism costs the UK £10.2 billion per year – a sum greater that the gross national product of Kenya. There is little indication that the situation is improving.

Melanie King examines the prevalence of work-related stress in the UK, including who is most susceptible and what are the most common triggers: work overload, bullying, being in the wrong job, pressures of trying to balance work and home, and experiencing job insecurity. Using the latest scientific research from periodicals such as The New England Journal of Medicine and The Lancet, the book describes the role stress plays in the functioning of the human body. A variety of positive strategies are then offered – legal, medical and ‘spiritual’ – to help stressed-out workers put their lives back on track. These include who to talk to, suggestions of how to move forward, and why scientists claim that nurturing your body, through such things as massages and meditation, really does work.

The book is written from the perspective of a professional careers adviser with over thirteen years’ experience. It also includes the testimonies of many victims of work-related stress interviewed by King. Surviving Stress at Work is, ultimately, a positive book that will act as a ‘survivor’s manual’, providing practical ways for the reader to understand and overcome work-related stress and, in doing so, to get the most out of their lives and careers.