ACKNOWLEDGE

That certain situations may create more pressure than you can cope with, leading to physical and psychological stress. 

Signs of stress include:

• Difficulty sleeping

• Reduced appetite

• Trouble focusing

• Feeling more tired or irritable than usual

• Increased nervousness or fear

• Stomach aches, headaches, constipation or diarrhoea

• Racing heart

• Racing thoughts

• Finding it difficult to enjoy usual activities

• Finding it harder to switch off from work

• Difficulty making decisions

• Being more restless than usual

• Increased tearfulness

• Withdrawing from others

ACT

• Try to have three meals a day, even if you don’t feel like it. Focus on healthy eating if possible

• Take regular breaks throughout the day

• Ensure you get enough sleep

• Do some physical exercise, ideally outdoors or in green spaces

• Use your support network; talk to friends, family and people you trust

• Use distraction techniques like engaging in hobbies or activities unrelated to work

• Prioritise tasks to manage time effectively

• Identify when you have the most energy to tackle important tasks and break them down into achievable steps

• Vary your workload and avoid back-to-back sessions

• Ask for help when needed and set clear boundaries regarding your time and capacity

• Talk to your manager about maintaining a realistic and manageable workload

• Use peer support where available

• Remember, you can only help others if you are helping yourself. Being kind to yourself allows you to be kind to others

ACKNOWLEDGE

That you and staff members might be experiencing stress, based on the signs listed above. 

ACT

• If you notice that you are stressed, follow the top tips for staff. Remember that you are modelling what you would like them to be doing for themselves

• Organise your time well so there’s time for increased supervision and support

• If staff members are displaying signs of stress, ensure there is time taken to talk to them in a quiet and confidential space and offer appropriate support

• Be approachable and available to talk outside of scheduled supervision times

• Review and distribute workloads fairly and evenly among the staff team

• Review capacity and signs of stress as part of regular supervision meetings

• Encourage staff to find time to switch off and maintain healthy boundaries between work and personal life

• Ensure staff have access to TTI’s leaflets, your organisational resources, HR support, and can refer themselves to occupational health or Employee Assistance Programmes

• Find opportunities to bring staff together outside of work