Stress at the Office
In most large organisations in the city, office politics runs rife - management that seems insensitive to staff; staff that complain about things without offering a better alternative; some managers who don’t want to hear any new ideas anyway. Stir in some clashing ego’s, some ‘sensitive flowers’, some go-getters, others that just go to eat their lunch, staff shortages, an employment freeze, limited budgets and impossible deadlines.
And you have a recipe for a suboptimal work environment, some would say a common scenario.
I have a client who works in such a place and was frustrated to the max, stressed about all the obvious shortfalls, and impediments to meaningful progress. Needless to say, this was messing with their mental health.
But they recently made a decision that’s turned things around for them.
Eckhart Tolle tells us if we are experiencing a situation that is causing us stress we have three options: accept it, change it, or exit it.
My client’s decision was a combination of acceptance and change. First they realised that with the best will in the world, there is no way the organisation would ever operate exactly the way they want it to. They had to accept that their capacity to influence the big picture was always going to be limited.
Secondly, they decided the sun was shining today*, they’re healthy, they are in a loving relationship, they had a lot to be grateful for in the present moment. So now they decided to bring a new attitude to their role, to influence the things they can change in a positive way, to be compassionate with others in their sphere, and let the other stuff slide. In short, they made the conscious choice to be happier, to change their own view of things.
So far this has been transformational for their own peace of mind. Surprisingly, they also found that they have been able to make some really positive impacts for others, beyond the remit of their role, which gives them added job satisfaction.
The point is the working environment does not cause the stress. It’s our response that does that. Stress arises when things are one way, but we want them to be another way. Our response is our choice.
The other point is, that when we swim with the current for a while, we not only save energy, but life can provide us with some surprising alternatives, if we are awake to them.
Thoughts
We know that our uncontrolled thoughts can cause us stress. But it is a bit glib to say ‘no thoughts, no stress’. Try this approach instead, suggested by Ram Dass:
“If I can't stop thinking, maybe I can let my thoughts go by without getting caught up in them. Feel the breeze on your face or your neck? See how it's going by? You're not all hung up with it. You don't have to see where each breeze goes. You don't have to glance to see if it hit those trees over there. It's breezes, and they're just going by. Make your thoughts like those little breezes, just going by.”
Thoughts come and go like the breeze. Just keep letting them go by, then come back to the present.
Speaking literally of which … in Wellington we have plenty of breeze at times. Is that good or bad? It depends if you weigh down the recycling bin when you put it out tonight, lol. Again it’s a choice. Wind can be annoying. But it brings fresh air.
A few years ago I worked on the ambulance in Christchurch where there’s often no breeze in the winter. Mist and smog hung around that city for weeks. Not great for the lungs. We got so many winter calls there for asthma, COPD and other respiratory ailments.
A better choice about if things are ‘good’ or ‘bad’, is sometimes to consider that things just ‘are’. We don’t need to take a position on every single thing! What a needless waste of energy. (Polarities - maybe a good topic for a future newsletter.)
Body-Held Trauma
Dr Fritz Smith, the founder of Zero Balancing, said:
“We live in many fields of vibration that are at the surface of life, comprised of our personal conditioning, hectic lifestyles, busy minds, fears and anxieties. We have accommodated to these fields over time so that we are no longer aware of their vibrations. Beneath these surface vibrations we have a more subtle vibratory nature, which is usually obscured from our daily experience. Through touch and expanded states of consciousness we can help a person gain access to this subtle nature.”
So a given person may be holding multiple levels of energies acquired through their lifetimes, both through regular life, and through extraordinary stresses, physical and mental. Sometimes it takes many sessions of bodywork to peel away these layers of the onion, and free the person from unhelpful energetic vibrations.
Also, by accessing their ‘subtle nature’, they can access that deeper witness aspect of themselves, that enables them to stand back from ‘good’ or ‘bad’ judgements, from thoughts, and just be deeply in the moment – an incredibly healing space to occupy.
I was pleased to welcome several new people who reacted to this possibility for bodywork, at my most recent Pro Bono days.
Ngaio Health
The health centre I work from in Ngaio at 63 Ottawa Road, has just shortened its name to Ngaio Health. It’s also refocused it’s branding to manual therapies of which Zero Balancing and Craniosacral are examples. They’ve also produced some exciting new signage. Check it out next time you call by!
*Media Corner
A simple song from the 70’s, that still makes me feel good when I hear it.
John Denver - Sunshine on my Shoulders (YouTube)
Pro Bono Days
Ngaio - Tueday 18 July, Upper Hutt - Wednesday 19 July
Please share my website, or this page, with anyone you know that may benefit. Or click on this link to book now.
With caring and kindness,
Rhys Dwyer
If you know anyone, from kids up who maybe struggling with body-held tension, energy levels, stress, anxiety, or choices, then please ask them to check me out. Bodywork and present moment awareness may just make a big difference.
Note that bodywork is always complimentary to prudent medical care.