In the current times, work stress can become magnified with changes in circumstances, longer hours and added pressure.
At nutravet, we work closely with our authorised veterinary practices to offer continued support and understand the importance of mental health and wellbeing.
Many vets will offer pet owners advice on how to keep their pets healthy and happy during this time, but it’s also important to also look after your own wellbeing too. Below we offer some tips to help vets and vet nurses reduce their stress and anxiety.
To help keep a healthy work-life balance, some positive things you can do include:
Get plenty of sleep
Sleep is important for physical and mental health. If we don’t get enough sleep, it can make you start to feel anxious and depressed. Try to get in a good night’s sleep and switch off from the day.
Eat well
Eating a well-balanced diet is important for our bodies to ensure we get the right nutrients to keep us healthy. Certain mineral deficiencies such as iron and vitamin B12 can result in a low mood. If you’re particularly stressed or anxious, try to reduce your caffeine intake, which can make you feel anxious and jittery.
Enjoy the sunshine
Sunlight is a great source of Vitamin D, which is important for our bodies and brains. It helps our brains to release chemicals which improves mood, like endorphins and serotonin. Try to take a break during your working day to get out into the sunshine, even if it’s only a 10-minute break.
Exercise
Keeping active is a great way to maintain good mental health. Exercise can help to eliminate low mood anxiety and stress and feeling tired. A short walk will do the trick, you don’t need to run a marathon. Activities like Yoga are also great to reducing stress and anxiety.
Do something you enjoy
Try to set aside time in your working day or week to do something for yourself, whether that be a walk, painting or enjoying your favourite TV show. If we do not spend any time doing things that we enjoy, we can become irritable and unhappy.
Ask for help
Whether it be from friends and family or co-workers or your employer, asking for help is not admitting defeat. It’s important to maintain your mental health. If you speak to your employer, they may not realise how much pressure you’re under and help to lessen the load.
Vet Mind Matters have created an informative PDF guide to enhance wellbeing and manage work stress in the veterinary workplace, which can be found here.