Study says stress hits early
Residents of Northern Ireland experience 13 bouts of stress every day, it has emerged today.
A study into the stress levels of 2000 adults found the first flash hits early, in the middle of the night, in fact, with over two thirds of people from Northern Ireland waking in the night due to stress.
In the morning, not being able to find things like keys or wallet causes higher levels of stress before even leaving home, whilst feeling unhappy with their weight and self-image proved another reason to worry.
Work and finances were the biggest source of anxiety in the average person’s life, while general day to day activities surprisingly proved the second biggest problem.
The research, commissioned by IKEA as part of its Life at Home report, found that Northern Ireland has a “powering through” attitude when it comes to stress, more so than when compared with the rest of the UK.
When further probed on how they handle stress, getting on with it and exercise were of the most popular responses from Northern Ireland, and even the simplest of actions like hugging, often helped. However, shouldn’t the reasons behind stress be tackled instead of having to ‘power through’ and deal with it?
Myriam Ruffo, head of bedroom and bathroom at IKEA said: “With more and more people using mobiles and tablets in the bedroom and bathroom, these rooms are no longer safe havens where people can go to relax and revitalise.
Technology is encroaching on the bedroom and bathroom, limiting their healing powers; and this severely compromises people’s ability to cope with everyday stresses and strains.
It’s vital that people create a space where they can completely escape and find ways to organise their lives to combat stress before it has even begun.
Luckily, there are lots of small changes that people can make within the home, from getting their clothes ready the night before to keeping a pen and paper next to their bed to write down any nighttime worries, which will give them a better and more stress-free start to the day.”
Morning stress from Northern Ireland’s correspondents was most likely to be driven by overtiredness, being late and feeling overweight; linking back to the number of correspondents who were woken in the night due to stress, with 47 per cent admitting it made them feel tired all the time, and over a third saying it put them in a bad mood.
The workplace then prompts further flurries of negative feeling – heavy workloads, computer malfunctions and a lack of time were the likeliest contributors.
And there’s no let-up back home with 22 per cent confessing their thoughts are often dominated by what they need to do for work the next day.
Getting to bed late, being contacted out of work hours and a worry that they weren’t taking care of themselves also prompted jolts of stress.
Interestingly, almost half of those questioned in the survey said they didn’t think it was normal or healthy for stress to be part of life, while over a third of Londoners think stress is normal if you want to be successful/financially comfortable.
And the build up of stress is taking a toll on home life – a third said keeping the house clean was a genuine contributor.
Myriam Ruffo added: “Certain stress triggers such as technology malfunctions and family issues can be somewhat out of our control.
“But as tiredness and losing our essential items were two key sources of frustration, ensuring you’re well-rested and organised can definitely reduce the stress of your day-to-day routine.
“Ensuring rooms in the home are clear and comfortable is also a step we can all take towards a calmer mentality.”
Find 26 tips to help you start and end your day better at IKEA.co.uk/wonderfuleveryday.
20 of the most common daily stresses
1. Feeling unhappy with your weight
2. Not being able to find things such as keys, phone, and wallet
3. Being unable to sleep
4. Arguments/disagreements with partner
5. Tackling tiredness/general aches and pains
6. Issues with finances
7. Being late for work
8. Family issues
9. Stress from having overslept
10. Cleaning the house
11. General life admin
12. Issues with public transport -delays, traffic, too busy etc
13. Not having anything to wear
14. Not having enough time to do everything
15. Someone in the bathroom when you need it
16. Issues with the house/DIY
17. Getting kids ready for school
18. Worrying about work out of hours
19. Fitting exercise into my day
20. My partner/spouse snoring
