Story by Susan, The Work Place
Susan was the face of the company where she worked at a time.
She welcomes everyone with a brilliant smile as she attends to customers as a matter of fact Susan was the best customer service personal at De-Hasstrup communication. The marketers love her because of her positive and quick response time to their calls and complains which makes her extension phone rings non stop.
DCL Good morning / Afternoon, her voice echoes each time she picks her call.
But what a lot of people didn’t realize was Susan was dealing with Work Anxiety attack. Each morning she wakes up with fear and afraid to face the day. She always have the fear of losing her job..
Sometimes she would cry and cry and her husband would console her. She would come up with many excuses on why she shouldn’t go to work, she would cry and say “Mr. PAT hates me and wants me out of the company Juwon my colleague is too hostile, I can’t even approach her when I need help with my work. She is more experienced but yet she won’t help or direct me. She will wait for me to make mistakes and then she would broadcast it to everyone. Please my husband let me resign and stay home to take care of our children she would plead every morning”.
But, her husband would not listen to her pleading rather he would allay her fears and encourage her to go back to work. “You can’t become a career woman that you have always wanted to be if you keep quitting your job because your supervisor doesn’t like you. I will help with the childre , I will leave work early to pick them up from school and I will make your favorite Egusi soup don’t worry I got you baby”. With all that Susan would get up and leave for work. As soon as she walks into the office, She puts on that smile and wait for Mr. PATs morning talk or shouts, Juwons usual sarcastic comment and then waits for customers to walk in and her extension line to ring. But what Susan didn’t realize was that She is suffering from Work Anxiety attack
This Work Anxiety attack condition is what makes her view Juwon and Mr. PAT as her enemies or mockers.
A person that suffers from anxiety attack always thinks some one hates them while in the actual sense they are only doing their jobs. Anxiety attacks makes you cry every morning before getting ready for work and yet you are the best thing that has happened to the organization.
How do you identify an Employee with Anxiety attack.
1. They are sometimes the very cheerful staff
2. They cry at slight provocation
3. They work so hard I repeat work so hard that you wonder if they get triple salaries from the rest of the colleagues and staff.
4. The reason they work too hard is because they live with constant fear of been sacked or disgrace if they don’t deliver. So the hard work syndrome is borne out of Fear.
5. While the less active ones comes around to ask for salary increase you will never hear them come to you for a raise. If you don’t suggest or grant them salary increase they will never ask because they are grateful you are still keeping them, they will rather go home and cry about how they were never appreciated and they silently wish you could see their efforts.
Effects OF Work Anxiety Attack
If not checked it begins to affect the output of the individual
Inability to learn new skills
They become redundant and loose interest at work.
Remedy.
Human Resources or management should organize monthly or quarterly mental check by inviting a therapist to speak to employees and also have a one on one talk with staff’s.
Management should encourage friendly work zone and discourage hostility among superiors
Create a relax atmosphere by introducing TGIF
A weekend get away should be a welcome idea.
The stronger ones should look out for the weaker ones by helping them overcome their fears.
After all is a work Zone and not a War ZONE.
You can share your experience with Susan using the comment box below or mail her at info@dworkplace.com or susan@dworkplace.com or visit her blog for more interesting stories
