Everyone has stress. It’s one of the most natural human reactions. When faced with a conflict, a controversy, or any kind of ambiguity, usually the response that is triggered is what we call ‘fight or flight’. The period we spend deciding what we’re actually going to do, meaning if we are going to put up a fight or just run, is what creates stress, and the more time it’s taking for us to make that choice, the more stressed we feel.
Specifically for work stress, things are not really that different. Many jobs are by default adding more pressure than others. For example, an ER doctor must make quick calls and each decision they make might literally be about life or death. Therefore, stress in the workplace is not necessarily something bad.
What is indeed bad, is gaslighting: being in a work environment with no sense of accountability, where all your emotions are being undermined and overlooked.
