Frome-based psycho-therapist and meditation facilitator Annie Stoker says that people who put extra time into work and don’t know when to stop are in danger of overwhelm and burn out.
She said, “People who push themselves past their limits, don’t recharge or don’t even unplug from work when on holiday, suffer from more stress, get sick more often and become unhappy both at work and at home.
“And workaholism is on a dramatic increase. In the last 12 months I’ve seen a massive rise in demand for my services from people who just don’t know how to balance their lives.
“Technology has made it easy for us to be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week and people are feeling the pressure to work in the evenings and on weekends. But rather than being more productive, staff stress and burn out costs companies billions of pounds annually.
“Stress-related claims on health insurance have doubled in the last decade with every worker having around nine sick days and six unproductive days per year due to stress.”
Annie Stoker said that luckily the huge recent surge in public awareness of mindfulness and meditation is starting to address these problems. Research has found that the use of meditation practices for employees and their immediate families has a direct impact upon five areas:
• Reduction in sick days • Reduction in workers compensation claims • Reduction in staff turn over • Increase in worker productivity • Increase in personal and professional quality of life.
Annie Stoker said that meditating not only transforms work productivity but also increases overall well-being physically, emotionally and mentally.
However, many people find it hard to be mindful and meditate regularly when they feel stressed or overwhelmed and so don’t continue their practice.
To combat this, she is launching Move Meditation in Frome, which is a brand new type of dynamic meditation. It allows participants to let go of stressful feelings and thoughts first, which then naturally leads people to a quiet, peaceful state.
She continued, “Trying to wrestle with a busy mind when you are supposed to be meditating can be so frustrating. Instead Move Meditation allows people to release their stress up front so that they can connect with a sense of vitality and calm again.”
These unique classes at the Hubnub Centre, Whittox Lane, Frome provide not only relief from anxiety and stress, but they also increase long-term personal well-being.
More information is available from www.Life TrainingInstitute.co.uk
Annie Stoker is a psychotherapist, core coach, trainer and author of The Personal Development Handbook which is available at Hunting Raven books in Frome. She has 25 years’ experience working with individuals and businesses to increase happiness, fulfilment and wellbeing.
