Following on from my previous blog post on Work and Chronic Illness – if you missed it you can find it here – today I am going to talk about the different techniques you can use at work if indeed you have to.

During my time at work I tried to come up with a few techniques to combat some of my symptoms which if you are in position where work is your only option you may (or may not!) find useful. Remember this will be determined by the type of work you do and the type of condition you have, so you may need to make your own adjustments based on your actual job role and health.

• Muscle pain – If you suffer with muscle pain try to do some mindful stretching to stretch out achy muscles – depending on your work environment you may find you need to nip out to the toilet so it doesn’t look like you are auditioning for a fitness DVD

• If you are sat down at work make sure you take up the opportunity to undertake a workstation assessment. This will help to provide you with the right type of chair, foot rest, technology and work space for your individual needs

• To combat fatigue and headaches make sure you drink plenty of water and have regular snacks. This will also help keep your blood sugar steady if you suffer with dizziness

• Go to bed the same time every night to let your body get into a routine

• Make sure you take your full entitled break – In society nowadays we are expected to work like machines due to staff shortages and tighter deadlines and as a result feel railroaded into taking shorter breaks or in some cases missing breaks altogether. Under no circumstances allow yourself to do this as you will only pay for it later. Take your full break, get out in the fresh air and away from your work environment, eat and drink to refuel and try to switch your brain off in that short space of time

• Make sure you take all medications and aids with you to work and set reminders for any medications you need to take throughout the day

• If you are working in an office environment and are light sensitive then adjust the brightness on the computer screen and use coloured screen paper when reading documents

• Practise deep breathing in stressful situations

• Pace your activities if possible by changing between physical and mental tasks. If you have spoken to your manager about your condition/s then you could explain the importance of pacing to them so depending on your job role they could alter your tasks.

• Develop a strong work life balance by not letting work become your life otherwise your home life will be the area affected

• When you leave work each day switch your work brain off and shove it in a drawer – easier said than done right! The reality is though there is no point worrying about things you have/haven’t done when at home because you can’t do anything about it until your back at work – you’re wasting valuable energy. Wasted energy that will only impact your home life which is really not what you need

• Speak up when things are getting tough – do not suffer in silence

• Realise that if things are getting too much having time away from work isn’t a weakness. If you need to be signed off regardless of how long that is for it is probably the best thing for you at that time. Chronic illness is hard work and working with one is even harder so give yourself a break and hold up on the guilt.

• Consider a career change – It sounds so easy when people say it, but not everybody is able to just give up their current job and take a chance on something completely different, but if you are struggling in your current role it doesn’t hurt to brainstorm what you would like to do instead and investigate your options. – I will be looking at doing a piece on career changes in the future so keep your eyes peeled.

The reality is working with chronic illness is difficult and there is no quick fix that will take the difficulty away, but I hope you find my suggestions helpful. The most important thing is to look after yourself and know you can only do your best, and that is all that really counts.