By day, Jasmin (Jaz) Chew is an administrator in the Faculty Operations Team here in Health and Wellbeing, what you may not know about Jaz is that she is also a part-time yoga teacher and is about to embark on a massage course in order to take her career in wellbeing to the next level.
I’ll hand over to Jaz to tell you about why she values wellbeing in the workplace and how she is helping us to bring it into our everyday routine here in the faculty.
43% of UK workers in 2016 reported experiencing work related stress more than half of the time.
With this in mind, and the fact that the University Mental Health Day was on the 1st March, and that there are a lot of changes occurring within the University at the moment, I thought it a good time to reflect on what we do for our own wellbeing during our working days.
Like everyone; I fall into the trap of not leaving my desk or taking a proper lunch break, sometimes I blame meetings and workload, but for the most part; I’m just being lazy. On these days I tend to be more distracted and lethargic, my eyes hurt and my lower back aches more. In a nut shell; I’m less productive and have less energy at the end of the day.
Being a part time Yoga Teacher and someone who is completely sold on the wellbeing craze that is filling our newsfeeds, I notice the difference quite dramatically in myself and others too. As well as being aware that our workloads and commitments vary from day to day, there are a few things YOU can do for yourself that I guarantee will make a difference to both yourself and your day:
- Stay hydrated, drink more water and try to avoid drinking a lot of caffeine as this can be dehydrating.
- Get up from your desk at regular intervals – every 30 minutes or so.
- Communicate; if there is something worrying you talk to someone and ask for support, there is NO shame in this.
- If your office has a treat shelf try to bring in some fruit each week as a healthy alternative.
- Taking a walk on your lunchbreak, there is a great 30 minute round walk from Collegiate Campus through the Botanical Gardens.
Desk Yoga is being offered from the 28th March to be held every Wednesday for the Faculty Health and Wellbeing and you can book a place here. This style of yoga is accessible to all, with most of it taking place sitting down; all movements are aimed to counterbalance the way in which we hold our bodies at our desk and to aid circulation. It will leave you feeling relaxed and revitalised.
Desk Yoga is being offered from the 28th March to be held every Wednesday for the Faculty Health and Wellbeing
Your health matters. It doesn’t matter how busy you are, it’s important to take time out for yourself during the working day.
There is a lot of work currently being undertaken around wellbeing, both in the faculty and across the university. You can find out more via the links below:
Thank you to Jaz for this fantastic article and for kindly offering both her time and expertise to invest in our wellbeing here in the faculty. Having been part of the pilot for them, I can personally vouch for the desk yoga sessions and urge you to book your place as I expect it to fill up very quickly!
