A new survey conducted by mental wellness advocate, Pharma Dynamics, reveals which careers rank amongst the most stressful in South Africa.<\/p>\n
Almost 2,000 respondents living and working in South Africa participated in the online survey, which aimed to measure job-related stress based on several stress triggers.<\/p>\n
These included factors such as the physical and mental demands of a job, deadlines, how much traveling is required, whether it entails working long hours, being exposed to public scrutiny, dealing with conflict and generally what type of risks are associated with various professions.<\/p>\n
Mariska van Aswegen, spokesperson for Pharma Dynamics said: \u201cTo some, certain occupations might not appear to be stressful, while in reality they are. Sitting behind a desk all day might seem like a cosy job, but many white-collar professions can produce an enormous amount of stress.”<\/p>\n
Based on the findings, pilots claimed the top spot overall, largely due to the high degree of personal risk the job poses to themselves and others. The taxing physical and mental demands of the role, on top of working long and arduous hours, also added to its high stress rating.<\/p>\n
Hair stylists claimed to work in the second most stressful career. Most cited the degree of competitiveness in the industry, unmanageable deadlines and the constant pressure of working in the public eye as reasons for their stress.<\/p>\n
“The environment in which most salons operate is often fast-paced and exposes hair stylists to unhealthy fumes and noise, which could potentially add to their already high levels of anxiety. The job is also physically demanding as it requires a lot of standing and many suffer from chronic back pain as a result,” Pharma Dynamics said.<\/p>\n
Farm life with its country setting is often idealised, but as the pace of agriculture increases along with the inescapable threat of global warming it comes as no surprise that farming counts among the third most stressful occupations in SA.<\/p>\n
Economists, who under the dire current economic climate should be stressed beyond measure, appear to be the least stressed among the 40+ professions that were included in the survey.<\/p>\n
The top 10 most stressful jobs in South Africa<\/strong><\/p>\n Van Aswegen said that of particular concern is the high level of stress that participants across various career fields reported. More than 31% referred to their jobs as extremely stressful, 40% described their job-stress as mild, while only 29% cited work-stress as manageable.<\/p>\n \u201cChronic stress can have a long-term effect on the mind and body, and when stress starts interfering with your ability to live a normal life, it becomes even more dangerous. Chronic stress may also cause disease, either because of changes in your body or overeating, smoking and other bad habits people use to cope with stress.<\/p>\n “If you experience constant job strain, it increases the stress hormone, cortisol, which affects many brain functions and could in turn increase your risk of depression and anxiety,” van Aswegen said.<\/p>\n Pharma Dynamics advises some stress-busting measures:<\/p>\n More on health<\/p>\n 30 things that make South Africans angry<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n These are the things South Africans hate the most about work<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n
\n #<\/th>\n Occupation<\/th>\n Stress score<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n \n 1<\/td>\n Pilot<\/td>\n 3.74<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 2<\/td>\n Hair stylist<\/td>\n 3.00<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 3<\/td>\n Farmer<\/td>\n 2.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 4<\/td>\n Film Director<\/td>\n 2.89<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 5<\/td>\n Nurse<\/td>\n 2.89<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 6<\/td>\n Police officer<\/td>\n 2.86<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 7<\/td>\n Corporate executive<\/td>\n 2.79<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 8<\/td>\n CEO<\/td>\n 2.79<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 9<\/td>\n Doctor<\/td>\n 2.74<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n 10<\/td>\n Singer<\/td>\n 2.71<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table><\/div>\n<\/div>\n \n