In the chaos of our day-to-day working lives we can often forget how much time we spend cooped up inside our offices, let alone the time we spend working from home in hybrid conditions.
Global research shows that on average for a typical full-time role, this equates to roughly 2 207 hours per year, which can change due to holidays, vacation, and sick leave.
In South Africa an average person spends approximately 40 to 45 hours per week at the office, which is also excluding their after-hour duties and study courses and qualifications they’re pursuing to further their careers in their downtime.
Let’s not forget how much we spend and endure with the never-ending slow traffic and unruly drivers, taxis and motorcyclists complicating our safety and blood pressure.
My heart goes out to those working in Cape Town and the CBD’s, rising extra early to ensure they’re not trapped in the traffic jams that plague these areas.
After work we still have to be emotionally available for our families and partners despite how drained our social batteries are after a typical day.
Often the perils of a bad day can cause us to project our frustrations onto our loved ones who played no role in the conflict we experienced at work.
Introspection and meditation are crucial during this time to avoid causing unnecessary pain and arguments for those closest to us.
In the heat of emotion, one can forget the long-term psychological effects and stress these constant arguments can leave on the minds and emotions of young children and even our partners, who become accustomed to enduring scolds and an overall hostile home environment.
Research shows that children exposed to family violence have brain activity patterns in their threat-detection areas, the anterior insula and amygdala, similar to war veterans, indicating a “hyper-aware” state of danger. Furthermore, this neural adaptation may serve as a survival mechanism which also increases the risk for future anxiety disorders, trauma-related issues and impacting the child’s brain development.
In the light of these worrying findings, we should be concerned for the overall well-being of our youth who are still navigating an ever-changing world fraught with technological innovation, social media, artificial intelligence, rising crime, they are still trying to find their place and voice in this “content saturated” world.
Therefore, they need the support, the love and patience from their parents to carry them through this turbulent modern age. Once the youth feel heard or seen, a great seed becomes planted that can only grow majestically and bear fruit that not only benefits themselves but their communities as well. Our communities can start blossoming when we start leading with compassion and understanding instead of resorting to anger and bitterness.
With all endless concerning data on the harmful effects that stress and repressed anger and unresolved conflict inflicts upon our immediate selves and families, we ought to know better and do better.
We should also bear a thought and prayer for all the women enduring emotional and physical abuse for their partners and their children as we celebrate the end of Women’s Month, into September, the month of spring, a time of restoration, reflection and rejuvenation.
