Advertisement

Is your boss making you sick?

 
Published Oct. 25, 2014

Having a bad boss can make your work life a misery, but it can also make you sick, both physically and mentally, researchers say.

"The evidence is clear that the leadership qualities of 'bad' bosses over time exert a heavy toll on employees' health," says Jonathan D. Quick, an instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School and co-author of the book Preventive Stress Management in Organizations. "The evidence is also clear that despite the rationalizations some leaders may use to defend their stress-inducing, unsupportive style, such behavior by leaders does not contribute to improved individual performance or organizational productivity."

Research has linked having a lousy boss to an increased risk of heart attack, Quick said. Chronic stress that can result when someone must deal daily with a bad boss has been linked to high blood pressure, sleep problems and anxiety and is also associated with several unhealthy behaviors such as smoking, excessive use of alcohol and overeating.

When 1,500 people were recently asked in an online survey about their workplace experiences for the American Psychological Association's 2014 Work and Well-Being Survey, nearly a third identified "problems with my supervisor" as a cause of work stress.

Difficult bosses can come in many forms, including hypercritical micromanagers, inept managers, bosses who push blame for problems onto others or hurl obscenities, and those who make unwanted sexual advances. But researchers say that whatever the type, when employees deal with a bad boss day in and day out, negative health effects often begin to pop up.

While changing jobs when faced with a bad boss is often the quickest way to restore your health, other approaches can help when quitting isn't possible, says Richard O'Connor, a psychotherapist in New York and the author of Undoing Perpetual Stress. If there are people you trust within the workplace to talk to about the problem, for example, you may be reassured to learn that they are having similar conflicts with the same manager, he says. That by itself can reduce stress.

"One of the ways that bad bosses work is through splitting people," O'Connor says. "They play favorites and develop a network of informers, so that you don't trust anybody and you really do feel more isolated. You feel that there must be something wrong with me because everybody else seems to be getting along okay."

Not surprisingly, problems with bosses are a common reason that people seek mental health support, explains Larney R. Gump, a psychologist with a private practice in Washington, D.C.

Some people come in feeling unhappy, depressed or anxious, Gump says, and through talking about it, they realize that their bosses are part of the problem. Those patients could be dealing with "hostile, abrasive or mean bosses . . . or ones who are ineffective, passive or who don't manage at all," he explains.

People who have bad bosses often describe the situation as a living hell, says E. Kevin Kelloway, Canada Research Chair in Occupational Health Psychology at St. Mary's University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. "From the time you get out of bed, you're dreading going to work." This produces a fight-or-flight response, which causes your body to pump out adrenaline and other stress hormones, Kelloway says. Your breathing quickens and your heart beats faster as your body prepares to spring into action. When this stress response goes on too long or occurs too often, it can take a toll on the body.

How to protect your health against a bad boss

If you think your supervisor would be open to a constructive conversation, consider asking for a meeting. Airing grievances respectfully and clearing up miscommunications can go a long way toward reducing boss-related stress and possible effects on your health. If that's not possible or if it fails, and if you can't quit or otherwise change your work situation, experts recommend considering several steps:

• Buffer the effects of a bad boss by taking care of your health. Eat well, get enough sleep, exercise.

• Learn to use stress-reduction techniques, such as meditation, yoga or prayer.

• To keep your self-esteem intact, be sure to maintain your personal dignity and "never let them see you cry" at work, psychotherapist Richard O'Connor says. Family support can help defuse the stress. Or think of a personal hero and imagine what that person would do to stay calm and strong.

• Recognize that it's your boss who has a problem, not you.

• Consider seeing a therapist to help you handle the anxiety or depression. Consult a doctor if a medical condition that may be related to stress has arisen or worsened.

Special to the Washington Post