Julia is referred to us as she is frequently in tears in the office...

Hugh is referred to us as he has been flying off the handle for no apparent reason...

Azaria has been referred to us as she feels she can no longer cope with work...

We are witnessing a perplexing, troubling but growing trend in our practice, encountering people who are struggling to cope with everyday life and who experience stress and anxiety to a debilitating degree. What was an occasional feature in coaching assignments fifteen or so years ago has now become an almost frequent occurrence. And these are just those whose employers are sufficiently concerned to seek help.

​It should be said that as a professional coaching business we are particular about maintaining clear boundaries between coaching and therapy and refer clients to seek therapy when appropriate. Within that boundary, we have seen the need to deliver specialist coaching interventions to support these stressed and anxious clients. These draw upon a series of established and recognised models and techniques such as cognitive behavioural coaching, rational-emotional behavioural cognitive therapy and resilience coaching and are delivered by appropriately qualified coaches and coaching psychologists.

We work successfully with those who are anxious and affected by stress but otherwise well. We focus on identifying unhelpful 'faulty' thinking, recognising our own role in creating our anxieties, and create new approaches and ways of thinking. Associated with these are often contributory/causative issues such as low assertiveness, low self-esteem/self-efficacy, communication problems, and perfectionist tendencies. Coaching to develop in these areas supports the person in building and strengthening their resources so that they gain control and confidence and can address their anxieties.

Whilst we are delighted with the feedback we receive and more importantly to know the impact this work has on those who are struggling, we want to dig deeper. In particular, why is this happening? Is this pattern of greater stress and anxiety an accurate depiction of our society or merely our perception? If it is real, what's causing it? If we can begin to answer these questions we may be closer to developing preventative strategies before people experience the painful and debilitating impact of anxiety related stress.

We'd love your views - if you're a coach, manager, HR person etc, have you also seen this increase? If you've been affected yourself, what's your view about the causes, and how were you supported? Do leave your comments and if you'd prefer to contact us directly, email Sarah on sarah.jaggers@managingchange.org.uk. We look forward to hearing from you.

If you would like to discuss our approach to managing stress do get in touch. ​​