What Exactly Is A Workaholic?

Certain working conditions can raise the levels of anxiety and stress. What is strange about this is that even though a  workaholic also suffers from this, they feel irritable when they are not working.

Are you a workaholic?

The common symptoms of a workaholic are grouped into three categories, depending on the dimension they affect. Nevertheless, it is important to know that  there is no medical condition that defines this disorder. 

• Cognitive: Anxiety, irritability, depression, constant worry.
• Psychological: Insomnia, stress, high blood pressure.
• Behavioral: The need to have control, extreme planning, separation from the social environment.

However, the behavioral aspects that can manifest in a person can vary. For example, they tend not to spend their holidays. In some  extreme cases, they may never use these days so they can keep working. Another sign is that they are the first to be in the office in the morning and the last to go home in the evening.

These people do not enjoy their free time. They often spend their free time thinking about work, or may even consider going to the office to work. Furthermore, they  tend to talk the most about one specific topic: their work. Therefore, it is normal for these people to take their work home so that they can complete more tasks.

The center of their lives

For these people, work gradually becomes the center of their lives. In fact, it spreads out in their lives, replacing everything else. Usually, workaholics have few relationships. Therefore, they often go to work to escape from their personal problems. 

According to Wayne Oates, a psychologist, physician and educator, the relationship a workaholic has with his job is comparable to that of an alcoholic with alcohol. They feel an insatiable need to continue working. So much so that it ends up affecting their health and well-being, ruining most of their social relationships.

Bosqued assures that this addiction comes from unreasonable, professional ambitions. Therefore, they work that way because they think it is the only way to reach their goal. In fact, they try to stand out because they have learned that the greater the effort, the more power.

The good side of a workaholic

The positive side of workaholics’ lifestyle is that it has amazing implications for their careers. They become a work standard for their bosses and employees. They often become role models, due to the amount of time they dedicate to projects and get involved in matters with the company, as well as their degree of motivation.

Ultimately , all of these sacrifices have rewards in the form of promotions, power, and money. 

However,  these rewards reinforce this behavior. It makes it even harder for workaholics to stop their addiction. They believe their behavior rewards them with higher doses of power and ambition.

A connotation that is not so negative

The problem with categorizing this behavior as a disorder lies in the fact that overtime is not usually considered to be something negative. When someone takes drugs regularly, or seeks refuge in alcohol, to escape from their problems, then their social circle distances itself from this behavior.

But that is not the case when someone is dependent on their work. No one looks down on this. However, it is still a disruptive behavior. It is dysfunctional because it does not consider the other, basic pillars of life: family, leisure and social relationships. 

This restriction or restriction of living a “normal” life is what makes being a workaholic a problem. Imagine that your best friend starts dedicating his entire life to the family because one of the members of depends on them.

Little by little, he begins to spend more time with his family members, and begins to leave his work, education, and friends. Eventually, the person will probably develop a care syndrome.

The case of a workaholic is parallel to this, masked by the responsibility for and dedication to taking his work to extreme levels.

Therefore, it is not very appropriate to dedicate ourselves solely to our work. It can generate severe emotional imbalances. The best thing to do is to find a balance so that our happiness does not depend on anything but that it becomes a longer lasting state of mind.