Will the next generation finish their careers early because of stress?

Will the next generation finish their careers early because of stress?

Around a third of employees just entering the workforce (aged 16 to 24) expect they’ll need to retire early because of poor health — the highest proportion of any age group surveyed in a study by AXA Health.

At the root of this finding is younger people’s worries around the impact of stress on their health, with 33% saying that their work and workplace was stopping them from leading a healthy lifestyle.

“Life being stressful is not an illness.”

At the same time, a new BBC survey among GPs has highlighted the concerns among professionals that everyday stresses, setbacks and problems with relationships are being seen as situations requiring medical attention. While in the past people would have found ways to cope, they are now turning to a GP and looking for a diagnosis and treatments.

GPs pointed to 19 to 34 year-olds as the age group which was most likely to be looking for support, that had become less resilient since the Covid-19 pandemic.

Who provides the perspective?

EAPA UK chair, Karl Bennett said: “When it comes to helping people with their mental health, GPs are being put under a great deal of pressure. Patients expect answers when clearly these are not always going to be straightforward, able to be found in a prescription or treatment plan.

“EAPs are crucial in this situation in providing perspective for employees. They provide an earlier and immediate means of talking about worries without going down the medical route, thinking about situations as a whole, the root causes in terms of relationships and finances etc. As younger people and the population as a whole becomes more sensitised to mental health and its effects, this kind of ability to talk with a professional able to provide a frame of reference and way forward, is only going to be more important.”