BURNT OUT

‘A classic response to feelings of stress is to work harder, which just exacerbates the symptoms’

odern international M travel can feel like a series of hurdles to negotiate, whether it’s the late arrival of your airport taxi, unexpected traffic jams and flight delays, or just the sequential set of queues, from check-in, bag drop, security, lounge access and boarding to baggage collection and passport control. In between periods of stress, there are periods of boredom, often combined with opportunities to over-drink or eat.

Throw in jet lag, disrupted sleep, feelings of loneliness, disconnect from colleagues and guilt at leaving loved ones, and it’s no surprise that a quarter of frequent travellers have experienced mental health issues such as depression and anxiety, according to a survey by the International SOS Foundation and Kingston University.

Of course, it’s not only frequent travellers who experience work-related stress. According to the Health and Safety Executive (a UK government agency), work-related stress, depression or anxiety accounts for 44 per cent of work-related ill health and