Respectable addiction

Self-defined workaholics speak of using work as a way of helping them cope with life, just as alcoholics use alcohol. The US branch of Workaholics Anonymous says taking work to bed or on holiday with you, working more than 40 hours a week, fearing thatyou will be a failure if you don’t work hard and being more excited by your work than anything else, are all obvious signs of a workaholic.

But how do you distinguish between workaholics and people who choose to work long hours but are not addicted to work? Nicholson McBride suggests that while work is enormously important to both workaholics and "work enthusiasts", workaholics tend to get less enjoyment from their work. Workaholics also tend to be very "driven" and feel guilty if they don’t work, while work enthusiasts are the opposite.

A workaholic’s behaviour often stems from internal causes, whereas others who work long hours may be responding to external forces like excessive workloads and job insecurity. "Some workaholics are addicted to success," says stress guru Professor Cooper. Research suggests this has a physical basis in chemicals produced by the body when a person enjoys success. Other workaholics suffer from extremely low self-esteem and are forever trying to convince themselves they arereally more competent than they think.

A third group of workaholics use toil as an avoidance strategy to escape personal problems. Ironically, workaholism itself damages the sufferer’s relationships with family and friends, because he/she has time only for work, says Dr Williams. It also has an adverse effect on health, as workaholics tend to neglect exercise and good eating patterns.

Research published in the Lancet medical journal this year found links between the hours people work overtime and their heart rate variability. It found that changes in the heart rate of those who worked most overtime could lead to heart problems.

Escaping workaholism is hard because, as one self-confessed workaholic puts it, "it’s a perfectly respectable addiction". Indeed, many employers who turn a blind eye actually like it, says Dr Williams, "because these people work round the clock". But unlike other addictions such as alcohol, cigarettes or illegal drugs, which people can try to give up, workaholics have amore subtle goal — to learn to work in a healthier way.

Kicking an addiction to work requires the addict to focus on priorities in life. Workaholics should ask themselves what they really value in life and whether they want to miss out on leisure, family and friends.

— The Observer News Service