Work Addiction

A person with a work addiction, a “workaholic,” is incessantly driven. Work is the one organizing and effective activity in their life. For these individuals, however, the relentless pursuit of work and the attainment of material gain do not result in pleasure.

A work addiction is not the same as working hard or putting in long hours. Working long and hard, and deriving satisfaction from the work and the result, does not make someone a work addict.  Hard workers generally have some balance in their lives. They sit at their desks and may think about skiing or tennis. The workaholic is on the ski slopes or on the tennis court but is still thinking about work.

The workaholics obsession with work is all-occupying and prevents the workaholic from maintaining healthy relationships and outside interests.  The work addict often neglects their health and is too busy for their friends and family. They avoid going on vacation so they don't have to miss work. And even if they do go on vacation, they aren't fully present because their mind is still on work. As with any other addictions there is often a lack of understanding as to how their work addiction affects themselves and others.

Like other addictions, whether a sex and pornography addiction, eating disorder, alcohol abuse, or other addiction, a work addiction affects the workaholic’s social life and restricts his or her personal freedom and happiness. In fact, excessive work can be a means to withdraw from relationships, to manipulate relationships by limiting one’s availability, or to regulate relationships so that not too much is expected.

No other addiction is so willingly adopted, rewarded and praised by society as the addiction to work. It can prove to be confusing issue since the work addict may appear or claim to only be looking after their family and trying to meet all their needs. Typically, society measures us by what we do, rather than by who/how we are and what we believe. Clearly some occupations are considered in a different class than others. Sadly all this can lead us to believe that the predetermining factor to our sense of self worth is measured by what we do.

One way to look at the development of a workaholic is to see them as progressing through stages (adapted from About.com: workaholism). In the early stage the person tends to be increasingly busy and tends to take on more than can realistically be done. He or she will put in lots of extra hours and cannot seem to find time to take time off from work.  The next stage sees the person with a work addition distancing themselves from personal relationships. When they are home, they are frequently distracted and emotionally still at work. At this stage, the physical tolls often begin to manifest themselves. The work addict may have trouble unwinding enough to get to sleep and may feel tired all the time. Eventually the work addict enters a later stage where they begin to develop significant personal and interpersonal problems and may experience the more serious physical and emotional side effects such as depression, chronic headaches and stress, elevated blood pressure, anxiety, stomach ulcers and increased risk of stroke.

Workaholism is an addictive pattern like any other addiction. The specific cause of a work addiction is obviously related to the person and their past.  However, typically the general cause is the same as other addictions; the root is our our unfulfilled or unmet needs. The feeling within us is that we have to achieve a certain standard, or amount of work before we can become accepted as a person. The belief is that we are of little worth as we are, on our own.

Typically, the work addict may have feelings of low self esteem and feelings of inadequacy, the result being that the person keeps striving trying to do more and better. Work may also provide us with temporary relief from pain from a broken relationship, or from boredom or guilt or many other feelings we may want to avoid.

Research shows that many workaholics come from some type of dysfunctional family, and work addiction is an attempt to control a situation that is not controllable.  They may be children of alcoholics or of parents who tend to be perfectionist and expect unreasonable success from their children.  The problem is that perfection is never really unattainable.

The work addict is driven to perform even harder and accomplish even more due to the inability to relax, feel, and smell the scent of today’s success. These intense work schedules and associated behaviors can be symptomatic of underlying issues, insecurities, and a skewed self-image. In many instances, the workaholic behaviors are self imposed, but not based on an accurate perception of oneself. The work addict can also use work much like the alcoholic uses liquor to self medicate, manage, control and avoid feelings.

The following test (adapted from Lawyers Assistance Program of British Columbia) was devised to help you evaluate your self.

Work Addiction Self Test

Please rate each statement according to the following scale:  1 = never true; 2 = sometimes true; 3 = often true; 4 = always true. Total up your score, then look at the scale below.

1. I prefer to do things myself rather than ask for help

2. I get very impatient when I have to wait for other people, or am in slow moving queues

3. I seem to be in a hurry and racing against the clock

4. I get irritated when I am interrupted while I am in the middle of something

5. I stay busy and keep many 'irons in the fire'

6. I find myself doing two or three things at once, such as eating and writing a memo

7. I over commit myself by biting off more than I can chew

8. I feel guilty when I am not working on something

9. It is important that I see the concrete results of what I do

10. I am more interested in the final results of my work than in the process

11. Things just never seem to move fast enough or get done fast enough for me

12. I lose my temper when things don't go my way or work out to suit me

13. I ask the same question, without realizing it after I have already been given the answer

14. I spend a lot of time planning and thinking about future events, forgetting the here and now

15. I find myself continuing to work after my co-workers have finished

16. I get angry when people do not meet my standards of perfection

17. I get upset when I am in situations where I can not be in control

18. I tend to put myself under pressure with self imposed deadlines

19. It is hard for me to relax when I am not working

20. I spend more time working than on socializing, hobbies or leisure activities

21. I dive into projects to get a head start before all the phases have been finalized

22. I get upset with myself for making even the smallest mistake

23. I put more thought, time and energy into my work than relationships with other people

24. I forget, ignore, minimize family celebrations such as birthdays or holidays for example

25. I make important decisions before I have all the facts and have thought them through

Well how did you do? If you scored:

25 - 49 = You are not overdoing it
50 - 69 = You are mildly overdoing it
70 - 100 = You are highly overdoing it

A work addiction pattern, like any other addiction, is a difficult cycle to break.  However, with help, the unhealthy thoughts and behaviors can give rise to new and healthier ones. The first, and often the most difficult step, is acknowledging that that you have a problem and want to change.

First, you can try self help techniques or a self-help program such as Workaholics Anonymous. 

You can try to establish a clear boundary between your work life and your private life: each day, each weekend, and for designated vacation periods. If you feel guilty or vaguely uncomfortable with taking time off or relaxing, consider reframing the time, even the play, as a necessary component of your work. In order to be maximally effective when you are at work, making time for a private life and for play is crucial.  You may even find it useful to set aside a brief time at the end of each day to allow closure of work activity, to have an official transition time that puts a period at the end of the sentence of each day so that time off is really time off. 

Reassess the amount of time you spend talking about your work with family and friends, and the amount of time you spend associating only with friends from work or people in the same line of work. Obviously people who care about each other are interested in all the things that are important to the other, including work. But, being caught up in war stories may represent an inability to establish boundaries for work or an over inclusive identity with one’s work.

If you want to have more balance in your life, being able to work hard but also being able to turn work off and enjoy friends, family, hobbies, and fun, counseling and therapy may be necessary. Psychotherapy and other therapeutic techniques are as effective for a work addict as for other addictions.  Psychologists have studied addictive and compulsive behaviors and their treatments for many years, and a psychologist or other mental health professional should be able to help you learn to deal with problems and  concerns in your life related to a work addiction.

The more you understand about work addiction and other addictive behaviors, the better you can cope with them and with related problems. Reaching out for information and assistance can help you live a healthier and more fulfilling life. People who suffer from a work addiction and other addictive behavior problems can get help from a mental health professional such as a psychologist, psychiatrist, or clinical social worker. For more information about a work addiction and other addictive behaviors, please click on the linked websites listed below.

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