Working From Home May Be Quietly Making Some People Miserable, New Research Suggests
· Vice
As someone who’s worked remotely for years now, and who has lived alone for the majority of that time, I can attest to the idea that remote work worsens mental health. In fact, I’ve had to “hack” my brain by forcing myself up and out of the house to the nearest coffee shop each weekday morning. Otherwise, I would find myself falling into my OCD compulsions like ruminating and reassurance-seeking for hours on end.
Of course, not everyone suffers from severe OCD. But my point stands: Remote work can have negative mental health impacts. In fact, recent research found that psychological distress, depression, anxiety, and loneliness increased for people in remote jobs. However, those remote workers who lived with their families did not experience the same increase in mental health issues, nor did recent remote workers.
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In other words, it seems prolonged remote work, coupled with living alone, might reap the least favorable results. I am a prime example of this. Even though I’m an introvert who loves my alone time, even I have noticed that too much of it worsens my mental health. Living alone and working from home sometimes has me spending days without seeing another human. During those times, I am at my lowest mentally.
Remote Work Can Be Bad for Your Mental Health, New Research Suggests
It seems the connection between remote work and poor mental health has to do with a lack of socialization. When someone spends too much time in isolation—even if they prefer occasional solitude—they might experience more mental distress.
“Humans are social animals by nature, and while going out to speak to people felt normal and habitual in the pre-pandemic years, there was a post-pandemic shift where people who work remotely spend, on average, one more hour alone compared to people with non-remote jobs,” Ludovico Saint Amour di Chanaz, Ph.D., pointed out in his Psychology Today article on the topic.
I don’t know about you, but whenever I’m feeling trapped in my own brain or beaten down by my own thoughts, it helps to get out of my apartment and into the world, even if that’s just grabbing a coffee and sitting in a public place.
The Pandemic’s Impact on Socialization
The research article linked above found some correlations between the pandemic and isolation. I mean, think about it: how much time did you spend on TikTok pre-COVID-19? And how much more time did you spend with friends and loved ones?
“These results are quite interesting as they show that the COVID-19 pandemic created a shift not only in how we work but also in how we live,” Chanaz wrote. “In general, all people tend to spend more time alone and online after the pandemic than before it, and it informs us on the fact that seeing more people may be a good way to preserve one’s mental health, and that in-person work provides an opportunity to do so; being more intentional in real-world interactions may eventually be beneficial to everyone.”
Does this mean we have to go back to an in-person work world? I sure hope not, as I don’t think I could ever give up my remote work life. That being said, it’s important to seek socialization and community outside of the workplace. Even just working from a coffee shop or meeting a friend for dinner during the workweek can help fulfill our social needs.
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