Stress in the workplace is not a new phenomenon, but it is a greater threat to employee health and wellbeing than ever before. While technology has made aspects of many jobs easier, it has also added to the anxieties of office life through information overload, heightened pressure for productivity, and a threatening sense of impermanence in the workplace. In 1996, the World Health Organization labelled stress a "worldwide epidemic". Today, workplace stress is estimated to cost companies millions in terms of poor performance, absenteeism and health costs (Job stress management, 2008).

On the other hand, stress is a normal part of life and a normal part of any job. Without stress, we wouldn’t meet deadlines, strive to hit sales or production targets, or line up new clients. Meeting the demands and challenges of a job is part of what makes work interesting and satisfying, and it’s often what allows people to develop new skills and advance in their careers. In the workplace, we regularly experience stress-causing situations, react to them with heightened tension, then return to a more relaxed state when the crisis, big or small, is resolved. However, problems occur when stress is so overwhelming or constant that the tension never abates and we never get to relax.