Are You Climbing the Walls at Work? Dealing with Confinement

To repeat what I said in a previous post, during winter months, office workers may barely see the sun except on weekends. Being shut up in a building, often a single room or, worse yet, the infamous cubicle is, I believe, for many workers, one of the most depression-inducing aspects of the office situation. For one thing, it puts you more at risk for Seasonal Affective Disorder; for another, if you have a certain type of brain-wiring it
can make you feel claustrophobic and restless; finally, it can make getting along with coworkers more difficult due to “cabin fever,” similar to what happens to families when they’re boxed up during a snowstorm. This is perhaps why so many workers compare their offices to prisons.

Unless you’re telecommuting, you may believe that such feelings are unavoidable. But while it’s true that confinement is a fact of life for many office workers, it doesn’t necessarily have to set you up for depression. The key is to take constructive action to counter its effects. Here are some suggestions:

1. Next time you pass a construction site, think about what it might be like to do physical labor out of doors all the time. Imagine the discomforts of heat and cold and think about how good it would feel to come inside and sit in front of a computer.
2. If at all possible, park at least twenty minutes away from your office and walk to and from your vehicle in all but the most severe weather. Do this especially during the winter months. Doing this will not only help you feel less imprisoned when you get to work – there’s nothing like coming in out of cold or snow to transform a prison into a warm sanctuary – it will also help to address the office challenges of inactivity, sensory deprivation, and disconnection from nature and community.
3. If you can’t walk to and from work, take a walk during your lunch hour or a quick run around the block during a break.
4. Walk inside your building as much as possible. If you’re not allowed to take breaks, volunteer for errands, meetings, and projects that will take you away from your desk.
5. Bring posters, calendars, postcards, and other visuals that connect you with the outdoors. Take web-surfing breaks to national park sites or play recordings of forest sounds while using headphones. If you're working in a fascist dictatorship, you may have to be discreet, but do what you can.
6. Engage in plenty of outdoor activities when you’re not at work. Camping can be especially good – there’s nothing like a few nights in a soggy tent to make you appreciate a warm, dry office after you get back.
7. Consider talking with your employer about the possibility of doing all or part of your work either from home or from somewhere else. It may be that total confinement isn’t necessary in your case. Bear in mind, though, that working away from the office may involve other challenges.
8. Talk with coworkers about how they feel about being confined to the office and brainstorm about ways to modify your situation. 

If you have other ideas about how to deal with confinement at the office, please share them with us in a comment.

Coming next: “Nature Deficit Disorder” and Office Work