Are you working longer hours?

Through the recession, people are finding they are putting more hours into their job. Whether that's in the office, on their way home, or while they should be relaxing at home after a hard days work, they find themselves just quickly checking their email to make sure they haven't missed anything important.

Putting in those extra hours can actually be damaging to your health. Not only that, but relationships can suffer as well, as you spend more and more time working, you don't have the time to focus on other areas of your life.

If you thought that at least people would be getting paid for this extra work, then think again. Recent research commissioned by financial services company Callcredit, found that 23 percent of those surveyed had increased their unpaid overtime because of the recession.

In order to feel secure in their jobs, people are having to work harder. Small-business owners, entrepreneurs and the self-employed are especially at risk because, with company budgets pared to the bone, they never know where the next contract is coming from.

"We have to make a distinction between people working really long hours because of the economy and those who are driven to work because that's where they feel most valued and comfortable," says Gina Gardiner, a life coach and founder of support group Recovering Workaholics. "And workaholism is subjective - one person's workaholism is another's normality," she added.

So how do we distinguish between the two?

"Workaholics may have low self-worth, so feel socially or professionally they have something to prove," says Gardiner. "They may also use work as an avoidance technique. For example, if they would rather be at work than at home, they may be using it to avoid dealing with a troubled marriage. It's insidious though, because workaholics enjoy what they're doing and get lots of praise at the office - if they go home they'll get an earful and be told what a failure they are."

It's easier said than done, to resist that urge to check your emails, or finish off that bit of paperwork when you get home. Yet you've got to remember who you are, you need to take some time for yourself - having a job shouldn't be damaging to your health.

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