What is workaholism?

We want to start this article with the words “My name is … and I am a workaholic”.

Images of people sitting in a circle come to mind for a reason. All these “isms” (alcohol-ISM, shopahol-ISM, workahol-ISM) are based on the same foundation – dependency and obsessive desire to escape from reality.

Workaholism is an addiction (dependency). By engaging in an addictive activity (in this case – working) a person changes their psychological state.

Derek works a lot. No, let’s try again. Derek WORKS A LOT. He doesn’t have a personal life because he doesn’t have time to spend on another person. He doesn’t have hobbies because he needs free time for that too. He doesn’t have friends because… Well, you get the point. He stays late at work, he brings work home, he has not been on vacation or taken a sick leave for four years.

Derek substitutes with work everything that matters in life: close relationships, love, and hobbies. Work became the center of his life when… when the woman he loved left him. And this happened… four years ago, as you might have guessed.

Perhaps, workaholics may feel indignant because we compared them with alcoholics. It is easy to understand why: alcoholics are definitely sliding downhill! But I… I work and earn money! I am striving for perfection! I… don’t have any issues!

But in reality, workaholism harms a person just as much as any other addiction. If you take away the opportunity to work, even temporarily (say on vacation), the person will experience “withdrawal symptoms” that are very similar to how a drug addict feels if you take away their “fix”: bad mood, anxiety, an unexplainable feeling of yearning, a strong desire to return to the “steering wheel”. 

Any workaholic will give you a hundred and one reasons why they can’t live otherwise…

Sucheta says that without her everything at work will come crashing down, therefore she needs to endlessly control everything.

Ali indignantly points out that he is simply taking care of his family. Even though his wife says that they have enough money, and she is missing a different type of care. For example, she would like to see him home more often and sometimes go out together. She feels very lonely…

For Derek, Sucheta, and Ali, their professional occupation became some sort of camouflage that allows them to hide behind work from unsolved psychological problems.

If you want to address workaholism, you need to start from the same first step as with any other addiction – by acknowledging the problem. Do you have a problem? You will find a solution.

If you notice that work is taking up all your time and stops being the means and becomes the end goal and gives meaning to your life, you should ask yourself the following questions and answer them honestly:

– What am I trying to escape by being constantly busy with work?

– Do I live to work or work to live?

– Am I happy with the way things are?

– Am I able to enjoy something other than work?

Escaping reality may seem very tempting, but it always deprives you of real life in all its fullness. Work can be a part of your life – a very important part. But… it cannot be EVERYTHING. Because in this case, there are too many aspects of life that you will not experience.