Effects from Working from Home and Online Studying

mrsaepts
Sep 6, 2021
9 min read

Updated: Sep 7, 2021

By Nipitphon Tungkarak, Jin Rushchano, Thunwa Homchun, Sirapope Junyawattananont, Noppawat Thitisublert, Neeranuch Junyawattananont, Natnicha Ngerndee, Ninthira Jarupanich, Tedat Noppapak

Edited by Tanyatorn Thienpaitoon

Most people who work from home or study online use technology to assist their performance; for example, a computer to conduct a conference meeting, a laptop to study online courses, an iPad to do assignments instead of a sheet, etc. However, spending too much time on screens can lead to numerous physical health effects.

Physical Effects of Working from Home and Online Studying

Obesity and overweight from lack of physical activities.

Sugars and fats in the human body are digested by the muscle's movement. As people spend more time sitting and less time doing other physical activities, these make it more difficult for our bodies to break down sugars and fats. As a result, fats and sugars are overstored leading to an increase in the risk of obesity and diabetes.

Physical development delay in young

Other than being exposed to diabetes and obesity because of the lack of physical activities, it also associates with their growth. Studies have shown that more muscle exercise in kids, such as sports and other recreations, during their growing period lead to the improvement in both physical and mental health. However, during this ongoing pandemic, children could not spend their time being physically active. Thus, this incident could reflect the deterioration of their physical and mental health in their future lives.

Eyesight problem

As the trend of working from home and studying online has increased, people tend to expose a lot more to screens. The screen will primarily generate blue light which can cause many harmful effects to the eyes. This includes eye pain, dry eyes, blurred vision, and watery eyes. In the long-term, a concentration on the screen could cause serious optic problems, namely cataracts, age-related macular degeneration, and eye strain.

Office syndrome

A group of symptoms occurring from staying in the same posture for long periods is called Office Syndrome. The symptoms of this health problem are chronic muscle pain, especially in the neck, the shoulders, and the back. The cause of this syndrome is the repetition of particular muscle movement with improper posture, resulting from the setting of table height and the position of the computer and keyboard. Furthermore, muscle imbalance and spinal deformity could be one of the causes as well. Due to the pandemic, it prohibits people from working at their workplace. The limitation of movement and activities will, eventually, lead to Office Syndrome.

Deep vein thrombosis (DVT)

DVT is a blood clot that forms in one or more deep veins in the body, generally in the leg’s vein. Anything that prevents your blood from transferring into the body for a long period can cause a blood clot, which enables the blood to flow through the vessel as it should be. Deep vein thrombosis can be very serious because when the blood flow is cut off. It could cause a pulmonary embolism; a blockage of pulmonary arteries in the lung, which will lead to major health problems or even cause death in patients. Should you show any kind of symptoms, seek medical attention as soon as possible.

Increase in sleeping period

Research has shown that the office workers during the outbreak in Sweden spent relatively more time resting than when they worked at the office. This observation has presented that working from home is beneficial to our overall health. The reason behind the sleep increase is because the employees tend to work overtime during their presence in the office, but since they do not have to be there anymore, there is no reason for them to sleep late.

Maintaining physical health

These following lists are some tips to maintain a healthy physical health with regards to its side effects.

Set up the home office for optimal posture and comfort.

Starts by finding the chair which has armrests and a seat height that gets feet to rest flat on the floor. Moreover, the chair should aid the hip and the knees to be at a 90-degree angle. By following these simple steps, it will support your posture and prevent the back pain effect.

Take Care of Your Eyes by using the 20-20-20 rule.

Make sure you give your eyes a break by looking away from your screen at something 20 feet away, every 20 minutes, for 20 seconds. Alternatively, the computer glasses could help in filtering out the blue light from the screen. In addition, when your eyes get dry, you can use an eye drop to make your eyes more hydrated.

Plan an effective daily routine.

Staying at home decreases passion and causes laziness; therefore, planning the day is a way to activate your body. These are the lists of activities that we recommend you to do to keep your physical health well.

Get up early: Being an early bird leads to being energetic, well-rested, stress-free, punctual, and healthy. You get a sense of order in life, making you feel happier.
Plan your daily exercise schedule: Plan by setting calendar reminders. Try working out for 45 minutes to an hour a day. Exercise is the activity that can help you lose weight, have a healthy weight, and get a lower risk of some disease.
Get enough sleep: It means you go to bed early and make sure you get enough sleep for at least 7 hours because less sleep is getting you more depressed. Sleeping enough can control your weight, prevent chronic diseases, avoid negative thoughts, and increase your productivity.

Wash your hands frequently.

During the pandemic, washing hands is critical because it is the way to avoid getting infected with the virus, and it also reduces the chance of you getting food poisoning.

Eat a healthy diet.

Having 3 meals: breakfast, lunch, and dinner on time with a healthy diet. Skipping meals can cause weight gain or make it harder to lose weight. Additionally, find healthy snacks, such as fruit, in replacement of chips or junk.

Keep your body hydrated.

Drinking 8 to 12 ounces of water per day is an effective way of preventing issues with mood, concentration, headaches, memory, fatigue, anxiety, and overall brain performance for people of all ages. The best beverage choice is water. It is best to avoid sugary beverages, such as sodas, energy drinks, and fruit drinks.

Mental Effects of Working from Home and Online Studying

Positive Effects on Mental Health

Every employee or students’ experience of working from home or online lecturing greatly differs. Some find home working or studying detrimental to their overall health whilst others gain huge benefits from it.

The majority find the imbalance of time spent between work and family and other non-work responsibilities a major hindrance to healthy mental well-being. Working from home is beneficial as it allows them to manage those priorities more efficiently and effectively. This method of working or learning can also be advantageous among employees and students in unhealthy environments as it can reduce the stress and improve productivity that results from being in such environments. In addition, there is a reduction in an individual’s financial and commute-related stress, as well as an increase in time to be consumed on other productive activities.

While the downsides of online learning are being reported mainly in the media, some students prefer to study at home due to several issues such as peer pressure and bullying. By attending lectures online, away from bullies, those encountering these issues can study without feeling anxious and stressed and absorb more information.

Negative Effects on Mental Health

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted human's ways of living since last year, especially in terms of psychological health conditions. Both the working and learning environment, as well as the lifestyle of adults and children, have changed. While some of them suffered from an excessive amount of tasks which led to anxiety and depression, some had issues with social isolation.

Many people lose their balance between their work time and personal life. The evidence from an analysis by Microsoft suggested that the employees tend to work overtime than their previous schedule, even on lunch breaks or after their work hours. Another survey also indicated that 73 percent of small business employees have increased their stress levels due to longer working hours.

As a consequence of social distancing, it is harder to keep in contact with friends, family, and even colleagues, which increases the risk of getting depression and social isolation. Furthermore, without any support such as feedback from others, it often leads to greater emotional exhaustion and cognitive stress, especially among newbies with 88 percent of them suffering from mental health problems while working from home.

In terms of online learning, children also faced lots of obstacles. As stated from research, the school environment is crucial for childrens' inspiration and socialization skills. Being isolated from friends and teachers, students may lose their focus and motivation. Hence, as the interaction between students and teachers is reduced, there will be more pressure and stress within the self.

Most importantly, staring at the screen and sitting still were the expectations in which teachers and parents wanted; however, children with ADHD or other behavior disorders will have obstacles throughout virtual learning. Additionally, online classes may also affect student self-confidence and self-consciousness of their appearance on others' screens. Both of these can trigger the stress level of individuals and might increase the risk of depression and anxiety disorders.

Remedies for mental health after online learning

Meditation
Having regular exercise
Getting enough sleep (7-9 hours)
Move around and do not sit at the same place for too long
Find time off devices if possible
Find a way to communicate with friends and family
Walk outside of the house
Reach out for help
Set times for hobbies and get fun things to do
Don’t work too hard
Make sure you eat meals on time
Do not set a super high expectation on yourself

Social Effects of Working from Home and Online Studying

Less communication and isolation from friends and family members have been a part of the consequences of studying and working online. Due to the measures to prevent coronavirus pandemic, virtual learning and working may significantly affect the socialization skills of people of different ages in various ways. Although it seems to have multiple drawbacks of staying at home without socializing, there are some benefits that people of different ages could obtain from being isolated.

Childhood

Although an online study might be the best way of distancing learning, it might not be the solution for preschool kids.

“13 kids all screaming at once”, this happened when Ryan McGillen, a 37-year-old divorced father in Clinton Township, Michigan, was trying to set up an online class for his 4-year-old child and his preschooler friends. Furthermore, online learning does not effectively work for early adolescents as well. Kids between 10 or 11 years old improve their social skills mainly through experiences: being outside and interacting with others. Yet, these experiences are almost impossible to be obtained online. For example, doing sports, dancing, making friends, or finding what interests them, the future of these extracurricular activities is currently on hold and unclear.

While it turns out that the social and emotional practice they are supposed to receive cannot happen in the current pandemic, viewing from another perspective, little kids gained more security from staying home with their parents. Friends are not as necessary as being guarded by a supportive adult. Sense of safety is the most important thing for children as they are less aware of their self-safety and harm. Though safety concerns may seem like one of the benefits, people are unlikely to be permanently isolated.

Teenager

At just the age when they are biologically predisposed to seek independence from their families, the situation forces teens to be confined. Friends — who take on paramount importance during adolescence — are far out of reach, accessible mainly by social media. Nevertheless, virtually contact brings a mixture of satisfying and toxic elements.

The result of the survey by UNICEF, along with their partners, held in April 2020 illustrated that more than 7 in 10 children reported the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, not only on their mental health but demolished their social life and bonds as well.

Adulthood

Without the need to commute through the jammed traffic, online working adults suggested that they have more opportunities to spend time with their families. The surge in family time thus reduces conflict within the family. Telecommunication also allows users to develop their communication skills concerning the complexity of the online platform. By elaborating the meaning of complexity, online communication requires more energy than usual as it is harder to see gestures and voices virtually. Thus, this provides a chance for workers to develop their communication skills. The situation of the COVID-19 may enhance the feeling of cooperation among the organization, so it is time to unite and fight this pandemic together.

The reduction of face-to-face interaction with colleagues, on the other hand, can be a burden to the workflow after the work-from-home policy ends. For instance, physical communication skills such as making eye contact or practicing office manners deteriorate.

Overall, there are both benefits and drawbacks of the pandemic on social health in adults.

WORK CITED

Physical Effects from working from home and online studying

Mental Effects from working from home and online studying

Positive effect on mental health

Negative effect on mental health

Social Effects from working from home and online studying

Effects from Working from Home and Online Studying

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