To not hide a bad mood at work?

[AlexSox]

I am usually in a good/OK mood at work but when I am feeling blue, I find it very difficult to hide my feelings. I find myself slumping in my chair and sometimes fighting tears back as I work, even if what's upsetting me is not really linked to the job.

It's not a customer facing role but I know I should be cheerful and professional with my colleagues and not let my emotions show...

Not really an AIBU I know but what are your tactics for dealing with this?

Work on, and improve your mindset about things, It's not normal to be slumping in chairs and crying at work. Lots of people feel very down at times, but they have to try and work through it.

It's OK to have a bad day. We all do. If it's a regular thing, your blue feeling, maybe talking to someone might help.

If you're regularly crying at work and slumped over - presumably you're also not working at those times - someone's going to pick up on that and it could land you in unnecessary hot water - speak to your boss if you can. Before any unpleasantness occurs.

I think it depends on the impact it has. For example, does the standard/rate of your work fall and impact others on your team? Do you find you end up snapping at people or treating them differently? Because in that case I do think it's unreasonable.

Personally, I might say to my team (we know each other) 'sorry if I'm quiet, having a bit of a crap day but I'm around if you need anything' and listening to music if I can, or booking out a meeting room or somewhere quiet to work. Or if I'm WFH I might ask my manager if I can mute my Slack notifications and find some easy tasks to crack on with.

If it's happening regularly though, you definitely need to speak to your GP. I would say being almost tearful on a regular basis would suggest you're struggling to cope with something.

I’m also wondering if someone has said something to you about your behaviour..what prompted the question?

The reality is most people would be mortified to be sitting at their desks crying, but as said, a lot of this depends on why it’s occurring. Is it something in your personal life, are you mentally unwell or is it a form of attention seeking, as in when small children cry to get attention?

If you really can’t help it, then have you spoken to your doctor?

I’ve been the moody person at work, and it was because I really hated my job. When I realised that, I made changes to get happy again (and left the job!)

No you can't do that. No matter how shit you feel, you pull up your big girl pants, plaster on a smile and act professional.

I really think you need to be professional and it's great that you've acknowledged that sometimes your moods get the better of you and are trying to change this. I worked with someone who blew hot and cold, we all on tenterhooks every morning to see what her mood would be like that day as it made for a very uncomfortable working environment when she was in a bad mood and the whole office felt the negativity.

Yes you should. A member of our team is always in a bad mood and I’m quite frankly bored if it. I’ve got no end of shit going on at home but it’s not my colleague’s need to know this/have to deal with it…

If you feel near tears in the office you should absent yourself for a bit - go to the kitchen and make yourself a coffee or go to the canteen and get one.

Hi everyone, thanks for your advice. I am going through a hard time right now so the bad days are more often than I would like.

For those saying 'leave your mood at the door' I wonder how you manage to do that. I try with all best intentions but as someone else said, my emotions feel very close to the surface right now.

I will see my GP but I didn't think things had got that bad yet. And good idea on the hot choc :-)

I think op if whatever you’re going through means you are struggling to cope in the way you describe, and it’s becoming obvious at work and you sit crying at your desk etc then you do need to talk to your doctor and get some help to see you through this period. Good luck 💐

Please see your GP.

It's very obvious to me that you're not coping. I went through similar a couple of years ago and it was horrible - both for me and for my boss and colleagues. I ended up being signed off work and being put on anti-depressants, beta blockers and sleeping pills until that happened I was in total denial about how bad things were.

It's not okay to spend your working day holding back tears and being short with people all the time. It creates a horrible atmosphere for everyone.

Honestly - get some help and look after yourself. You won't regret it

@TomAllenWife

I don't know where you all work but we're all pretty honest with each other.

We come in and say 'I'm struggling with my anxiety', 'I'm hungover', 'my partners been a cunt', 'I think I'm having a breakdown' and then we can be more supportive to each other

Some days are good, some are bad, and if you can't share that with your workmates who you spend all week with that's crazy

This is exactly like my work place, we spend 40 hours of our week together. So offer sympathetic support whenever needed. We all have good & bad days.