Are you self-employed? An entrepreneur? Founder of your own company? If the answer is yes, then you will know the answer to the next question. Who looks after your business when you are sick or unwell?  Unless you have a manager & or employ other staff, if you are running your own business, the buck literally stops with You.

As Winter seems to have arrived with gusto & we have seen temperatures drop dramatically over the weekend, some of us might find we are reaching for the thermostat switch at home & the heating is going on. Others may reach for another warm layer & unearth the winter coat, hat & gloves from the wardrobe. As the summer clothes are put away for another year, Winter comes to remind us that seasonality still exists & we need to be ready for it.

As a business owner you will be well aware of the need to protect your vested interests, especially if you have built your company from the ground up. However, just as we start to layer up & keep the heat in at home, so to must we remember to layer up our businesses & be prepared for the changes which accompany winter.

As you run your own business, making sure your health is tip-top over Winter is paramount. Virtually Smart Ltd have prepared some ideas to help you protect yourself over the winter months & in doing so, protect your business.

Physical health – Eating well, taking supplements.

Ensuring your physical health is protected over the Winter months is vital for all of us. Every year thousands of sick days are taken by employees across the UK.

‘The Office for National Statistics said the average number of sick days taken by UK workers fell to 4.1 days in 2017, a sharp decline from the 7.2 days recorded in 1993 when the data was first collected.

The most common reason for a sick day is a minor illness, such as coughs and colds, making up 26% of the total.’ (1)

However, one reason for the decline in sick days, is believed to be employees continuing to work even while they are unwell.

If you run your own business or are self-employed, you need to make sure you look after yourself more during the winter months. With immune systems being challenged, coughs & colds can be picked up anywhere & if you have children, you know that at this time of year particularly, they can bring home a collection of viruses from school. If you succumb to a cold, it can make you feel very unwell & although there is no ‘quick fix’ for these sorts of viruses, there are ways you can help to boost your own immune system.

Food. Eating plenty of fresh fruit & vegetables, in particular those high in Vitamin C, A & B12, can go some way to boosting your immune system. Government guidelines advise that due to the reduced sunlight we are exposed to during the Winter months, taking a Vitamin D supplement, could be beneficial.

‘The new advice from PHE (Public Health England) is that adults and children over the age of one should consider taking a daily supplement containing 10mcg of vitamin D, particularly during autumn and winter.

People who have a higher risk of vitamin D deficiency are being advised to take a supplement all year round. (2)

Hydration. Remaining hydrated is essential for health. When you consider that a human body is made up of 60% water, remaining hydrated will support your bodies natural rhythm. However, avoid too much tea & coffee, as when it is cold we do tend to reach for those hot drinks for warmth & comfort.

Consider room temperature water, semi skimmed or skimmed milk to boost your calcium intake or Fruit or Herbal teas, which are being produced in more & more delicious flavours. Remember, your brain needs fluids to function correctly. Tea & coffee are diuretics & therefore encourage the body to urinate. You need to remain constantly hydrated to avoid headaches & to be able to flush virus’s & colds through your body.

Breakfast. If you are a ‘grab & go’ type of person in the mornings, consider ways you can include foods into your diet which will help boost your winter immunity. Porridge is a great winter warmer & there are now several versions for those whose jobs or lifestyles do not allow for breakfast to be consumed at home. You can simply add your own oats & milk to a take away pot & microwave them at work. Homemade Flapjacks, packed with fruits & nuts, are a fantastic way to get some slow release starchy energy in to you on the go. Bircher museli is another way to get a hearty breakfast, which can be taken with you, eaten on the train or bus, or at a desk, if that is the only place you are able to eat in the mornings.

Mental health.

Seasonal Adjustment Disorder or SAD as it is commonly known, is a diagnosed mental disorder. However, a lot of people in the UK feel particularly restless or are lethargic & irritable during the Winter months. A combination of ‘going to work in the dark & coming home in the dark’, the cold making it more difficult to move around & the obligatory cold or the snuffles; can all add up to making you feel under the weather & suffer from low mood.

Symptoms of SAD are varied & can in some cases be severe.

·        a persistent low mood

·        a loss of pleasure or interest in normal everyday activities

·        irritability

·        feelings of despair, guilt and worthlessness

·        feeling lethargic (lacking in energy) and sleepy during the day

·        sleeping for longer than normal and finding it hard to get up in the morning

·        craving carbohydrates and gaining weight (3)

Ensuring you combat the ‘winter blues’ can be helped by some of the ideas above. Food, supplements & hydration. However, if ‘winter depression’ begins to impact on your ability to undertake your job or your interactions with friends & family, you do need to contact your GP.

One way you can help to combat those glum winter feelings, is by getting outdoors.

Sunshine & daylight. As mentioned above, Government guidelines advise taking a Vitamin D supplement over the winter months. Although we do absorb some Vitamin D from the foods we eat, the sunlight during the winter months, doesn’t contain enough UVB radiation to produce Vitamin B. However, getting outside in the daylight is particularly effective in combating signs of fatigue, tiredness & SAD (Seasonal Adjustment Disorder)

Outdoor activities. Another way to combat low mood during the winter months, is to get outside as often as you can. Whether it be a brisk walk around the block, or a full Winter trudge through a local park or woodland. Being amongst nature is a natural mood booster & gives you wonderful memories to see you through the rest of your working week.

Written by Katy Jane for & on behalf of Virtually Smart Ltd. 

(1)https://www.theguardian.com/money/2018/jul/30/sick-days-taken-uk-workers-fall-lowest-rate-on-record

(2)https://www.nhs.uk/news/food-and-diet/the-new-guidelines-on-vitamin-d-what-you-need-to-know/

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/seasonal-affective-disorder-sad/