We all know deadlines and demanding bosses can be stressful, but what if your workspace itself is quietly impacting your well-being? Beyond the obvious pressures, your office environment often harbours invisible stressors that subtly chip away at your mental health.
Your work environment often contains invisible stressors. In an article published on the Psychology Today website on June 17, 2025, general practitioner Esther Sternberg explains that she investigated the subject. “We used wearable health tracking devices to measure individuals’ stress responses in different workspaces and discovered some surprises.”
She and her team identified four invisible stressors that impact your mental health at work. Here they are, and how to reduce them.
Lack of movement
The absence of space to move is a significant invisible stressor.
“We found that people working in open or active offices, offering many spaces to sit, work, walk around, and meet, moved 22% more than those working in cubicle offices and 30% more than those working in private offices,” explains Esther Sternberg. “People who moved more throughout the day were 14% less stressed upon returning home from work.”
If you work in an environment that doesn’t allow you to move much, there are tricks to stay active. “If you don’t have many choices for moving during the day, set an alarm to remind you to get up and move every 20 minutes or so,” the doctor details. “This is particularly important if you work from home. (…) Take the stairs if you have them, go for a walk outside or in a park near your home to give yourself a break.”
Noises that are either too loud or too soft
While very loud noises are stressful for many people, excessively low noises also cause significant stress. “Wearable devices showed that 45 decibels – about the level of birdsong – is the ideal level to minimize the stress response and maximize the ‘well-being response’,” highlights Esther Sternberg.
If there’s too much noise, don’t hesitate to use noise-cancelling headphones when you work, and if the absence of noise bothers you, feel free to play white noise, nature sounds, or your favorite music.
Humidity
While heat or cold don’t directly affect the stress response, humidity is a direct but unsuspected cause. “When relative humidity was below 30% or above 60%, workers’ stress response was 25% higher – and, again, they weren’t aware of it,” explains Esther Sternberg.
If your work environment is too humid, place a dehumidifier right next to you, and if it’s too dry, place a humidifier.
Brightness
Exposure to sunlight promotes the regulation of your circadian rhythm and leads to better quality sleep. A place that is too dark can therefore be a stress factor.
However, glare is also a major stressor, which can even trigger migraines in susceptible individuals. “We usually lower the blinds when there’s too much glare, which makes the problem worse because we don’t get the beneficial morning sun exposure needed for restorative sleep,” the doctor explains.
If your workspace is too dark, don’t hesitate to position yourself near a sunny window, but without too much glare. “If you don’t have a window, you can buy full-spectrum light boxes or smart lamps to get the ideal light wavelength throughout the day: bluer in the morning and redder in the evening, for better sleep,” adds Esther Sternberg.
