Public duty, private agony

Workplace-related stress is pushing some officials to the breaking point and even worse. He Na reports from Beijing.

'I feel as though I can't breath." "I'm under too much pressure." "My life is meaningless." "I don't derive any sense of achievement from my work, but I still have to do so much."

These sentiments are typical of the way stressed public servants outline their problems when seeking psychological counseling from Shi Zhanbiao, director of the mental health counseling and services center for employees of central state organs, and the problem is getting worse. "We've seen outpatient numbers increasing steadily year after year," he said.