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How to Avoid Entrepreneur Overload As an entrepreneur, you're probably either slightly frazzled, mildly frayed or full-on exhausted.

By Joe Robinson

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Overwork went straight to Douglas Heddings' back. The founder of Heddings Property Group in New York City, Heddings has suffered from chronic stress-related back pain for more than a decade. Even as he recuperated from spine surgery, the pace didn't let up. His inbox filled at the rate of 50 e-mails per hour. The back problem "has a great deal to do with the fact that I feel I have to be on call 24/7," Heddings says.

"This is not good for my mental and physical well-being."

Researchers agree. Frequent long hours can increase stress and touch off a host of health hazards, including insomnia and high blood pressure. Poor decision-making starts to creep in. And unlike your laptop, your system doesn't have an internal fan to cool it down.