[allmytimestudying]

they drug test for benzos where i work that is why i havent been using xanx

[PACUJennifer]

Wow. That never even occurred to me. I have never worked in a facility that did employee drug testing - either pre-employment or random screening. I did a little research and it seems to be common in some safety-sensitive jobs here - the military,truckers who need to cross the border between Canada and the US,the oil patch. I've never heard of it being done in a Canadian hospital.

Is it not okay to be on a prescription medication if you have a letter from your MD saying " Miss X is on Z for Y diagnosed condition "?

Seems discriminatory to not hire or to fire someone because of a medical condition, lumping IT with,say,recreational use of cannabis or alcohol. Very interesting subject. I hope you've been able to find another medication which helps you that the drug testers aren't interested in.

[Chaya]

I've been able to manage most of the organizational stuff and stay somewhat focused. Also, I'm fine relating to my patients one-on-one or with their families and I'm OK making calls to MD's or giving / taking report with other nurses.

What I've never totally gotten comfortable with is becoming part of social conversations going on at the nurses' station or joining a group of colleagues for lunch. That just wears me out, because reading social cues like tone of voice, receptiveness in body language and how long to maintain eye contact is like a foreign language to me (at least with people I know only casually. I am fine in a small group of intimate friends and surprisingly enough, OK in front of a group if I know ahead of time what I will be talking about). It takes every ounce of my concentration and I'm not very good at it.

No, it has never become easier over time and I don't think it's likely to after all these years. And no, I don't think I'm making too much of it, because if I don't put in the effort I am apparently perceived as unfriendly or worse. I'm seldom included in social invitations, and seldom in conversations if I do not make an effort to join. It doesn't help that at my work most of the nurses are in the same (different from mine) age group/ social situations. I try not to let it get me and just do my job, because I do have an outside life!- but it does mean that I do not have the benefit of the social networking we know to be so important. BUt the networking part would be important in any work setting, so in that way, I don't think nursing is any better or any worse than any other job setting for me with regards to having social anxiety.

[richnurse828]

well said, Chaya. I'm unfortunately in the same boat. It amazes me that no one (it seems) understands that social anxiety is a real disorder. Everyone just expects you to be as warm and outgoing as everybody else. Work can be incredibly miserable at times and I wonder if I could even cope with a 12 hour shift. I guess you just have to keep trying to improve on your problems. I've been listening to this series of therapy sessions from the social anxiety network and it seems to be helpful in terms of enabling me to believe that I can beat this. I'll see if it pays off later on but apparently cognitive behavioral therapy is the most effective treatment.

[Stanley-RN2B]

Originally Posted by PACUJennifer

Why would it be anyone's concern what medications you are on? It's definitely not a good idea to share personal information like that with coworkers. It's no one's business as well.

Information is power...

Many employers require notification of med usage due to random drug tests.
Also, letting people know about disabilities can be a help. People that are your friendly or at least human will be supportive to some degree or another. People that aren't will notice anyways.

On a side note, I let my boss and other people I work with know I have bp and anxiety. This has paid off as one day I had a 'crises' and didn't quite make it to work. My employer sent someone to my house which pretty much saved me.

The stigma against 'mental disorders' persists because people still hide it. It's a good year to out yourself.

Information isn't power. Knowledge is. Especially knowledge of secrets. The best way to take that power away is to reveal the secret...

[kristenncrn]

I work with several people who have varying degrees of mental health challenges... a couple have ADHD that honestly seems to serve them WELL in nursing (well, one's an RT.) I certainly can't see either of them in the board room at IBM. But my friend who has severe ADHD does just fine in the critical care truck and the helicopter. He's very open about his ADHD, too... but he's very gregarious. (Not to belittle - really, but both the guys I'm thinking of joke like this constantly!)

I also work with a few people who have pretty profound psych histories that I'm honored to be privy to. They are fantastic nurses and people.

I guess I just want to echo the above... talk to your health care folks. But my vote is that nursing is such a wide profession, with so many options and so many roles... and we ALL come to the table with strengths and challenges. We nurses could use your strengths!

Best of luck with whatever you decide...