Clinical instructor intimidated by my height?

[loveoutloud]

I have been getting the vibes that my clinical instructor is intimidated by me and my height. I am a fairly tall girl...5"11 and my instructor is maybe 5"1 or 5"2. I feel when I approach her she feels intimidated if I am standing next to her, but not when we are sitting down. A few of the other tall girls I have spoken with feel the same way. I have never had problems of this natures before, so it really shocked me when she was bashing me for agression during my evaluation. She also commented that the other 2 girls that are tall are also very aggressive.

Does it sound as though i am paranoid? Should I address my concerns with my teacher?

I am in the third year of my program, and have always received positive feedback from clinical instructors, so it shocks be to hear that I am "adequate". In addition to this, I have always had instructors say that I am kind to my patients, and this one thinks I am abrubt.

[llg, PhD, RN]

Hmmm... that's an issue I had't heard of before ... worth thinking about. It could be that the instructor has had some bad experience in the past and doesn't feel comfortable with someone physically larger and stronger hovering over her.

I'd handle it very delicately, if I were you. Confronting her as a group and/or in a forceful way might make her even more uncomfortable and trigger a reaction that is opposite the one you want. Be particularly gentle around her, establish eye contact, smile, etc. Look for an opportunity (while sitting down) to talk with her gently about it -- something not accusatory, but indicating that you want to have a good relationship and mean no harm.

Perhaps you could start by saying something like ... "Sometimes I get a sense that you are uncomfortable around me. Is there something I do that I need to be aware of? I certainly don't want my patients or colleagues to ever feel uncomfortable around me." If you pick a good moment, one conducive to a "friendly" conversation, it might open the door for a good dialog with her that would clear the air and help you both feel better.

[OB-nurse2013, BSN, RN]

hahahahha I just had to read this to believe this. I don't know you or your instructor so who knows????but.... I am a fairly short girl and to be honest I've never ever been intimidated by someone just because they're taller then me.

[loveoutloud]

PS I am a VERYYYYY smiley, bubbly person and do not exhibit any signs of hostility towards anybody. My friends know of me as the crazy, friendly, happy one. I have had (grumpy) people me that I am too cheerful

[OB-nurse2013, BSN, RN]

Honestly I wouldn't worry about it. If she really doesn't like you it could just be some really dumb reason, like you could just oook or remind her of someone she doesn't like in her life. Who knows??? Long as you're doing your part don't worry about it :)

[healthstar, BSN, RN]

Maybe the instructor feels weird looking up at you when she talks, she feels inferior, uncomfortable. For instance, last week a doctor was seeing my pt and he was explaining things to me ( I swear he was like 7 ft tall, I am not kidding), my brain couldn't absorb anything he was saying. I was constantly thinking about how short I was compared to him and I never felt short before lol. It seemed like everyone was watching, I just wanted him to stop talking and leave. I did not know this person, I don't hate this person, I just did not feel comfortable at all. Your instructor might see herself as superior compared to students and she might have felt inferior when talking to you because you were all.

[BeenThereDoneThat74, MSN, RN]

I'm sorry, but I can't help it

It just never ceases to amazed how so many students have the "my instructor doesn't like me because (fill in the blank)" syndrome.

We are not paid to like you, or to constantly give you positive feedback (even when it's not constantly warranted). I don't mean to be so harsh (it's actually more sarcastic). I love what I do, and I am a firm believer of positive reinforcement. And I can usually find something positive to say about every single student of mine, even those who are unsatisfactory. I have had students who I really did not care for personally (for a variety of reasons) who were very good; thereforee not liking them was a non-issue (not a clinical objective they are required to meet). Conversely, some of my favorite students were ones I needed to give less than perfect evaluations to. Not fun at all, but part of my job.

If i were you, I'd worry more about your performance, and less on trying to analyze why your instructor may not like you.

[BeenThereDoneThat74, MSN, RN]

As an aside, one of my colleagues (who is about 5 feet), had the two tallest students in her clinical group a few years ago (the guys were also thin, she was... Well, not :/ ). She literally strained her neck every clinical day. One of the students she loved; the other: not so much. And it had absolutely nothing to do with their height.

I believe they posed for a very cute picture one day :)

[crittytn]

I am an extremely short girl--5 feet even. Tall doesn't bother me personally. One of my BFFs totally towers over me. And the other one is shorter than me even!

However, if you're this worried about it, could you possibly approach her at a time when you can both sit and say something about how you've heard her constructive criticism about how you're aggressive (or whatever she's saying) and ask her for advice to improve that? Explain that no other instructor has said this comment to you and you're wanting to know what she's seeing so that you don't possibly give that impression to a patient or someone else down the line. I guess that could be sort of the diplomatic approach to it?

Either that or just wait and let it pass and move on. Sometimes people just have issues and they have nothing to do with you personally.