Hello. I am in desperate need of advice. Ironically, I am an advice nurse...but I need help sometimes too! I have been a nurse for almost 27 years. I am beyond burned out. I can really say I have very little empathy, if any, left. I have been working in a busy call center for almost 2 years now. It's getting more and more difficult for me to cope with the ridiculous calls we get. I worked with sick babies the first 25 years of my career. Decided to try something new. Boy, is this new. I find myself getting heart palpitations from some of the calls. I also start to sweat a lot. This is the kind of job where you cannot just walk away from the phone. We are closely monitored every single minute of the day. It's all computerized of course. Anyway, the calls that get to me are the anxious people, in turn causing me to be anxious. I really don't take the calls personally, it's more along the lines of feeling these people's voices in my head and seeping through my body. Sounds dramatic, but that's how I feel. I have even been getting cold chills when I feel so overwhelmed. I am shocked at how people act, how ignorant they are, and how rude they can be. I liked working with babies because they are innocent and they don't talk back. The parents could be difficult however. I am trying to look at the positives. I have a good commute, good pay, good company to work for, but how in the world can I cope?? I sometimes feel like a 911 operator, which I never expected. The calls range from easy to difficult, dumb to smart, rude to nice, you name it. I guess it's to be expected. It feels good just to express myself here. I really wish I could just retire and be done with it all. So...if you have any great advice I would love to hear it!! I am at the end of my rope. But I also can't find another job right now that would work for me. I had a friend tell me she loves advice nurses when she calls us, they are so nice and helpful. That made me feel better. This job makes me roll my eyes constantly. People really are helpless and clueless with their healthcare. So, my main question is how do you deal with anxiety while at work? Besides walking away...I can't do that very often.
Hi. Sorry you are going through this. I have tremendous anxiety, sometimes to the point that I feel I cannot clearly convey what I want to say, or cannot stand up for myself. I got sick of feeling regret after every conversation because I was too anxious to feel relaxed. And this - is going to sound a little crazy - but I started taking acting classes. I had to do a monologue, get up in front of people and deliver a performance using different voices, take on different characters, interact with other actors who sometimes had lines that were hostile and scary...and every single day I showed up at acting class, my heart pounding, wondering if I would forget my lines or be startled by dramatic scenes with screaming, yelling, etc. The last day I had to give my dramatic monologue of a person who is tormented with voices and hallucinations. The lines were disjointed and tangential, and I was shaking with fear that I would forget.
I guess what I'm saying is that this type of exercise allowed me o experiment in a safe place with my anxiety - 'playing' a bold character, sometimes crying....pulling anxiety from my real life into a way I could channel it with other people.
It definitely helped. I'm more relaxed when I talk to people. Maybe it's worth a shot?
P.S. I ended up being cast in a short film that was in the Kite Film Festival this year. Just a short spot, but lots of fun.
Honestly it sounds like alot of the anxiety and stress you are creating for yourself. If you no longer care about what you are doing and the people you are trying to help, you are not going to be an effective nurse. Things would take on a whole different cast if you truly felt you were doing good for the patients you are talking to.
I am NOT criticizing you at all! I felt much the same way a few months ago. I was slogging through my day, not liking my coworkers and not giving my patients the attention they deserved! I had to take a long look at the reasons I was staying. When I realized it wasn't because I wanted to help patients and I was in serious burnout, I quit. I had no back up plan and it still felt GREAT! I was immediately happy and broke. LOL But I wouldn't change my decision. I felt like 100lbs had been lifted off of me.
I start my new job in a new field on Monday and I am very excited. I feel the old joy of actually helping and caring for people who need someone returning to me. Don't wait until you are at the end of your rope. Take a good long look at yourself and do what is right for you. I almost let that job ruin my view of nursing. I'm glad I didn't let it. Stand up, take control and be happy again!!
Good luck to you and I really hope you start feeling better soon.
Dear MA Nurse, I will defer to the above discussions about coping with the stress while at work. I am retired after 30 years in
nursing. I would like to address another issue... What are you doing outside of work to nurture yourself? When in a high intensity field we
need to take time for activities and interests that allow us to care for ourselves. I took walks by the ocean on days I could not manage
driving to dance classes. I formulated a list of interests and activities for myself as a person, when my nursing cap was off and I was not
on duty. Take yourself to lunch, take a walk , celebrate the hard work you do when it feels like no one appreciates you. Take your friends with you, no nursing talk. If we allow, nursing can consume us. Especially in these days of business first...... Please know that your work and all of the nurses who visit this forum is appreciated and honored by those of us who have been there. And also the many patients you have helped along the way and have praised your work to family ,friends and employer...
Hi...sorry for not replying too...I myself am dealing with stress just in my second year as a nursing student....stress with my family..especially my mom can't wait to kick me out from the house...irritated I can't give financially coz I quit my job but it is all having the middle child syndrome...you know when my mom prefers my siblings....I know for sure...one thing....it is not to quit with what we are. Maybe to walk away in your stressful job...as I will walk away here...just asking to give me 14 months til I graduate and get a job and a place to stay without the emotional and economic abuse. And most of all, I pray....because I feel helpless fighting against these odds...and so...I will pray for you as I pray.
Specializes in Telemetry, Step-Down, Med-Surg, LTC, PACU.
Hey MA,
This is a very late response but felt compelled to respond although I hope you are doing better. A little bit of my background... I worked as a bill collector (yep lol) for about 3 1/2 years then I worked in a call center for an airline. From there I went into nursing school. I absolutely hated being tied to a phone... I felt like the cord to the headset was a chain. But anyway...
Now, I've been a floor nurse for about 4 months and the grass is not always easier on the other side. I have never had so much anxiety in my life (even as a bill collector, which I hated to death) and I am now diagnosed with Hypertension... about 2 months after starting to work where I am in LTC/Rehab.
But I also wanted to share when I worked for that airline, a Nurse took a detour from Nursing and went to work in the call center. She was burned out... about 8 months later she hated it more than what she was doing (Home Health) and ended up going right back to where she was I guess with a new perspective?
I definitely think that if you hate it then you hate it and should look for another avenue in Nursing. Sitting at a desk and taking calls is tough... people think it's not but it is mentally and emotionally draining (not to mention the effects of sitting for 8-10 hours a day) and I can only imagine how much TOUGHER it is to have to deal with calls where patients are extremely stressed, anxious, etc... Sure, I have had some REALLLLY bad calls... and was called every name in the book but I don't think I would sign up for that job. In fact, you mentioned it reminds you of being a 911 dispatcher. I went to inquire about becoming one a few years back... and totally decided it was NOT for me.
In the meantime, try to develop coping mechanisms. I was really close to the people I worked with at the call centers. And the great thing about not being face to face is you can make faces they won't see... it might be seen as unprofessional but hey, it will let off some steam and isn't harmful as long as you are still handling the call professionally.
I know how stringent call centers can be about you being OFF the phone too... or call length... they monitor EVERYTHING. But hey, if you need a little mental break... take one. It will make your next one better.
SunnyPupRN
289 Posts
Hi. Sorry you are going through this. I have tremendous anxiety, sometimes to the point that I feel I cannot clearly convey what I want to say, or cannot stand up for myself. I got sick of feeling regret after every conversation because I was too anxious to feel relaxed. And this - is going to sound a little crazy - but I started taking acting classes. I had to do a monologue, get up in front of people and deliver a performance using different voices, take on different characters, interact with other actors who sometimes had lines that were hostile and scary...and every single day I showed up at acting class, my heart pounding, wondering if I would forget my lines or be startled by dramatic scenes with screaming, yelling, etc. The last day I had to give my dramatic monologue of a person who is tormented with voices and hallucinations. The lines were disjointed and tangential, and I was shaking with fear that I would forget.
I guess what I'm saying is that this type of exercise allowed me o experiment in a safe place with my anxiety - 'playing' a bold character, sometimes crying....pulling anxiety from my real life into a way I could channel it with other people.
It definitely helped. I'm more relaxed when I talk to people. Maybe it's worth a shot?
P.S. I ended up being cast in a short film that was in the Kite Film Festival this year. Just a short spot, but lots of fun.