nur14

Never heard of the Crusty Old Bat Society but the name tickles my fancy, feel like I should probably belong to that society...:) Most of my coworkers are a lot younger than me, and don't even know what I am talking about because they were born in the 70's , 80's. I am becoming a dinosaur but you are as young as you feel and I have the spirit of an 18 year old. Old Abe was right, you are as happy as you decide to be...:)

Had another situation with this troublesome coworker. A client said to me that I have the reputation of being the toughest nurse to get by, in other words, if you are impaired and come to my dosing window I will deny your dose. This client said, "That is a compliment, you are doing your job.". But the fact that he said the clients were a little afraid of me upset me. I was discussing this with my NM and she said, "you took my job, that is what they used to say about me." Well, the co-worker that I don't get along with pipes up and says, "Oh yeah, the clients say that blond nurse with the glasses who never smiles is mean." This comment upset me as well, I replied, "Like in the movie Gone with the Wind, Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn!" Well I was upset by these comments, I really try to be nice to everyone, so this coworker who just made the comment, comes over and rubs my back and says, "I didn't mean to upset you." I said, "you didn't upset me, I don't care." So when it was time for break, now she wants me to help her do the narcotic count and I said, "No, that is ok, Derek another coworker can help you do the count. I said, "I'm going to take my mean blonde ****** self out of this dispensary and go on break". I realize not everyone is going to like you, clients included. It was the fact that this coworker was taking pleasure in my pain that bothered me. I truly don't want any trouble with anyone. This coworker earlier in the day asked for my help and I tried to help her. The minute I started showing her how to do something she was telling me I was wrong. I backed away from her and said, "Call the NM for help if you need it." I am not engaging with her, I will walk away and I'm documenting all these incidents. I will keep trying to deal with coworker in an appropriate manner, it is clear to me I have some growing to do. I also need to learn how to deal with difficult people in an appropriate manner. Yes, I have definite room for improvement in getting along with coworkers.

Thank you for all the helpful suggestions. I am going to admit something. Because this co-worker has been so unstable I have found myself ignoring what she says and that is wrong too. This co-worker tried to point out to me that I was making an error today and I did not listen because of the source and she was right! So i ignored her and made an error, not a serious one thank God. But I have to really listen to what is being said, try to filter out the nonsense to find the truth. I am so far from being perfect, and need to admit it when I'm wrong. But I also need to act as professionally as possible with this co-worker so as not to step on anyone's toes...God what a balancing act.

I am a nurse in recovery from alcoholism, I have been sober for almost 17 years. I went to AA religiously for 5 years, joined a group, was active in the group, had a sponsor. After 5 years of daily meetings I went back to school and just began to pursue spirituality and recovery through meditation and spiritual reading. I work in the addiction field dispensing methadone and feel this is my way of giving back what I am so grateful to have been given which is sobriety and I never ever forget that it could be me on the other side of the window. I have never told another nurse that I work with that I am in recovery. I have seen how judgmental the medical community still is toward addiction and it appalls me. But I feel like i am carrying around this secret. I have recently started seeing a therapist because I'm feeling some depression, my work hours are 5;30 a.m. to 1;30 p.m and those hours just don't give me much time to have any kind of life. I am so tired when I get home that I need to sleep. I sleep for around 5 hours, then I'm awake again for a few hours, then I go back to sleep for a few hours, probably on the worst sleep schedule possible. I feel I have come so far, from not even being able to hold a job to a Computer Degree, obtained my R.N. and- just recently finished my BSN. But I'm not happy-. My husband is bi-polar and can no longer work. My son has psych issues as well, but is doing ok. I have this horrible fear of driving, which i'm going to work on with my therapist to conquer, as I have my driver's license. I guess I am lonely and just needed to reach out to some others that might understand me. And I know I should probably go back to AA, but I just wasn't getting what I needed from AA when I left. I wasn't willing to do everything that the program spelled out and people in AA would say, "Well you are not working your program". It began to feel like the Catholic religion I was brought up in, repressive, and I could never meet the expectations, so I stopped going.

Thank you so much for the insightful comments. This difficult coworker tried to pick a fight with me today and I walked away. I feel very proud of myself that I am not letting my temper get the best of me anymore. I have started documenting all of this coworker's inappropriate behavior. I have no doubt she will try to get me in trouble in the future. She feels so bad about herself that she is trying to make me look bad in any way she can. She may be doing this unconsciously, not even aware she is doing it. But she is so quick to point out any mistake I make, if I put a document in the wrong place etc. She screws up constantly and I don't say anything to her or about her to anyone.

I know this nurse has psychiatric issues because she talks about going to her psychiatrist all the time and taking her meds. She tells the other nurses that she has not taken her meds on certain days and they encourage her to do so. Thank you for clarifying what strong personality means, wasn't sure. I have no issue with psychiatric problems, I have several family members that have psych issues and take medication. I don't believe however in using psych problems as an excuse for bad behavior. I will document any further incidents of inappropriate behavior from this nurse. For the time being we are getting along fine. I am playing nice in the sandbox...:) I want to get along with my coworker, it makes the work environment so much more bearable. Thanks again for the suggestions.

I had a problem with a nurse coworker. This coworker clearly has psychiatric issues and when she does not take her meds she is loud, obnoxious, rude, and annoying. I was training a new nurse and she kept interrupting and my patience ran thin. Long story short we both got hauled into the NM office because she walked in and asked how things were going and I had a disgusted look on my face. I was told I need to communicate to this nurse when I am too busy to help her. The nurse manager said my coworker was super sensitive and I have a strong personality? Don't know what strong personality means? By now this coworker is sobbing and I feel like a mean old ogre. I hugged her and told her I was not out to get her and she said it was her anxiety issues. I am trying to keep my distance from her, don't want to hurt her but don't want to be annoyed to death. I will keep trying, I am a work in progress. I must admit I don't always play nice in the sandbox, but I'm trying to play nice in the sandbox. Working with this nurse is a challenge but if I can learn to not lose my patience I will definitely be a better nurse and person.

Hello, In my last post I was talking about job stress and I feel it is going better. I have been working at this methadone clinic for almost 5 years. Last Friday a nurse called in sick and myself and one other nurse administered methadone to 790 patients. There are supposed to be 5 nurses doing this job and we are grossly understaffed. This included putting in orders, answering the phone, and dosing. At the staff meeting I was commended along with my coworker. The director of the program gave me a little thing to put on my keychain that is in the shape of a star, that says "you make the difference". It is just little keychain but I felt recognized for my hard work. Nursing does not get credit at this methadone clinic, the counselors get all the recognition. Without nursing the clinic could not exist. My nurse manager is an ego maniac and takes all the credit for nursing, but we are in the trenches not her. The nurse manager is hiring new people but it takes at least 6 months to know the job. I love the clientele I'm working with but do not always like my bosses or coworkers.