A Future Doctor, a Future Nurse, a Future Hypochondriac?
If you are looking for a good med school or nursing school then you’d better look for a good natural anxiety relief program first (example). Even though stress, fatigue, pressure and sleepless nights are a good reason to need one, the real reason for getting one is all the incorrect diagnosis that you are going to give yourself during this not so fun and crazy journey. That’s right, if you are a doctor or nurse you probably are shaking your head “uh huh” right about now.
Unfortunately it doesn’t end there but follows you to whatever your patient census tends to be. Many oncology nurses keep finding suspicious bumps and moles all over their bodies which turn into panic attacks and frequent but benign visits to their doctor or dermatologist. Cardiac Care RNs are just as guilty as any little chest pain drives into a cold sweat (another heart attack symptom but this one caused not by their heart but by anxiety and panic) out of fear that they are having a heart attack.
ICU RNs are no exception just ask Enrique, a southern California ICU registered nurse, “I remember the day I went to the doctor and he told me that my abdominal pain was an umbilical hernia that needed repair. To be honest I had not slept for the last 24 hours as I anxiously waited for my appointment and my results because I was sure that my abdominal pain would be no less than an abdominal aortic aneurysm that was dissecting (rupturing) and that I could die in any second.”
“I was relieved to hear that it was only an umbilical hernia but that still didn’t stop me from fearing the worst and panicking as I told the surgeon that it was ok to go ahead and repair it but that I absolutely did not want him to use any mesh.” Enrique went on to say, “Of course the surgeon was confused and flat out told me that quite often a mesh is needed to prevent the hernia from coming back. He then realized where my fear was coming from when he asked me if I had been taking care of a certain patient in our ICU who was extremely sick from an infected mesh in his abdomen. I said I had and that I did not want anything like that happening to me as that patient was as sick as they come with multiple drains and fluid oozing from around every one of them.”
“The surgeon then looked at me with a calm reassurance and said, “Enrique, we do hundreds and hundreds of these a year, but you never see those as they never require ICU care. You are basing your perception on just one case out of thousands done in this hospital since you’ve started here.” He was right, in all that time I had only seen one. Yet out of all the success stories I could only focus on the one bad one. Just thinking about it accelerated my fear and made my heart race”
Enrique’s case by far is not out of the ordinary. Working in the hospital is a highly emotional job which at times can come with overwhelming pressures, stress and anxieties. In medical school you are taught to rule horses before you search for zebras but when you only work with zebras (severe cases) then that’s what you think of first. Some times these fears cause you to get to the point of constant worry and panic, so much so that it even becomes hard to enjoy your day to day life outside of the hospital. Sleeplessness become the norm and all you do is talk about what you think is going on in your body.
It is always recommended that you get it checked out with your doctor first just to make sure but most of the time it can be attributed to stress, anxiety and panic attacks. The symptoms are all too real and thinking of worst case scenario will only heighten your anxiety and fear, thus creating new and worse symptoms that give way to a vicious cycle.
Living with high anxiety also plays a role in lowering your immune system therefore making you susceptible to all the germs and viruses that come with your line of work. Of course your career does not have to be plagued by anxiety and panic attacks. Investing in a good natural anxiety relief program is not only wise but is also a good economical decision. Click here for a strong recomendation. By helping you avoid a few trips to the doctor (not to mention tests and monthly medication) the program will pay for itself many times over.
