Fast paced jobs

laurenkoonce · December 2014

Does anyone else have very fast paced/high stress jobs?! I work in a level 1 trauma center (the sickest of the sick patients) emergency room and I work 12 hour shifts with one 30 min lunch break (if I'm lucky). I've had awful dizziness and feel faint quite often.... Not to mention all the horrid smells in the ER!!

Does anyone else have a high stress job? How do you deal with it?

IveGotAFetus · December 2014

I'm ER too. Work 12 nights and days with no rhyme or reason. I have pretty easy pregnancies so it really doesn't affect me too much, but when not pregnant, I don't pee or eat at all during my shift. It is weird having to find time for food and pee. Also, at 38 weeks, reducing a hip or intubating gets a little rough due to size. And no caffeine. That's the worst. Overall though, you just get used to it.

coopmke · December 2014

I am struggling! I am am ICU nurse and find myself dizzy/nearly fainting at work and it's miserable. On top of some pretty bad nausea and vomiting I literally dread my 12 hour shifts. I keep thinking 'how will I do this til full term?' Has your doctor said anything about reducing hours/restrictions?

chanielle14 · December 2014

Well I work in an urgent care so not as long if hours as you ladies.... Depending how many patients are left after we close of course. Every time I come away from a patient I have to get a bite of a snack in the back room so I don't get nauseous and get tired really easy, other than that I'm ok. Sounds like you ladies need a break!

mehlaknee · December 2014

PICU nurse here. It has been tough. 12 hr night shit, we are short staffed. lots of sick kids. rough assignments with little support all during the first tri where I am ready to sleep all the time. I have begun hating to go to work. ugh!

also super paranoid of all the gross shit that comes in with the kids and being exposed to chemo or anything else terrible like that. We get a lot of kids that they dont know exactly whats up and are doing a million tests to rule out...makes me paranoid!!

shelbutler · December 2014

I don't have 12 hours shifts, I work in a law firm. I'm sure this compares absolutely not crap to a nurse. However, the stress levels are through the roof as we just lost all holiday time and have to work (when we were all expecting to be off) and after recent cut backs from three people to me I am constantly on the phone, answering to attorneys, and working my tail off and picking up the slack the other two left for me. I'm managing an extremely high case load and several different attorneys when I was accustomed to two. It's stressing me out to no end. I'm exhausted by the time I get off work and then have a nearly 2 hour drive home. I have to have at least and hour of relaxation once I get home and my hubs helps out a lot. I hope that it gets better with all of you!

beepity · December 2014

I work as a PA for the intensivist team at a busy metro hospital. Definitely high stress (especially at night when it's just me and one doc covering all 5 ICUs). There is no way I could handle this without the support from MH and my family!

I know there are tons of moms out there who do it alone or in school, etc and I can't even fathom how strong they have to be!

bumpuser8571475 · January 2015

Wow kudos to all the hard working ladies! I have a hard time chasing after my 1.5 year old toddler.. I couldn't imagine running around in an ER for 12 hours being pregnant and exhausted.. Hopefully the 2nd trimester makes things easier for you.

laurenkoonce · January 2015

We are also seeing record highs on number of patients and patient acuity levels lately... EVERYONE is sick. It totally scares me to death to walk into work and catch who knows what!! Haha I'm just hoping I can make it through, glad to know I'm not alone!! I thought I was going to pass out today, scary!

ksd744 · January 2015

I work 8s and 12s as an ER doc. I'm happy to have a little less nausea and a lot more energy now that first tri is almost over. I hadn't thought about reducing a hip at 38 weeks...that could be interesting

Tgrrl10 · January 2015

I'm a Peds Onc/BMT nurse. I work 12 hr day shifts. We've been extremely busy lately, very sick kids, topped with a lot of newly diagnosed kids or kids who have relapsed. Work hasn't been the most desirable place to be & I've had some days where I've been pretty light headed. I try to keep my water bottle close by so I can swing by & chug a little when I'm running by. I also make sure to bring food/snacks that I can eat on the go. I also got a back 'n belly body pillow for Christmas & that has helped immensely with my hip & leg pain after running all day. It's so easy to get caught up in our jobs, but it's so important to make taking care of yourself & LO a priority.

And I hear you with the smells....I do a lot of breathing through my mouth & have been known to put on a mask!

ChristyM87 · January 2015

I am also an ER nurse. My unit has had a number of pregnant staff members recently and work is very supportive and accommodating. Some of my coworkers are pumping and they always get pump breaks. And any pregnant nurse that is farther along normally gets assigned to triage so she isn't running all over the place

I haven't told work yet but a few coworkers know and given the track record I assume my boss will be supportive

wells2010 · January 2015

I work on a busy stroke unit... 12 hr shifts. Tonight we were short so I stayed an extra 4. Did not know the cafe was closing early and missed dinner!

Too many gross things! Also a little worried about the flu. I got vaccinated but it's less effective this year. We have had 5 nurses and cna's catch it already. It's hard to remember to eat, but if I don't I'll throw up!

No more OT for me! Me and the babe can't handle it!

charliepepper · January 2015

Yup, feel your pain ladies. I'm the lone physician in a busy peds clinic. 12 hrs, no lunch, no breaks, no sick days. Smells are awful. This time of yr, every other child has "fever and rash" and I have to see everyone since there's no other provider. Sometimes I feel like I have to manufacture empathy when I've just been puking in an empty exam and my next pt is a teenager who has sneezed once and just wanted to get out of school for the day.

laurenkoonce · January 2015

@charliepepper‌ YES!! Drives me crazy when people check in the ER because of a stubbed toe or a cough to get a work excuse... Must be nice!

Nickritch · January 2015

Icu nurse and do 12 hour shifts. To top it off, I'm in school and starting clinicals in the spring. Don't know how I'm going to do it. I just worked 3 nights in a row so I'm exhausted and have no intention of getting out of bed today. The nausea have calmed down but smells and sights get to me. Tuesday night, my incubated patient started vomiting blood and I was literally gagging as I was suctioning him. That was fun. As far as breaks, I usually take a small snack break around 10 or 11 pm and then lunch around 2 am. Work has been good with making sure we get our breaks (there's a couple of us pregnant).

mrr5058 · January 2015

I work as an ER nurse practitioner. I work 10-12 hour night shifts in a busy ER. My goal is to pee at least once and have one snack per night! My first hip reduction was actually when I was 7-8 months pregnant with my first. A doc jokingly asked me if I wanted to do it but I love ortho so I couldn't pass it up!

babyE2015 · January 2015

I'm a surgical tech at an orthopedic surgery center, I know it's not as crazy as an ER, but I work 10hr shifts and it seemed like everyone and their cousin HAD to have their elective surgeries in December! It was non stop, but I did my best to grab a quick snack between cases and was a zombie as soon as I got home. I'm hoping things slow down now that it's January.

laurenkoonce · January 2015

@babyE2015‌ agreed! Everyone seems to have the flu around here. I'm in zombie mode and feel bad for everyone that has to deal with my sleepy/grouchiness haha

counselchick · January 2015

I have a busy and stressful job. I also have had hyperemesis since I was 5 weeks, so I had a conversation with my boss pretty early since I am sick all day, every day. I think shooting straight with my boss has been my only saving grace.

I keep water and snacks handy and I make sure I have a trash can close by my desk. When I can, I retreat to an empty conference room to work so I don't have to make the mad dash for the bathroom (or puke in front of my coworkers), and I sleep on my lunch and when I am not at work. A quiet room may not be a luxury you have in the ER, though.

I have been using sick time when I need it, even if it is just to take an extended lunch break to rest, or leave a little early on the horrendous puking days. My boss has been flexible with me, although I have been with my company for 9 years and had a boat load of banked sick time. I am saying lots of prayers for strength and hoping the hyperemesis doesn't last much longer since it would be great to save some of that sick time for a paid maternity leave.

anfranklin2 · January 2015

babyE2015 said:
I'm a surgical tech at an orthopedic surgery center, I know it's not as crazy as an ER, but I work 10hr shifts and it seemed like everyone and their cousin HAD to have their elective surgeries in December! It was non stop, but I did my best to grab a quick snack between cases and was a zombie as soon as I got home. I'm hoping things slow down now that it's January.

I'm a surg tech as well, but at a hospital not just ortho. TOTALLY agree, december was insane! Apparently most people had met their deductible so they wanted to get their elective surgeries in before the new year started! We had a patient an hour late for a carpal tunnel release, then they called and said they had a flat but will be coming in. On Christmas Eve!

Luckily I only work 8 hr shifts, but some days it sucks and I get stuck there on OT.

slamar3 · January 2015

Peds hem/onc/bmt nurse and I do my days in a row because of my commute. I live 100 miles from where I work and stay with family (still a 50 mile drive each way) on my 3 day stretch. It is rough. Do to illness and time off since pregnancy this was my first 3 days stretch in a while and I just can't hack it like I used to. And yesterday at work I had some very light spotting and I'm afraid it's from the combination of stresses at work (though I will never know). The last time I spotted was on my 4th of 4 and I was put on a temp loa after that. Doesn't help that it's that time of year when all our patients are incredibly sick. But I do love my job, all my kiddos, and their families.

shay4cavs · January 2015

I work at a collection agency, and sit all day. Although I'm not physically exhausted, I am emotionally overwhelmed though. I was sick of being cursed out and hearing rude comments before but now I am just super sensitive. Not sure I will last much longer.

laurenkoonce · January 2015

@shay4cavs‌ sometimes being emotionally worn out is even worse! I feel you on getting cussed out all the time... So tired of having patients dying and people mad and cussing me out because they were put back in the lobby for a stubbed toe! Haha it's taken all of me to not snap at them and burst into frustration tears haha hang in there!

smccall3838 · January 2015

I'm a mental health therapist and the mood swings are hard to hide with what I hear all day. Plus, because I'm required to work one evening I work a 12 hr shift a week... 45 min session while trying to stay hydrated...I makes sure when it's time to end IT'S TIME TO END!

Kahuthu · January 2015

I'm an auditor at a plastic company. So its all first paced. 8 hrs of walking,lifting and not mentioning the smell of burnt plastic all night long. Its been tough bt hopefully I'll be able to get through it

crason · January 2015

I am an elementary school teacher. My pre-k class has 17 students, 10 of which are boys. 12 of my students began the year when they were 3 years old. The mornings are very fast paced, but I wouldn't trade my job!

babyE2015 · January 2015

@anfranklin2‌
That's just ridiculous! Our place closed at noon on Christmas eve, luckily we didn't have to deal with that.. today was definitely a lot better, we finally felt like we could breathe between cases! Are you having any issues doing arthroscopies, particularly shoulder scopes? I am fine for a little bit, but very really motion sick and I can't watch them anymore!

Bjross1 · January 2015

I'm an xray/CT tech at a busy hospital. I work 12 hour nights 7 on/7 off. By night 7 I'm so worn out but I sure love those 7 off! I dread seeing what it's like when I'm 38 weeks

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