A community of 30,000 US Transcriptionist serving Medical Transcription Industry
Seeking advice from armchair psychologists.
Posted: Feb 17, 2016
After almost 30 years of MTing, I want out. Making my state's min wage and taking care of an elderly parent on said min wage is a struggle. A few better-paying office opportunities have popped up locally, but I don't even apply because I think of what *could* go wrong. A page position in a library: What if I have to toss out a homeless or mentally unstable person because of patron complaints? The guilt would haunt me. A front desk position at a community mental health clinic: What if there is conflict or aggression? I don't handle those situations well--too passive. Stupid thing is, I KNOW those are very rare situations, that most days would be routine, but I am afraid(?) to even try. This is a 360-degree change from what I was like before working at home. So, what is wrong with me? Any ideas how to break past this fear? Please, do not say "get a backbone" or something like that. I used to be the one saying that to others, and it just isn't that easy. (Yes, Karma, I hear you laughing at me.) ;
Advice - Chi-town Lady
[ In Reply To ..]I would go for the front desk position at the clinic. My first MT job I had to fill in at the front desk for breaks, vacations, etc. While it wasn't my preference, there was a lot to like about the job; the interaction with patients and other visitors to the clinic stand out. There is always the possibility of conflict and aggression, but in our case we had security buttons that we could press and the security from the hospital next door would come over and take care of the problem.
I totally understand - have been there - Old Hippie
[ In Reply To ..]It is natural for someone with a lot of bad luck to be pessimistic. I lived that way for about 20 years. People around me would tell me to think positive, but I could not understand how that could change my life situation. Then a veterinarian I know posted an article on Facebook about positive thinking. This described how the brain neurons transmit messages. After you have several bad situations, the brain starts to default to pessimism. It takes a conscious effort to change that by pushing the negative ideas out of your head and forcing yourself to think of what good can happen from this job. After forcing yourself to think positively, the brain actually resets the default to positives. I have not explained this in scientific terms as did the article, but this is basically what it said. Finally, I thought, there is an explanation for the benefit of positive thinking. If you think positive about these jobs and not anticipate and stress over negative situations, you will eliminate the fear you are experiencing before even applying for the job.
I think fear works the same way, so reject those ideas that haunt you and think positive. Reset your brain to default to the expectation that everything will be okay. I think things will turn around for you.
Good luck.
It can be hard to take the leap to change. - GG
[ In Reply To ..]I feel a little like you in that I've been at home raising kids and working as an MT for almost 20 years now and the thought of working outside the home is very daunting. I think you just need to take the leap and go for something. If it doesn't work out, another opportunity will come along.
"Makes us rather to bear the ills we have than fly to others that we know not of." - Yay!Finally got to use my English degree!
[ In Reply To ..]There are lots of famous lines from Hamlet, but this one has stuck with me all these years. It's weirdly comforting to realize that even 500 years ago (and way before that, no doubt) people were staying in bad situations because they were afraid that new situations would also be bad. You are not alone in being scared about change, but somehow, somewhere people have made changes because otherwise we'd still be living in caves. For me personally, I just can't jump into the abyss completely and so have to take small steps. I would get a new job and try to keep MT part time just as a backup plan. Braver souls would probably quit MT and decide to figure it out. You seem very self aware, and I have no doubt that you would be able to handle any new situation--once you take a deep breath and actually get a new job. Now, how you do that I don't know and am waiting to hear from others about possible strategies. Good luck!
More poetry about resistance to change - sm
[ In Reply To ..]You inspired me to share some lines from one of my favorite poems.
From Robert Frost's "Reluctance"
Ah, when to the heart of man
Was it ever less than a treason
To go with the drift of things,
To yield with a grace to reason,
And bow and accept the end
Of a love or a season?
I know I've felt this way about MT, but I think most people have felt this way at least once in their lives about something.
That's lovely - NDMT
[ In Reply To ..]A beautiful poem--thank you for sharing it. As you say, its sentiments pertain to life on the whole, not just MT.
Other Thoughts - see msg
[ In Reply To ..]Sometimes we look for excuses out of fear to take a plunge into the unknown. As bad as MT is, heck, it's darn SCARY. People stay in bad relationships, because moving on is scary.
I think passive people (like myself) tend to see change as scary. Go-getter types tend to rise to the challenge and find it fun and exciting.
We all have different personalities. I did take the plunge and had a few "fails." But I HAD to get out of MT for my mental health. I finally did it.
I think you have to know that it's okay to be afraid! Say to yourself, "Yes, I'm freaked out, but my situation is bad, and I have to get out of MT." Sometimes instead of trying to push those feelings aside, we just have to admit we have them. I think the more we try to push them aside, the more we feel guilty that we can't, and we get into a serious rut.
I'm all for positive thinking, but sometimes if you're tooooo positive, you're let down big time if things don't work out. That happened to me when I got out of MT with my first non-MT job, and I was crushed when it didn't work out. I was in worse shape than when I was in MT.
It's hard to find a happy medium. Realistic thinking is what I'm always seeking to achieve, since I tend to be a Negative Nell.
Oh, funny - see msg
[ In Reply To ..]Other poster said just about what I said, but I didn't see that post until after I wrote mine!
Don't let people tell you to just "buck up," but you do need to just sort of take a plunge of some sort. I was not in a position to take a part-time non-MT job, because of health insurance, but I have that figured out now and am happily employed as a non-MT.
Another thought. - GG
[ In Reply To ..]The scenarios you describe possibly happening at the jobs you didn't apply to are things that your mind is creating. They may or may not ever happen. No one can predict the future (well maybe some psychics can). All we can do is make the best decision with the information that we have at hand. If the jobs sounds like something you could do, apply for it and see what happens.
Agree with GG - pushpin
[ In Reply To ..]My daughter works in a library in an "iffy" part of town and she has never had to toss out a homeless person - they have a security guard for that. As for the mental health clinic, surely there will be security as well; and if not, you will have co-workers, a supervisor and you will be trained on how to deal with that situation.
I'm not a psychologist, not even an armchair one, but - Nick
[ In Reply To ..]I am wondering if you and I share the same trait. Starting at the end of March, I have to start interviewing law firms and am terrified. Not sure why--I have excellent bona fides, good references, publications, even, yada, yada, but it scares me. I think part of it is the fear that I won't measure up. The other part is I wonder, will I turn into a guy like that senior partner who drives a Bentley? (I actually hope NOT, as I am going into poverty and civil rights law, so I think a Bentley is not in my future. I hope and pray I never sell out to corporate America!) I think part of it is fear of the unknown, fear of fitting into the corporate culture (I'm a pretty quirky guy sometimes). There is this quaint old saying from somewhere or another that says "Do it afraid." And so that is what I am trying to do. I am going to take the position that if I don't click with firm A, I will move on to firm B and so on. For me, the important thing is to make myself do ONE THING each and every day four days a week to move myself forward (besides studying, of course). One of the most valuable things I have learned from the legal process is that it is okay to be afraid! In fact, I am quite sure some of the legal "stars" who are so full of bluff and bluster (and sometimes full of other things as well.....) are afraid also. They just hide it better. I think any kind of interviewing is kind of like playacting, whether you are meeting the senior partner of Dewey, Cheatem and Howe or the head of the library who is going to offer you a job. I also think that our homes become a subconscious cocoon for many of us--me included. Yep, guys like to hibernate, too. I like sitting here in my boxers on the weekend and drinking a beer. I know that one of the things that has flipped me out has been having to buy a decent wardrobe. I don't have to look like Mr. Brooks Brothers, but I can't exactly show up in my sweatpants, either. I think all of these things play into it. What has helped me the most has been to set one task for each day--that kind of breaks it down into parts that I can manage. I really wish you luck with the page job, if you choose to do it. If not, there are tons of other good jobs out there. I am willing to bet that once you are actually working out of the home and in a job where you are once again treated like a person rather than a robot, you will feel better. Friends of mine who have left MTing altogether always tell me that. Not a one of them has been sorry they left, and not a one of them would return to the MT world. Anyhow, I will hold a good thought for you! Good luck!
A couple of - things
[ In Reply To ..]Anticipation is usually worse than reality.
Change and/or progress is always uncomfortable.
What I would do. Take the job that you really want and take it a day at a time. I bet none of the things you are imagining will ever happen. Then, I bet after you've been on the job for a few months you'll wonder why you waited so long.
It's basic anxiety. Take the leap, you can always try something else.
See message - Backwoods Typist
[ In Reply To ..]What you describe is a huge change from what you are used to, and it is SCARY. To go from being at home to back out into the "real world" can be rather intimidating. Even for me, after being at home for a couple years now, I do not want to go back out there, but I realize I will more than likely have to....for my happiness and well being.
Like you, I want out and am working on it. One thing that is helping me is knowing that I am already at the bottom so I cant do anything else but move up and do better. I want more not just for myself, but for my family. They deserve so much more than what I am giving right now, but thanks to the low pay, it is all I can give until I finish school and do better. My hubby has been a real saint and has dealt with me when I would have walked out the door, never to return. I am fortunate that I am married and he is working a good job to help cover what I cant as far as bills.
Another thing to remember: Anything you do in life is a leap of faith. It can go one of two ways, but really what have you got to lose by applying for the local jobs? Nothing as I see it. Unfortunately, most of the local jobs here dont pay enough to make it worth the drive, and I refuse to work for my old hospital system again after the way we were treated on outsourcing. I wouldnt treat my worst enemy like that.
I think you are a lot like I am/was, you have lost yourself because you have been so beat down by this job (notice I did not say career). I think if you apply and get a job, parts of the old you will start to shine through and you will wonder why you didnt do it sooner.
I am hoping to find another job at home. Coming home has been both a blessing and a curse, but more blessing for a variety of reasons. Lets wish each other luck that we get out of this funk and get back to who we once were. I hope that everybody stuck at these horrible places manage to get out and move on. We deserve better, and that includes you!
Thanks from the OP. sm - You have no idea how much it helped
[ In Reply To ..]Dang, you people are good! Thank you. While your posts were encouraging, you inadvertently helped me get to the root of my problem. You see, I lost a very good friend (RIP) in Oct. He was the one who could say or ask the right thing that helped me self-analyze and bulldoze through the doubts and anxieties. As I read all of your posts, I realized that it was his guidance that was missing; I felt lost. But then it felt like he was here with me, speaking through you. Some of you actually used his same wording. The line "you don't know what you have until it's gone" is so true. Well, thanks to all of you, I feel a lot stronger and more confident in general now, and I have your responses printed out to refer to when those pesky self-doubts appear again. I truly hope you all get what you wish for.
So Sorry - For Your Loss
[ In Reply To ..]You know, it's a good thing you didn't put your current loss in your original post. We would not have been able to give you a logical viewpoint. We would have more likely been catering to making you feel better.
SO, we have learned something very important about you! You are not just looking for sympathy! If you were, you would have headed your note with the loss of your loved one, or at least given us a clue to that. Bravo to you!
This tells us you are truly wanting to move on. The very fact that you didn't mention your loss in your initial note, is extremely telling of your fortitude to move on.
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