Crisis of confidence

RE: Crisis of confidence

Anthony Todd — Wed, 21 Mar 2018 18:06:41 GMT

[quote user="Julie Innes"]Haha, my youngest is 10 years old now, and I still find myself in the supermarket gently pushing my trolley back and forward while I'm browsing as though I have a baby there It doesn't go away![/quote]

CLASSIC!!

RE: Crisis of confidence

Julie Innes — Tue, 20 Mar 2018 18:24:14 GMT

[quote user="An On MRCVS"]This is very true!! I pressed the button to switch from a nursery rhyme CD to the radio after I did the nursery drop off the other morning, and it took me until I was driving back to the nursery after work to realise that I had obviously not pressed firmly enough as I was still listening to nursery rhymes... Shows how all consuming it is to be on maternity leave, that I can drive for 20 minutes without noticing I'm STILL on the bus with the wheels going round and round....!![/quote]

Haha, my youngest is 10 years old now, and I still find myself in the supermarket gently pushing my trolley back and forward while I'm browsing as though I have a baby there It doesn't go away!

RE: Crisis of confidence

An On MRCVS — Mon, 19 Mar 2018 20:59:01 GMT

[quote user="Julie Innes"]

It seems a big jump to go from singing "The Wheels on the Bus" to making clinical decisions and performing surgery!

[/quote]

This is very true!! I pressed the button to switch from a nursery rhyme CD to the radio after I did the nursery drop off the other morning, and it took me until I was driving back to the nursery after work to realise that I had obviously not pressed firmly enough as I was still listening to nursery rhymes... Shows how all consuming it is to be on maternity leave, that I can drive for 20 minutes without noticing I'm STILL on the bus with the wheels going round and round....!!

Thank you for the words of encouragement, it really does help to have some support with it from you all :-)

RE: Crisis of confidence

Marie Kubiak — Mon, 19 Mar 2018 20:47:11 GMT

[quote user="Julie Innes"]Every time I came back after maternity leave I was terrified![/quote]

It's not just the time off- suddenly having a living, breathing human being that seems to exist purely to highlight your inadequacies knocks the confidence a little! I definitely had a reality check on my omnicompetence when challenged by a newborn!

Marie

RE: Crisis of confidence

Julie Innes — Mon, 19 Mar 2018 10:48:57 GMT

Every time I came back after maternity leave I was terrified! It seems a big jump to go from singing "The Wheels on the Bus" to making clinical decisions and performing surgery!

I still have crises of confidence randomly and about daft things. Often at 2am. . So you are completely normal!

RE: Crisis of confidence

Anthony Dennison — Mon, 19 Mar 2018 10:02:27 GMT

I was only off for a month on honeymoon and when I came back it took me twice as long to do a cat spay, I was very kack-handed. I can't imagine what it would be like being off on maternity leave!

RE: Crisis of confidence

Niall Taylor — Sun, 18 Mar 2018 15:42:14 GMT

[quote user="An On MRCVS"]I'm not wholly abnormal!![/quote]

Even without the time off work factor your feelings are far from 'abnormal'. Everyone who cares about the job and the patients in their care will have a crisis of confidence from time to time. The trick is to be able carry on despite your feelings and keep things in proportion. Some people just wear a better mask than others!

Niall

RE: Crisis of confidence

Camilla Edwards — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 21:20:44 GMT

Yes - been there 3 times on maternity leave - and it's tough going back. Like others have said, you also know more, so you know what you don't know. Keep going - it will get better!

RE: Crisis of confidence

An On MRCVS — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 20:33:43 GMT

Thank you so much for your replies. It's good to know that I'm not the only one (not that I'm glad you've all had the same, just that I'm not wholly abnormal!!) and hopefully things will settle as I get back into the swing of things.

I can totally relate to it being the routine but vague things that seem to be worse. And because I feel less confident, I feel like I should go through every possible eventuality with clients (partly to 'cover' myself) which obviously takes up more consult time too!

I really appreciate your supportive messages, hopefully I'll be back on track soon and will try to ride it out in the meantime!

RE: Crisis of confidence

Gillian Mostyn — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 23:12:03 GMT

Yes, completely natural so don't worry. I have had periods of losing confidence, including after maternity leave and again recently when I was tired and stressed about matters outside work. Like has been said, it is often the routine yet vague symptoms that bothered me the most. A 'healthy' dog with vomitting would leave me worrying about what I was missing. I often rang clients later that day/the next day just to put my mind at rest that it was doing ok.

Just keep doing what you're doing, make sure you chat about it to those working with you, and just ride it out. It does settle.

Having said all that, I do find that I am less confident in some ways now (19 years graduated) than I was just a few years after qualification. I suspect it is due to knowing that I really don't know it all (and never will) and living through various experiences, both mine and others, where things have gone wrong. We are none of us infallible.

RE: Crisis of confidence

Kate Richardson — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 21:55:52 GMT

Perfectly normal and often happens even if you haven’t had time out of work! I found I struggled more with routine stuff than complicated cases. Still have odd days like it occasionally when tired for example. I’m guessing you have a young child to are for as well so don’t underestimate the effect that has on your brain and don’t forget hormones! Dont put too much pressure on yourself and talk to your colleagues or us (PM me if you want to discuss more privately). You’ll probably find everyone has periods of time like this at some stage in their career. Lots of courses out there for returnees as well if you need extra help

RE: Crisis of confidence

Clare Tapsfield-Wright — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 21:45:28 GMT

Yes it’s completely normal and you will soon get up to speed. It means you are aware that you are a bit rusty but you are most likely more than capable , just getting back into the swing of things. You don’t have to make a diagnosis or come up with a comprehensive plan every time , admit if need be, ask them to come back if necessary, you’ll be fine with time. Find a mentor , we all need one sometimes , not just new grads