Bad at stressful situations

[Chibix]

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My husband and I were talking about me considering medicine as a career and how I don't handle stress well. I'm easily overwhelmed. I also tend to panic. Once our stove caught fire and instead of thinking rationally I panicked. He came over, rolled his eyes, told me to calm down and quickly put it out. I tend to thrive when I have ample time to think over each part of the problem before coming to a solution and he expressed that this might be an issue. He asked me "What if someone starts to code?" And things like that. I'm sorry for rambling but my question is, are there parts of medicine where immediate decisions aren't required? Would this type of personality greatly hinder me? Has anyone developed the ability to deal with stress that they didn't have originally? Thanks.

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[pathologyDO]

My husband and I were talking about me considering medicine as a career and how I don't handle stress well. I'm easily overwhelmed. I also tend to panic. Once our stove caught fire and instead of thinking rationally I panicked. He came over, rolled his eyes, told me to calm down and quickly put it out. I tend to thrive when I have ample time to think over each part of the problem before coming to a solution and he expressed that this might be an issue. He asked me "What if someone starts to code?" And things like that. I'm sorry for rambling but my question is, are there parts of medicine where immediate decisions aren't required? Would this type of personality greatly hinder me? Has anyone developed the ability to deal with stress that they didn't have originally? Thanks.

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Some people are better at being decisive than others. Being able to react well under pressure comes naturally to some. Others must learn.

IMO you're being a bit neurotic (welcome to the club of neurotics) and you should not let this little thing keep you from your dreams.

 

[Loveless]

There are plenty of specialties where you don't have to feel like you have the Jeopardy theme song playing in your head. Of course, surgery, gas, EM, etc. would be poor choices considering your personality, but most other specialties at least give you some time to think out your decisions. Pathology and radiology would be especially good for you, as there's no patient to code on you and cause you to freak out.

Also, you might want to consider some CBT.

 

[Mt Kilimanjaro]

My husband and I were talking about me considering medicine as a career and how I don't handle stress well. I'm easily overwhelmed. I also tend to panic. Once our stove caught fire and instead of thinking rationally I panicked. He came over, rolled his eyes, told me to calm down and quickly put it out. I tend to thrive when I have ample time to think over each part of the problem before coming to a solution and he expressed that this might be an issue. He asked me "What if someone starts to code?" And things like that. I'm sorry for rambling but my question is, are there parts of medicine where immediate decisions aren't required? Would this type of personality greatly hinder me? Has anyone developed the ability to deal with stress that they didn't have originally? Thanks.

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Definitely. Medicine is a vast enough field to absorb almost anyone who can get admitted and work hard enough to pass. You'd obviously have to make it through clinical rotations, but medical students don't usually play a key role during codes.

Pathology and preventive medicine come to mind for specialties. Most pediatricians and family medicine docs probably don't have people coding all over the place either, but you would see acutely ill people during training.

 

[oberon]

you can learn to clock down the adrenaline over time. it'll just take a bit of work.

 

[Chibix]

Thank you for the replies. I went back and forth with the idea of posting this or not at the risk of sounding neurotic lol.

Also I've seen pathology, preventative and radiology mentioned, I have an interest in mental health issues, is psych this kind of speciality? Or IM?

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[aburnet2]

Thank you for the replies. I went back and forth with the idea of posting this or not at the risk of sounding neurotic lol.

Also I've seen pathology, preventative and radiology mentioned, I have an interest in mental health issues, is psych this kind of speciality? Or IM?

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All the IM residents in my hospital are the ones that run the codes about 75% of the time, so unless you learn to tone down the panic.........

 

[Chibix]

I see. Thank you.

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[Geebeejay]

My husband and I were talking about me considering medicine as a career and how I don't handle stress well. I'm easily overwhelmed. I also tend to panic. Once our stove caught fire and instead of thinking rationally I panicked. He came over, rolled his eyes, told me to calm down and quickly put it out. I tend to thrive when I have ample time to think over each part of the problem before coming to a solution and he expressed that this might be an issue. He asked me "What if someone starts to code?" And things like that. I'm sorry for rambling but my question is, are there parts of medicine where immediate decisions aren't required? Would this type of personality greatly hinder me? Has anyone developed the ability to deal with stress that they didn't have originally? Thanks.

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As others have mentioned there are some fields of medicine where this isnt a problem. Be aware that during medical school and residency specifically, you will likely end up frequently out of your comfort zone. I think that it would better suit you to work on becoming better at handling stress as opposed to trying to pick a less stressful career. You'll become a stronger doctor and person.

There are plenty of specialties where you don't have to feel like you have the Jeopardy theme song playing in your head. Of course, surgery, gas, EM, etc. would be poor choices considering your personality, but most other specialties at least give you some time to think out your decisions. Pathology and radiology would be especially good for you, as there's no patient to code on you and cause you to freak out.

Also, you might want to consider some CBT.

😱 I don't see how this would help, and she might wanna run that one past her husband first 😱

 

[Chibix]

This is not related to the original question but I have an appointment to shadow a trauma surgeon, an orthopedic surgeon, and to have coffee with an E.N.T doctor to ask her some questions (I contacted all kinds of physicians, but only surgeons got back with me) within the next couple of weeks. My questions are

1) when applying to Med school you indicate how many hours of shadowing you have done. Is there some type of proof I should be requesting from the doctors after shadowing?

2) I got the email of the ent doctor from her husband after I contacted him for shadowing opportunity. He mentioned her credentials, gave me her email and said she might even be able to provide a LOR. Is this common? A LOR after one meeting? Also I know there are threads of how to behave in these situations and I will definitely look them up but if anyone has any pointers?...


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[punkedoutriffs]

This is not related to the original question but I have an appointment to shadow a trauma surgeon, an orthopedic surgeon, and to have coffee with an E.N.T doctor to ask her some questions (I contacted all kinds of physicians, but only surgeons got back with me) within the next couple of weeks. My questions are

1) when applying to Med school you indicate how many hours of shadowing you have done. Is there some type of proof I should be requesting from the doctors after shadowing?

2) I got the email of the ent doctor from her husband after I contacted him for shadowing opportunity. He mentioned her credentials, gave me her email and said she might even be able to provide a LOR. Is this common? A LOR after one meeting? Also I know there are threads of how to behave in these situations and I will definitely look them up but if anyone has any pointers?...


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1) I didn't have any proof.
2) I've never heard of an LOR after 1 meeting. But if you guys have a hell of a meeting, well why not? And in terms of behavior, just be yourself. Unless you're wierd/strange.

 

[Quizlet04]

I think a flaming stove when you don't expect it vs. a patient coding when you sort of do are different situations. If you panic almost all the time, then yes, you may want to consider other fields.

😱 I don't see how this would help, and she might wanna run that one past her husband first 😱

Oh god, this joke just flew over everyone's head but mine. Cognitive behavioral therapy, you perv!

 

[circulus vitios]

The stress fades. I'm not a doctor but I've worked in some stressful environments and over time I've learned to stop freaking out.

 

[Helixkam]

I think there's tons of specialities where you won't be in stressful situations but also over time you can learn to manage that adrenaline that clouds your thought process. For me personally I get clear minded during a stressful situation and tend to thrive in them but every one is different. Maybe try some intense activities and learn to slowly acclimate to stressful situations.