Getting light headed during shadowing

[Scg523]

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So I've done two shadowing experiences so far, one with a nurse in labor and delivery and another with a doctor at a clinic. Both times I made sure I ate a good breakfast and didn't lock my knees while we were standing and I felt fine the whole time until I randomly started getting light headed. I had to sit down and also wound up getting sick both times and then felt pretty much fine after. Nothing intense was happening either time it just all of a sudden hit me. Any ideas of what it could be or how I could stop it from happening again?

 

[BigBoss]

Go see a doctor. SDN isn’t for seeking medical advice.


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[plshelpvanxious]

Make sure you eat well before shadowing! Definitely talk to your doctor, but for me this happens when I haven't eaten enough. Typically I eat a light breakfast, but for whatever reason I sometimes need more on shadowing days. My doctor recommended Gatorade/something sugary in the morning as well.

Edit: I know you said you ate well, but sometimes your typical breakfast isn't enough, I just wanted to put that out there. (And definitely talk to your doctor)

 

[KnShep]

This happened to me so I tried eating more the next day. I think for me it also had to deal with not having been very active prior to shadowing and having to stand for very long periods during the experience. Plus it was very warm in the room. ‍♀️

 

[Winged Scapula]

Why are you shadowing a nurse?

 

[sunshine859]

This happened to me so many times! Agreeing with the poster above regarding the breakfast. The solution I found was eating as much as possible (let me repeat: as much as possible) at the hospital cafeteria as soon as I arrived. My usual breakfast got me through classes, which require basically no physical exertion. My doctor also recommended adding salt to pump up my already low blood pressure. With shadowing, you're standing, you're nervous... you're burning a lot more calories.

 

[ciestar]

If this is what happens to you while shadowing, which is essentially doing nothing except watching a doctor do his job, then how do you expect to survive med school or residency? If there’s an underlying cause for your light-headedness, then you should see a doctor for medical advice.


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I fainted while shadowing. Im in med school. It happens a LOT.

 

[wholeheartedly]

hydration level is also critically important here as well.

 

[LoveBeingHuman:)]

This makes me remember when I was shadowing. I had to stand for 6 hours at a time (except a 30 minute lunch break). In the last twenty minutes I was kind of fidgeting because my legs were starting to hurt. The patient's relative looks at me and says "Do you want a chair?". The doctor made a joke about how when he was a pre-med, doctors who were mentoring him made him stand so he decided to torture me the same way but then he offered me a chair.

 

[Scg523]

Why are you shadowing a nurse?

The opportunity presented itself and I didn't have a real reason not to. I like to keep myself open to a variety of experiences in life. Why not shadow a nurse.

 

[CyrusHabs7695]

This happens to pretty much everyone at some point. I had to take a seat during one of the surgeries I was watching and the doctor came over after and started teasing me a bit, followed by him telling his stories of how it happened to him when he was a student. What worked for me was eating more that day and also consistently rolling around on my feet instead of standing flat footed the whole time.

 

[Winged Scapula]

The opportunity presented itself and I didn't have a real reason not to. I like to keep myself open to a variety of experiences in life. Why not shadow a nurse.

Because I assume you’re applying for medical school, not nursing school.

Their training and level of knowledge is completely different and much less than that of a physician. Just seems like a waste of time to me unless your goal is to be a nurse.

Frankly I’d also be worried that if during shadowing, they were trying to “teach“ medicine, you’ll be misguided in a number of ways.

 

[Inspired Chaos]

I passed out cold the first day while shadowing 2 different doctors. The visits were just conversational, nothing bloody or anything. I get very queasy at the sight of blood or even thinking about it. After a few days, I adjusted to where I could make it through shadowing long surgeries. I think it's a combination of eating right and wearing comfortable shoes, and getting used to the experience. For me, I was so excited and the adrenaline coupled with a super low blood pressure in general was a recipe for fainting.

 

[buckoh24]

I almost passed out during ortho shadowing when they were doing a knee replacement. Sometimes its just an adrenaline rush and you feel light headed from that and sometimes its from seeing blood/scared/ect. One thing I learned about panic attacks and stuff is that your body has the same response to excitement as it does to fear. What you have to do is keep calm and basically tell yourself "Im really excited about this! This is awesome!" and trick your brain into thinking the sympathetic nervous system is kicking in because youre excited, not scared. It makes it easier to calm yourself down from being excited than it does from being scared. Just count backwards from 5 and take deep breaths and think of the exciting moment and things should settle.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Because I assume you’re applying for medical school, not nursing school.

So shadowing other professions to make sure they aren’t something you’d be equally happy in isn’t smart?

 

[pug49]

Just eat and drink more and that should help. Also I doubt the OP seeks out shadowing nurses. If a unique opportunity presented itself though why not? When I was volunteering at a hospital I took any chance I could get to shadow as well, even if that meant with a PA. I talked about it during my interviews. Doctors work with nurses all the time, medical schools look for people who can work effectively with a team so it seems harmless to me

 

[ciestar]

So shadowing other professions to make sure they aren’t something you’d be equally happy in isn’t smart?

This is how I confirmed I didn’t want to do nursing or pharmacy.

 

[Scg523]

Because I assume you’re applying for medical school, not nursing school.

Their training and level of knowledge is completely different and much less than that of a physician. Just seems like a waste of time to me unless your goal is to be a nurse.

Frankly I’d also be worried that if during shadowing, they were trying to “teach“ medicine, you’ll be misguided in a number of ways.

There was no 'misleading' occurring. Yes the level of education is different but that doesn't mean they're stupid by any means. Gaining different life experiences is very rarely a waste of time, it's valuable to expose yourself to a variety of environments. It wasn't really for the sake of applications, it was for my own sake and to satiate my own desire to expose myself to different situations and gain a variety of experience that has to do with the health care field.

 

[Winged Scapula]

There was no 'misleading' occurring. Yes the level of education is different but that doesn't mean they're stupid by any means. Gaining different life experiences is very rarely a waste of time, it's valuable to expose yourself to a variety of environments. It wasn't really for the sake of applications, it was for my own sake and to satiate my own desire to expose myself to different situations and gain a variety of experience that has to do with the health care field.

Where did I say they were "misleading" you?

Where did I say they were "stupid"?

 

[AEM26]

This has happened to me too a couple of times! It's so frustrating because for me I wasn't scared or anything, my body was just like hey we're gonna pass out now. I think time of day might have an influence on it too. The times I've almost passed out have been when I was shadowing in the mornings, but in the afternoons I'm typically fine. I also try to drink tons of water or gatorade the night before shadowing and then drink a lot of water right before I go in and that's seemed to help.

 

[Scg523]

Where did I say they were "misleading" you?

Where did I say they were "stupid"?

"Frankly I’d also be worried that if during shadowing, they were trying to “teach“ medicine, you’ll be misguided in a number of ways."

 

[zanzizic]

You don’t need to see a doctor about this. Young people, especially males, are prone to vasovagal response that can lead to dizziness or even to fainting when observing something painful or bloody. I felt it a little as a premed and I had some medical student friends who fainted. For the most part, everyone gets over it with exposure.

Also, you guys need to chill about nurses. Observing a nurse in L&D would be very interesting and educational. Nurses have a critical job to do and you could learn a lot of practical skills from observing a good nurse. As a premed you have done nothing and have no right to criticize nurses.

Edit: I just realized the guy criticizing shadowing a nurse is a physician. So you don’t think a premed student would have anything to learn from watching labor and delivery. Ok....

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

Edit: I just realized the guy criticizing shadowing a nurse is a physician. So you don’t think a premed student would have anything to learn from watching labor and delivery. Ok....

@Winged Scapula is not a guy, she’s a female surgeon. And what she was trying to say (I think) is that a premed’s time is limited, and the experiences you get shadowing a nurse vs a physician are very different. Same with physician extenders like PAs. I’ve worked extensively with, and taught, both PAs and residents… Their goals are very different. PAs want to go home at the end of the day, they don’t care about the nuances of the pathology they are treating. Their goal is to be as efficient as possible, learn how to do everything right, so that they can leave. People are getting all butthurt that nurses/PAs are looked down upon as somehow less noble or important. The people who ascribe emotional meaning to things like this need to grow a thicker skin. One profession is not better or worse, they are just different in their goals. And if a premed is interested in both professions, then it would be wise to shadow both. But if a premed is interested only in medical school, then their limited and precious time could be used in better ways.


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[HuskyMD Emeritus]

Try wearing compression stockings or compression calf sleeves. May be better than eating extra salt.

 

[zanzizic]

@Winged Scapula is not a guy, she’s a female surgeon. And what she was trying to say (I think) is that a premed’s time is limited, and the experiences you get shadowing a nurse vs a physician are very different. Same with physician extenders like PAs. I’ve worked extensively with, and taught, both PAs and residents… Their goals are very different. PAs want to go home at the end of the day, they don’t care about the nuances of the pathology they are treating. Their goal is to be as efficient as possible, learn how to do everything right, so that they can leave. People are getting all butthurt that nurses/PAs are looked down upon as somehow less noble or important. The people who ascribe emotional meaning to things like this need to grow a thicker skin. One profession is not better or worse, they are just different in their goals. And if a premed is interested in both professions, then it would be wise to shadow both. But if a premed is interested only in medical school, then their limited and precious time could be used in better ways.


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Pretty big generalization regarding PAs. I’ve worked with many myself who refer cases to me and one who has worked for me for 10 years now. I’ve trained her to be an excellent provider. Are there crappy PAs? Sure, and there are plenty of crappy docs too who want nothing more than leave at the end of every day.

I’m a doctor and I have no stake really in the nursing or mid-level professions. I’m not getting emotional or butthurt about it but arrogance is one of the least appealing things about our profession so let’s please not model it for the premeds.

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

Pretty big generalization regarding PAs. I’ve worked with many myself who refer cases to me and one who has worked for me for 10 years now. I’ve trained her to be an excellent provider. Are there crappy PAs? Sure, and there are plenty of crappy docs too who want nothing more than leave at the end of every day.

I’m a doctor and I have no stake really in the nursing or mid-level professions. I’m not getting emotional or butthurt about it but arrogance is one of the least appealing things about our profession so let’s please not model it for the premeds.

You’re missing my point. Wanting to leave doesn’t mean a provider is crappy. The ultimate goal is just different—PAs and nurses do not carry the ultimate responsibility for the patient, and the vast majority of them are not interested in the same nuances that physicians are. Neither @Winged Scapula nor I are being arrogant. We are trying to help premeds by telling them to utilize their time more effectively. It doesn’t make any sense to shadow non-physician providers in the little time they have to do so. If that’s the only option they have, sure. But it’s like telling someone to go follow the head waiter instead of work in the kitchen if they want to be a chef. Sure, you can learn plenty about customer service and the running of a restaurant following the waiter, but ultimately the jobs are very different.


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[Winged Scapula]

"Frankly I’d also be worried that if during shadowing, they were trying to “teach“ medicine, you’ll be misguided in a number of ways."

1) there is a difference between the words misguided and misleading
2) I still fail to see where I said they were stupid

Nurses and PAs have a specific role to play in the care of patients and as part of the medical team. This is not about arrogance this is about maximizing your time while shadowing and learning from your future peers. Furthermore, as members of our admission teams here will tell you, they prefer that your experience learning about being a doctor (which is what shadowing is for), come from a physician. Thank you to @OrthoTraumaMD for clarifying this.

Discussions regarding scope of practice for nursing and the encroachment are best left for a different thread and are not at all what I was referring to here.

 

[Blanky]

Go see a doctor. SDN isn’t for seeking medical advice.


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Lol this guy had to be “that” guy.

 

[Blanky]

I am not a Dr. so I am not giving you any medical advice

I experienced similar when I was 18 and it was when I witnessed a spinal tap during EMT clinical.
Basic psychogenic shock dizzy diapheretic had to leave and sit down. Didnt even realize I was uncomfortable or anything. Continued on and have worked EMS for 7 years and now ER for 3 years and blood poop vomit and guts are a normal part of my day. Never bothered me since I guess at first it was a little shocking without me even realizing.