What jobs are best for Depression/Anxiety and stress

[anita24]

So i have barely worked as it has been stressful. I want a job where i am helping people but i dont feel mentally capable to be in those type of jobs like nursing etc. What jobs are best for people like us that can involve helping people? It is upsetting in itself that i feel i am not capable to handle jobs. I have tried childcare but i couldnt handle it, i found it stressful and couldnt turn off at home. Any advice will help. Thankyou everyone.

[Hope_for_the_best]

Hi Anita,

It is very difficult to give career advice over the web as we don't know much about you. There are a lot of jobs out there that can help people, but stress is unavoidable in any jobs. So you will need to find out what works best for you. Have you spoken to a career counsellor? A career counsellor can help you to know more about yourself and give professional advice on what jobs you should go for. You would also be benefit from learning coping strategies to deal with work-related stress.

Hope this helps.

[romantic_thi3f]

Hi anita24,

Thanks for your post.

This is a great question but I'm not sure there's an easy answer here. Every job that I can think of has the potential to cause enormous amounts of stress; from working in the checkout at a grocery store, to being a CEO or manager of a company. Hope.for.the.best made a great suggestion about learning coping strategies and I completely agree; unfortunately stress is unavoidable so it's important to find ways to cope as best as you can.

It may help to look more into some of the responsibilities that you had as a nurse and as a childcare worker and what you enjoyed about it/what you hated/what you found stressful. Being able to identify things can help you either find management techniques or find a more suitable job. A nurse for instance is a very broad career so if the trigger for the stress there was the noise it may help to switch from a hospital setting to a community setting like a nursing home or community nursing. A lot of nurses can work in office environments as well which is a completely different environment compared to a hospital ward.

It may also help to figure out what makes you 'not be able to turn off at home'. Is it thinking about the different clients you're caring for? Is it feeling like you can't keep up with responsibilities?

I think at the end of the day it comes down to control; there will always be jobs that can provide different responsibilities and different work environments, but there may be sacrifices to them so it's not always ideal. But the most important thing is to focus on what you can control; being able to manage your stress levels so you can adapt to whatever work throws at you.

[bipolarbeauty]

Hi anita24,

You sound like a very compassionate person.

There have been some good suggestions here, such as seeking help from a career counsellor. While having a stress-free job is inevitable, I think it's important to recognise that stress plays an important part in our functioning. I think of the flight or fight reaction. In saying that, I also struggle with maintaining stress in the workplace. I used to be a nurse, and I worked in the community as a younger person; and honestly, I did not know how to manage my stress and just end up crying after every shift. I think it's important to ask myself, "If I let my emotions get in the way of my professional care, how will it affect my client?" - and so, simply put, I left the job. I am no career counsellor, but what I'm saying from my experience it's important to re-evaulate, and re-evaluate what your strengths and weaknesses are as a person (like someone said, we don't know you here - only based what you share with us), and see which one outweighs the other.

All the best,
Suzi

[Gwedhiel]

Hey Anita!

I had this issue too! I found it so hard to go back to work, but I took it one teeny tiny step at a time. For me this meant I started back at retail, it was great for exposure, I was very transparent with my anxiety to my supervisor (This can be hard if you don't connect well with them), and as a result I was allowed to use my coping strategies at the register. Once I started feeling more confident on the register I started taking on a supervisor role. Don't get me wrong, I know I got really lucky in having such a supportive supervisor, but hopefully there will be at least a co-worker who can support you in whatever job you find!

I made the decision to leave my retail work and go and study, now I am a disability support worker and golly there is a lot more stress than I expected, but my time in retail had given me exposure to stress so I knew what skills and coping strategies worked more me and what my warning signs were. But this current role is very hard to switch off from when I get home. I try to deal with this by writing out what my day was like and then putting it into a jar, once it's in the jar it's not in my head. Naturally I still think about it, but I try to be mindful and pull myself up on it and remind myself that I have put it away for the day. This is still a work in progress but practice makes perfect!

It's hard to give you a definite answer, because I don't know you or how you cope, but I hope my experiences have helped with some strategies! I wish you the best of luck!

[kbkman]

Are you good with animals?

Work such as vet nursing, animal rescue of some kind might be up your alley? I worked retail for many years with depression and anxiety and I am confident our furry counterparts would make much more agreeable customers.

[Homemaker_Rae]

Hi Anita24, Wow, you have put into words how I have been feeling. I have thoughts of leaving my part-time job, but don't know what to do instead. There are so many choices, but I don't know what will fit me. And how to 'sell' myself when my confidence is pretty low.

I have tried to identify my strengths and weaknesses, but I am finding this difficult. Like things are foggy or something and I just can't see. I have an appointment with my psychologist to talk about this which will be helpful I think.

All the best Anita.

[anita24]

Im so glad to hear you have made that step to see a pyschologist! That isnt a easy step to do, I hope it helps 🙂 i feel exactly the same. Mind running around in circles about what would be best for a career for me, that i can handle.

All the best Homemaker Rae and goodluck.

[anita24]

Thankyou everyone you have all given me valuable advice and i have taken in everyones opinion. I really appreciate everyones time to reply. Every job i have had that is stressful i have went into " fight or flight mode" and left every single job. I just dont want to make that same mistake. Its hard. Ive been seeing a psychologist for 6 months + and no progress yet. I have considered Nursing because i care about people, but i am worried about taking on emotions of my clients, thinking about them when i get home, getting upset about them when i get home etc, Don't get me wrong, i want to help people, i just dont feel mentally capable of dealing with it. Also the anxiety of the responsibility of a nurse and i worry about stuffing up/ making a mistake working with clients.

[MsPurple]

Hi anita

A way to see if nursing is for you is to maybe see if you can volunteer at an aged care facility or hospital? Then you'll get exposure to the environment and see if it is something you think you'll be able to handle.My mum is now an aged care nurse. She used to love the hospital work before I was born, but now prefers aged care as she finds the environment better for her and her bipolar. It is very individual which one would work better for you

I completely understand where you are coming from. Finding a job that will work for you and your anxiety can be tough, but trust me it can be done. I think looking into a career counsellor is a good way to do it. Maybe even go onto a career website and look into all health jobs. There is more than just nursing and being a doctor in the health sector. Some maybe even better suited to you and your interests. An example could be a nutrition assistant or an ward clerk etc.