Struggling with SAD and GAD at work

[Homeerestre]

Hi,

I've found myself here as I've hit another low point with my anxiety. I've been diagnosed with Social Phobia and Generalised Anxiety Disorder and have had some CBT, but found it wasn't for me. I'm not on any medication or in therapy at the moment.

I started a new job last month as a Chiropractic Assistant and I work in reception. The job is very demanding for me socially as I'm required to be chatty with the patients when they arrive and wait for their appointments, and when we book them in for their next appointment. I find small talk particularly difficult and feel intense anxiety when I'm in face to face conversation with people that I either don't know very well or when I feel people are judging me. People say my anxiety doesn't show to others as I feel it, but I find it hard to believe that people don't pick up on my inner self-doubt and this really gets me down. I feel so trapped with my lack of self-confidence and wish I could be the bubbly person I feel I should be. I've been out of work for over 2 years due to my anxiety so I realize working again isn't going to be easy, but I'm feeling very worried and under pressure at the moment that I'm not going to be able to cope with the demands of the job. The job is such a fantastic opportunity for me so I really don't want to mess it up. My boss is also my stepbrother, he runs a private clinic and of course wants it to be successful, so I feel under great pressure to perform well for him. Any thoughts and advice would be really appreciated. Thanks so much for reading.

[Britanium]

I would definitely try psychological therapy’s. CBT can be tough but is worth sticking with. 
 

[Britanium]

Anti depressants can help too. Even in the short term. 

[Al - Moderator]

I was always a very shy person especially when I was younger, so I know how you feel. I have a job that requires me to see and talk to lots of different people every day and with both my shyness and my horrible hair issue all my life it is not an easy thing to do. I never took any medication for depression or anything else because I never felt that taking something to try to fool myself into thinking what was happening wasn't really happening was never going to help me.

What I did do was decide to be the best at everything else instead of the small talk with the customers. I did a lot of office grunt work that nobody wants to do (and some don't understand how to do). Certain reports need to be done? No problem I already have it before it was even requested. I'm somewhat good with Excel, so I was able to automate some reports and files that need to be updated regularly, etc, etc. Doing those things has made me valuable and I can get away with not being the most outgoing person as long as I don't seem distant to anyone.

In your case I'd say always make sure patient files are organized, if someone has a problem with insurance then try to take care of it for them instead of telling them they need to speak with their insurance company. These days you can do a lot of stuff online or by email, so you sometimes don't even need to talk to anyone to fix things for them. Find out what types of injuries or problems your patients are dealing with and read up on them and learn about them. That gives you some insight to what they are talking about when they discuss their problems and you won't feel so lost. Not only does keeping busy with other things make you valuable with those parts of the job, but it also keeps your mind busy and less able to focus on the anxiety.

As far as the small talk that you do need to do, I found over the years that most people who are chatty just like to talk and be heard and aren't really too interested in what you say anyway, so if you just have a bunch of standard sayings to add in to the conversation at the right times you can get by. Inserting  "Oh yeah?", "Wow. That's something isn't it", "That's how people are these days.", "I know, right?", "That's terrible.", "I would have done the same thing." and comments like that at the right time will make them think you are engaged with them and they won't think anything about it. You can get good at it after a while.