| Sep 24 @ 2:02 AM |
STRESSED....need help coping!
|
|
Chel819
Posts: 62
|
 ok people...how do you get through the day, week, month or however long the situation is when things go completely WRONG in your life??? i'm going through alot right now and it feels like the weight of the world is on my shoulders and could use some encouragement/advise on how you guys handle adversity  ?
every since i graduated highschool ive done only one thing for work....ive always been in the medical field. its something i knew i wanted to be since 8th grade, to help people and ive been doing it for 17yrs now. im a paramedic and LOVE my job but that "job security" has been pulled out from under me. i work for EMS in my county on the ambulance service and it got taken over by the fire department in june of this year and if all of us emts and medics want to keep our jobs they are requiring us to become firefighter!!! well, one....i dont want to be a damn firefighter (if the rats and roaches have enough sense to ge the hell out of a burning building then i sure the hell aint going in....that shits hot  ) and two.....i'm asthmatic and CAN"T physically become a firefighter. soooo.....on oct. 1 (in 6 days) i will be offically unemployed, jobless, broke, zip...zilch...zero income!!!!
i've been frantically looking everywhere for a job since june when we found out......i've applied everywhere from other EMS agencies in the surrounding counties to doctor's offices, the hospitals, walk-in clinics, home healthcare.....you name it and ive applied BUT bc of the economy no one is hiring!!!! the medical field has always been "stable" in the sense that it was always easy to find a job bc there is such a shortage of healthcare workers BUT businesses cant afford to pay their staff and have hiring freezes or lare laying off people.
that's what happened with the ambulance service in my county.....the county literally cut the budget in half and therefore let the fire dept take over making people function in two roles and pay them less......those people at my work that have decided to become firefighters are taking anywhere from a $5 to $8 dollar pay cut!!!.....they are making paramedics who have been medics for 10 plus yrs not only become firefighters and function in two roles but pay them only $10.50 an hour!!! .....that's ridiculous especially when garbage men make more than that or even more hypocritical is the fire depts damn secretary who only answers the damn phone and route calls all day while sitting on her ass in an air conditioned building makes $12 and hour  ,,,,, WTF!!
anyway, im sorry i know i kinda went on a rampage here.....i guess i really needed to vent  . BUT.....im stresses, scared, worried, and every other adjective that describes despair that i cant think of right now. .....how do you guys handle the serious life challenges that come at you....how do you cope. i could use some suggestions....words of encouragement....anything.
thanks guys......chel  
|
|
  |
|
| Sep 24 @ 2:18 AM |
STRESSED....need help coping! |
|
ISSUESWOPTIONS
Posts: 7,624
|
ummm masturbate 
J/K 
usually it's best to talk to someone. let the stress out that way.
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 2:30 AM |
STRESSED....need help coping!
|
|
Chel819
Posts: 62
|
ummm masturbate  ......what do ya think as been gettin me through this soo far  !!!.......now if i can only find a way to get payed for that
|
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 2:37 AM |
STRESSED....need help coping! |
|
ISSUESWOPTIONS
Posts: 7,624
|
 ,,,,,ummm Chelporn.com?
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 6:51 AM |
STRESSED....need help coping!
|
|
oct_cat
Posts: 417
|
1. accept the fact that if you want a job, you'll most likely have to take a paycut.
2. start NOW with cutting out fivolous expenses, to get thru the "meager" times.
3. accept the possibility that if you want a job, you may have to do something totally outside the medical field.
4. be thankful you found out about this in June, as opposed to people who find out 2 wks in advance that they'll be jobless.
Things could be worse . . . you could be a single parent working 2 jobs & barely able to pay bills. 
|
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 7:04 AM |
STRESSED....need help coping! |
|
Heaveninawildflower
Posts: 15,333
|
How much additional training would it take for you to become a nurse? That's one field that seems to still be screaming for people...
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 8:44 AM |
STRESSED....need help coping!
|
|
Angel178
Posts: 22,946
|
I do hope you find something. Stress is very hard to handle. I really don't have the answer for you... 
I'm there myself....three kids, my job is 9-7ish, I get yelled at by parents and bosses on a regular basis because things are not going well in the classrooms... I worry about not having a job all the time....not because I will be fired or quit, but because I don't know if the school will make it Three children in three different schools....the list goes on and on...
|
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 9:10 AM |
STRESSED....need help coping! |
|
JenRNinOhio
Posts: 1,278
|
Just a thought:
You are young & have no children ...
Already in health care ...
Enroll in a nursing school.
You can become an LPN within a year.
Another couple of years and an RN degree could be yours.
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 9:35 AM |
STRESSED....need help coping!
|
|
tahoma
Posts: 10,526
|
^^^^ That's some great advise right there
|
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 8:10 PM |
STRESSED....need help coping! |
|
Chel819
Posts: 62
|
they have a paramedic to RN bridge ....its only a year, its $12,000 for one.....second, that still doesnt answer how im going to pay my mortgage and other bills in the meantime. there's a loop hole if you collect unemployment here in florida.....your arent not allowed to be enrolled in school/college or they will not pay you unemployment.....your allowed to take like vocational tech classes like typing, or to learn a specific job trade/skill but not an actually college or college classes.
and no...i cant take the pay cut and work for firerescue bc im mandatory to become a firefighter and im asthmatic and my lungs wont allow it.......they will not accept me into fire college soooo it's not just about the pay cut.....i cant physically do it.
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 8:35 PM |
STRESSED....need help coping!
|
|
redhairNfreckles
Posts: 2,820
|
Typical of FL to have yet ANOTHER rule or regulation that sux! The first thing you can do to try to get ahead is, move out of state! The not being able to collect unemployment because you are going to school, to get off unemployment, proves how well they mismanage just about everything they try to do.
|
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 8:47 PM |
STRESSED....need help coping! |
|
Heaveninawildflower
Posts: 15,333
|
If it were me I'd be knocking on the college's door to talk to a counselor to see what can be worked out - that would be just too good a deal to pass up.
Good luck, whatever you do!
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 9:18 PM |
STRESSED....need help coping!
|
|
missliss78
Posts: 1,858
|
I'm sorry, I don't have a thing to offer here....the nurse deal is what was going through my mind...but I'll tell ya...something else is going through my mind, too.
This just does not sound right....that the fire department can put you out on the street without a job because they took over the EMS & you have asthma. I think you need to have a consultation....call the labor board...an attorney...somebody.
And good luck
|
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 9:26 PM |
STRESSED....need help coping! |
|
willowy1
Posts: 4,894
|
Do you have a union?
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 9:37 PM |
STRESSED....need help coping!
|
|
Carol386
Posts: 3,063
|
I would certainly seek some sort of advice - I would think they would have to offer you something. But then again they have probably done their homework and have found every single loophole that is available to them to screw you -
My heart goes out to you, I was in the same situation in May except my company closed with no notice and left everyone without 3 weeks of pay. In Indiana if you do not receive a paycheck you are not allowed to collect unemployment - they look at it as long as you have a job (don't care if you aren't getting paid), at some point you will hopefully receive a paycheck. If you decide to leave a job because you are not receiving your paycheck you are not eligible for benefits as it was a voluntary quit. The day I didn't receive my first paycheck I started looking for another job - the market is very bad here in auto manufacturing Indiana (thats not my field though). I started looking in April, after we closed I collected unemployment for 6 weeks before I found another job. The new job barely pays the bills - it pays almost $200/wk less than the old job and I have to drive almost twice the distance. Needless to say there are not alot of "extras" that I would like.
My family and friends are what have helped me through it - many days I was really in a funk but had to stay positive. If I didn't, I could have been sucked in deep. I know that sounds corney but its true - gotta have great people to lean on in these times. Good luck
|
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 9:42 PM |
STRESSED....need help coping! |
|
xcite4ever
Posts: 87
|
Take advantage while you still have the opportunity. Act now or watch that door close. Just do it! Today is the day to act!
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 10:08 PM |
STRESSED....need help coping!
|
|
Jalon
Posts: 898
|
its only a year, its $12,000 for one.....second, that still doesnt answer how im going to pay my mortgage and other bills in the meantime
Chel, look into filing a FAFSA and see what kind of federal loans/grants you qualify for. Subsidized and unsubsidized Stafford loans will cost you the least in the long run and you usually don't have to make any kind of payment on your educational loan for 6 months after you graduate. With RNs always being in demand, $12,000 is a small investment.
|
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 10:35 PM |
STRESSED....need help coping! |
|
lj450
Posts: 8,399
|
I would prepare for the worst and hope for the best.
Downsize all you can, prepare to live on whatever you have. Put an ad in the paper and either get a roommate, or rent your house out to someone else.
Truth be known, you should have been addressing this way before now.
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 10:47 PM |
STRESSED....need help coping!
|
|
imhope
Posts: 76
|
I so feel your pain! I also did the EMS thing for ALOT of years . I completed training for heavy rescue, Medivac, paramedic, etc.& I loved everything about it. When I heard rumor that most towns would someday be running everything out of their firehouses ,like in CA, I signed up for fireschool. Well, I quickly learned I am not at all cut out to be a firefighter, as I hated everything about it. I truely believe that firefighting is something you either love or hate - there's no in between. It truely takes a special kind of person(& a touch crazy)to go into a burning building & fight fires & I unfortunately am not one of those people. After that I realized it was time for me to start looking for work in another field & at that time i was still a adreanaline junkie who enjoyed helping people so i went to work for the PD. Now that I'm 50 (& no longer a adrenaline junkie) I've realized that I once again feel the need to find a new line of work as I'm really feeling burnt out & can't compete(nor do i want to)w/the 20something's that are constantly applying to the dept. Not only are they flooding the field, but they are willing to work for alot less $ & no benefits so our dept has put a freeze on hiring anymore FT employees & is only hiring PT, thus making us oldtimers feel the pressure. It's a terrible thing to go to work each day knowing that not only are the younger PTrs drooling for your job, but those in charge of hiring are constantly watching for any slip up or excuse to cut you. I'm clueless what I'm going to do but one of the paramedics I used to run w/recently signed up w/a private home healthcare agency & she's doing really well-she said they love Paramedics as they know they can handle pressure & emergencies well. Good luck w/whatever you end up doing.
|
|
| |
|
| Sep 24 @ 11:08 PM |
STRESSED....need help coping! |
|
Always_Striving
Posts: 7,595
|
Maybe you will consider going to college for nursing or go to college to become a trauma surgeon.
I have read your story and although you face the prospect of losing your job there are 100's of thousands American's just like you going through the same experience. This should be a time of personal evaluation and homework.
Talking about it to people, like you are doing here, is a good step.
Find out what others are doing or have done to transition into a new occupation that utilizes any of your skills. Maybe this is a time to examine if you are capable of doing other things outside of medical assistance professions, please consider it.
One thing that is hard on people is to leave something which they have been doing for a long time and love, have become exceptionally talented at doing and gained respect. Also there could be disappointment because your dreams have been busted due to unforeseeable changes. Our mentors, unfortunately, don't prepare us for these things.
I hope that you will read some - modern struggles to success stories and that they will be useful to you.
|
| |
|
|