Intrusive thoughts during veterinary consults - the 3 channels.
Hi ! Did you know there are 3 channels open in your brain in each veterinary consult? The first and most obvious one is the channel in charge of trying to find out what’s wrong with the pet. Ask the questions, examine the pet, start drawing conclusions. The second is the constant inner dialogue regarding your competence. Am I failing the pet, am I failing the owner? Trying to make a decision on the spot, and pre-empt all possibilities. Our brain is hammering away about all the things we’re not good enough at, the way we’ve failed in the past, and the consequences of making a mistake. And then the third one: Trying to work really hard to communicate in a way that the pet owners are gonna not feel defensive, not feel sold to. Constantly trying to persuade and inform, while not offending anyone's positions, with their beliefs. Sometimes you find yourself not recommending what you want to do, because you're fearful of their response to the cost associated. And then we wonder why we feel so drained by our every day in the clinic! The first channel drains us when we first start out at vets, because everything is new and we obviously have to work hard to keep all the balls in the air. But the other two channels will keep draining us no matter the experience, because they are patterns we develop and replay, over and over. The reason they are so hard to shut off is because we’re so committed to the outcome for the pets. Your clinical decisions have an outcome that affects the pet and the owner, and you feel responsible for them, because you care so much. AND you’re worried they’ll be cross with you if they feel you’ve wasted their time and money, or missed something that caused the pet’s suffering or death. What you have to realise is that you can never control the outcome, no matter how hard you try. Even if you make an amazing plan, and owners are happy to follow it, there’s never any guarantee that it was indeed the best option for the pet. If you want to end the day with the same level of energy that you start out with, you’ve got to work on letting go of that need to control the outcome. Stop trying to:
Vet Med IS challenging and it IS hard to do your best, with what you have available. But also - your best IS good enough. And your best doesn’t mean perfect. |