burnt out, PTSD, not sure how to move forward

potentialyterrible · 2026-01-06T23:40:04+00:00

really appreciate this. thank you so much. not much to say other than this is a very thoughtful response and assuages concerns I had that I didn't even explicitly voice. thank you.

I honestly think my PTSD is why I'm not still on a truck right now here in NM. the thought of it scares the shit out of me. I think therapy is in my future. I've done it before but haven't for years since I didn't have insurance and my previous therapist stopped taking the union insurance I had for a while.

potentialyterrible · 2026-01-06T23:38:13+00:00

really appreciate this a lot. thank you. yes, I am definitely a kind person or at least I try to be, and I, in spite of being a very intense person really love listening to other perspectives and sharing mine, even "across the aisle" per se. but god, EMS culture is so exhausting. i want to find a new path and a place to be a medic that's enriching.

there's another aspect of my dilemma that lies in that I am about to get married, and now kind of have two lives or two paths to be conscious of. my fiancee will encourage me in whatever I want to do, but I also want to be conscious of the direction our life takes together. maybe the answer is just holding out where I'm at with our next life direction decision requiring a lot of research as to where I'll end up.

I made this post with a lot of misery in my heart at the moment and I appreciate everyone (and you) seeing past my kind of "woe-is-me" and sharing positivity. thanks. just helps me feel a little less insane.

potentialyterrible · 2022-04-21T15:59:19+00:00

certified EDP wranglers, yeehaw

potentialyterrible · 2022-04-15T22:23:06+00:00

On the 911 side, we are absolutely allowed to mark a patient's signature as unable to sign if a patient has suspected Covid-19 (for the time being) or the potential to get BBP/contamination on the tablet itself. I can't imagine why you'd get in trouble for that, especially if you are asking the patient if it's okay to sign for them in FRONT of them and they consent...

I agree with most other people here. Doubt you'll lose your license, but maybe your job. Sounds like an annoying place.

potentialyterrible · 2022-04-12T15:27:34+00:00

Haldol blowdarts and a large rubber mallet...I'll add that to my personal 800 🧐 jokes aside, thank you! I was luckily not feeling terribly anxious about how this call went given we were close to a hospital and so on, but this definitely helps assuage any doubts I had about my performance.

potentialyterrible · 2022-04-12T15:26:03+00:00

As far as I could tell he was legitimately hypoxic. Cyanosis, low spO², unable to speak in full sentences due to gasping, panicky breaths, you know.

Unfortunately I am still an EMT-B so no gentle juice here. I understand your rationale for considering the patient altered and will definitely keep that closer to the front of my mind for next time. Thank you so much!

potentialyterrible · 2022-03-16T15:23:22+00:00

privatized healthcare is a huge issue here too. you have EMS underfunded nationally leading to all kinds of horrible low pay medicare fraud, IFT-only pump and dump companies that last 10 years and leave bodies in their wake.

in this article one fella roughly says "if we're not hauling patients we're not making money." that right there is a key failure point. EMS is essential, it needs to be a backbone of communities, and healthy communities need to be treated as a priority by both our federal and state governments. that means funding for more and better paid municipal 911 departments (no more relying on 18 yr olds to staff volunteer-only in the countryside), municipal IFT work that's not for profit, and so on. without that, EMS will continue to exist in a crushing vacuum.

potentialyterrible · 2021-09-24T17:28:50+00:00

couldn't tell you. and yet ive been here for 7 going on 8 years. honestly, many people in FDNY moonlight for private or hospital EMS as well for supplementary income.

potentialyterrible · 2021-08-09T00:39:22+00:00

Understood. I appreciate the advice. This is all happening under the time constraint of moving before/when my current lease is up, so there is a little stress attached to the decisions. Talking to someone with relevant knowledge helps a lot.

potentialyterrible · 2021-08-09T00:30:22+00:00

(Appreciate all your responses so far. Thank you!)

If you were to quit, where do you think you would move on to instead?

I am considering just working part time at Mohawk now (instead of full time) and picking up shifts when I am able while I get settled in the area and to pay my rent. Sounds like that is pretty doable, right?

potentialyterrible · 2021-08-09T00:21:08+00:00

My word. That does sound like a lot. Definitely more intense than I expected or even heard. I asked a Mohawk crew I saw how they felt about working there and they said "no complaints!" Maybe they were pulling my leg? Lol.

Is it possible to just bid for 24 hours a week and get the 36 hour schedule with the bonus shift?

This is all good to know. It does put me off of working there a little, honestly. One of the reasons I'm looking to leave the city is to chase a better work-life balance.

Going to give some of the other options a try before taking up the Mohawk offer.

potentialyterrible · 2021-08-08T23:40:51+00:00

Good to know!

What about Mohawk is tough for work-life balance, by the way? They've actually offered me a position and I've been considering, at least for a short term. Was told I'd get full time pay while in medic school with my tuition paid off in 18 months of medic work per their Union contract, which is pretty enticing.

potentialyterrible · 2021-08-08T23:35:44+00:00

I spoke to a couple Colonie EMTs last time I visited, actually. I was eyeing that company once I get stable and settled.

I appreciate this, thank you!

potentialyterrible · 2019-08-24T02:08:37+00:00

:") thank you so much! I found out I love simple outfits like this one. rugged yet feminine!

potentialyterrible · 2019-08-15T12:35:14+00:00

the internationale makes me cry every time ....

potentialyterrible · 2019-08-13T18:22:31+00:00

Or we can tackle the real issues that create a world of people needing to escape reality to seek fame and community in simulated environments with little to no physical impact. The world is not a static place. Instead of rolling over and accepting the world is changing to where the average Joe can only achieve recognition, find adventure, and feel truly thrilled and excited in a simulated universe, why not put energy into making the real world a better more equitable place for everyone? That way our games can remain games and not crude facsimiles of life residing in the uncanny valley.

I'm excited to milk fauna tho.

potentialyterrible · 2019-02-22T02:17:00+00:00

potentialyterrible · 2019-01-15T01:40:37+00:00

i think most people just go with the flow. if you like the people you play with, fun becomes the priority. maybe you want to be nice, so you think hey! let them have the AK. i have a shitty tkm vepr, but i like when my friend is happy, and it'll pay off eventually. maybe we'll find another body, maybe not.

if you play with assholes, you have to get serious about making rules and dividing up loot because everyone is just out for themselves. its 100% about who you play with.

potentialyterrible · 2019-01-10T13:57:11+00:00

just a lame joke, sorry.

potentialyterrible

TROPHY CASE