My name is Carly and I’m a veterinary nurse… while I’m at work. I’m mummy at home. I’m that sweaty woman with dog while I’m running. I’m the one with the resting bitch face when I’m out with friends… I carry multiple titles, all of which have a certain reputation to uphold, and it can be exhausting.
Between the hours of 8am and 6pm I’m the veterinary nurse. The blonde one. That one over there. The one with the accent that isn’t from around here. I’m the one who puts my patient’s welfare first, the one who is chasing vets around the building, the one on their back examining a spay wound like a mechanic only to be peed on by another dog as they walk past.
I’m the one who accidentally hangs up on clients because they don’t know how to use the phone system, the one who pulls the (very full) clinical waste bag out of the bin only to discover there’s a hole at the bottom of the bag, and the one that goes home with the only set of quiet clippers in their pocket.
Mum’s the word
Before and after these hours I’m mummy – the cook, the cleaner, the doctor, the councillor, the taxi, the bank, the alarm clock and the nag. I’m the one who tries a new recipe only to be told its gross, the one who spends hours cleaning the kitchen for it to be “the creative space” for glitter glue and muffins five minutes later.
I’m the one who has said “please don’t put dinosaurs in your sandwich” and “why are you walking around with a screwdriver?” to be told the exact reason for each action as if I should have known in the first place.
As for the resting bitch face… it’s just my face! I have a very small group of amazing friends who I have managed to keep hold of for many years now. They’re incredibly understanding, and I don’t have to make an effort when I’m with them. They know I’m having fun, otherwise I would have left (true story), so they tolerate my face.
I may not be Fun Bobby, but we all show our excitement in different ways.
Impromptu shoulder
My point is, we spend a lot of our lives at work, around people we probably wouldn’t choose to hang out with in “normal” circumstances. Our work personas do not necessarily reflect our personalities and certainly do not allow for our personal lives to infiltrate.
We have to change our heads multiple times a day to remain detached and focused on who we are at the time. We should remember this when someone brings their personal life to work. If someone doesn’t have the support they need personally, they’re probably coming to work to seek solace, and the superficial “how was your weekend” chat on a Monday morning may turn into something you weren’t expecting.
Be prepared to be an impromptu shoulder to cry on as sometimes a simple question can evoke a complicated response and suddenly, you’re wearing a different head.
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