Help?

[Le bonheur*]

Not sure where this goes... But it's about a job so I put it here, feel free to move it if it's necessary.

So as some of you know, I have really bad anxiety to the point where I hate ordering my own food at restaurants and I hate giving people money because I'm scared to death that they'll see my wrist and ask me questions and so forth. I just get really anxious with all of these things to the point where on a scale of 1-10 it's usually an 8 or a 9 - I shake, head pounds, heart pounds, I get clammy and sweaty, etc. It completely sucks!

With that said, I need a job. I have to start saving money but I can't seem to get a job because I'm too scared to call back from apps and get denied. Sometimes, I get interviews but again, I never call because I'm scared I'm going to get denied. Again, anxiety. Not sure what to do because I desperately need a job. I'm 18, graduated, and at home 24/7. It's sickening. How can I get a job if I feel these things? I'm terrified of people so having a job at a restaurant as a waitress would increase my anxiety. I'm also terrified of doing cashier duties or something along those lines cause again, I'm scared of people seeing my scars.

So my question is, how can I get a job and feel okay with it? Or, is there a job where I don't have to interact with people and I can get decent money?

Thanks for any help and sorry this was so long. xx

[Fairy Poppins]

Hey Brittany.

There are jobs such as Call Centre Workers where you just speak to someone over the phone.

However, rather than searching for a job where you don't have to interact with people, I think you should focus on curing yourself of these anxieties, as they will be negatively affecting other areas of your life too.

Plus, you're going to have to overcome these fears one day, so it may as well be now.

First, I'll address the interview anxiety.

If you apply for a job and get an interview, you're already 75% there as the hardest part is getting them to notice you!

So you may as well go, you don't have much to lose. If they don't hire you, it's not the end of the world. We've all had interviews that weren't successful, but the good thing is that they are never a waste of time because the still give you precious experience and opportunities to practice your interview technique.

As for the anxiety about actually having the job; I think a lot of people would find something such as a waitress quite daunting. I mean it requires you to be pretty outgoing in front of a bunch of strangers, you are outnumbered by them, plus you have to deal with "the customer always being right".

As for cashier jobs, I don't think you should be overly concerned about people seeing your scars. Usually when people pay for their goods, they are so busy searching in their bag/pockets for their wallet/cash and chatting to you, that they wouldn't even notice your wrists. I am quite an observant person, but I can't ever remember a time when I looked at a cashier's wrists, because when they hand something to you, you are making eye contact instead.

I really think you should challenge this fear by actually working as a cashier and seeing for yourself that people are too distracted to notice. Plus, it's really none of their business anyway. Who are they to judge you? They've probably got a lot of scars of their own, it's just that theirs are emotional whereas yours are physical.

However, if you really don't want to work as a cashier, there are plenty of other jobs available. Try looking in local newspapers or on a jobs website.

I hope I helped a little.

J. x

[Fairy Poppins]

Any progress, Brittany?

[Le bonheur*]

Sorry Jasmine I just saw you wrote back. I didn't make any progress.
Now, most of my anxiety is based on deciding on a school to go to.