Handhold please - bad day at work

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Sorry this is long I have no one irl that I can talk to.

I volunteer with CAB, just had a bad day. Everyone in the office was really supportive and I felt fully backed up but I feel a bit crap. Three or four really nice clients. Couple of clients that were angry we couldn't help, just a bit loud. Then the one that was shouting first just about the situation (I'm used to that) then at me. Last one I feel like a failure. I'm experienced and feel I should have been able to manage and just assertively tell him to leave. Actually escaped and got someone else (supervisor) to. Was really upset afterwards partly just shock, also wondering if could have handled things better (I couldn't). I did see a last really nice client so at least back in the saddle.

I have done assertiveness and a course on dealing with difficult people. I know it is my poor mental health rearing it's head a bit, but I feel useless and rubbish.

I'll be back in tomorrow just need a handhold now.
(It also feel very grateful to the frontline workers in things emergency services and hospitals who deal with this all the time - at least we can ban people relatively easily.)

We all have days like these just go back in tomorrow and start again. Most of us don’t react well to intimidation, I don’t think you did anything wrong.

Wow you're coping with all this as a volunteer?!?! Very admirable.

Sorry you were treated like that.

It wasn’t your fault.

It’s not your mental health that’s the problem. In the course of your volunteering you were in a risky, frightening situation, due to the behaviour of another person you and colleagues were trying to help.

It’s horrible when people behave badly when you are trying to help them but it was probably a reflection of the situation that he is in rather than anything you have done wrong. The best way to deal with it is to offload to colleagues as they will understand how you are feeling.

People frequently yell at me in my job and tell me how useless I am but at least it’s down the phone and in emails (crafted in the middle of the night) rather than face to face. I offload to my manager and a bit of humour with colleagues helps.

Thank you for a bit of perspective. Most of the people we see are really friendly even when in really tough situations so I just need to keep them in mind as well.

Bumping this as my mood has sunk again. I have mostly well controlled depression but sometimes my brain blows little things out of proportion. I am just low, taken myself to bed and not eaten diner yet, nothing worse and no suicidal thoughts at all.

I’m sorry you are feeling bad OP I know what it like to brood on what happened. I was a CAB volunteer then a paid worker before I moved to my current role so I know it can be hard particularly if you feel you take on people’s problems (which is why I moved to a different job)

I hope you're feeling better soon. You're doing a good thing volunteering your time to help people on tough situations.

Thank you - managed to get myself and cook diner so that has levelled my mood out. Hopefully a good nights sleep will leave me ready to face tomorrow.

I used to do telephone legal advice, and it could be difficult sometimes if the client didn't get the answer they were looking for. OR if we had to tell them we couldn't get directly involved. Hope you have a better day tomorrow OP.