Keyworker Support Thread

[SpiritEssence]

How are you all doing ? I work for a supermarket so been through it all from the start of this. It's been very stressful and the attitude of some people has been disgusting.

But just wanted to be positive as we keyworkers have done so well and we should be proud of ourselves in what ever sector you work kn as a keyworker. It's been tough but and upsetting at times. But keep going we are the backbone of this country.

• [Note from MNHQ: title was originally 'To all keyworkers who have worked through this' and has now been changed at OP's request]

I’m a journalist and my workload has easily doubled. It’s been like nothing else. Hardened hacks sobbing in news meetings, journalists unable to talk because of the horrific stuff they’ve been told... I feel so privileged to have been able to have told people’s stories but also in a permanent statement of shock over what has happened.

NHS ambulance control staff. Feel grateful that we're not face to face with patients, but also exhausted from the constant changing policies, the new directives, the removal of services, the demand... constant demand.

We have no choice but to sit around a meter apart in a room of over 100 people at times. There have been outbreaks of covid that have wiped teams out, so we've worked our own rotas and covered theirs too.

2 young children at home, 1 teen who is climbing the walls and a partner that's in the same 'business' as me, so it's one adult in the door as the other goes out.

Normal work seems to be resuming with rtcs and assaults etc. Morale is so low.

I'd love a week off, all of us together.

Frontline here. Fed up. Healthcare Assistant for dementia patients who have tested positive for the virus. Can’t be doing with it anymore

Thank you to all of you on this thread for your selfless dedication and care of others. I work for a supermarket at head office and it’s been manic and stressful and I’m feeling burnt out and emotional, but I feel humbled by your stories. Thank you.

Probation Officer here, the first 10 days after lockdown started were quiet, but it’s been full on ever since. I have got work coming out of my ears. Plus we are going to have a COLOSSAL back log when things get back to normal.

the second half of the year could well be worse for us than the pandemic

Same for schools. The mental health impact is going to be massive, i'm not even considering the academic stuff yet. We had children who made safeguarding disclosures on the day before closure, my lovely ASC kids who will have been spinning out at home.. I'm worried about the impact on some others of the return. It's going to significantly change our behaviour policy. Lots won't respond well.

Bank branch staff. Very lucky really in that we've done part time hours for full pay. Relaxed and relatively quiet. Although covid has infected about half of us (pre track and trace), thankfully we had mild symptoms.

I’ve had enough.
Don’t really have much reserve in my tank, it’s run out.

I’m in a kind of routine yet fire fighting constantly has become normal now within my work.

I’m battered from above, battered from below and the feelings of guilt are sometimes overwhelming.

Front line NHS, is utterly utterly shite.
One day I shall go through my time in motion diary because if I were to describe the last 4 months you would think I were making it up, I can hardly believe it has all happened.

Anyway, whatever is coming, I can’t cope with it, I know my mental and physical health will crash.
I can’t take it all over again, I just can’t.
Not sure that many of my colleagues could either.

exhausted from the constant changing policies, the new directives, the removal of services

And that. New guidance, sometimes 5 lots of it a day. Always the most vital published at 8pm on a Friday night, or 9pm on a Sunday night. No time off for some senior leaders (I gave myself 5 days in half term). Fro teachers we aren't doing the job we've trained for, not even slightly. We're all physically knackered from sitting at a desk instead of standing up for a start. No equipment for many, using own tech. Anyone who thinks this has been managed well...

But I'm a teacher who has been sunbathing the whole time according to this place.

I work in a supermarket too. Most customers have been lovely and thanking us for staying open, some have been complete arseholes shouting at us, getting into our personal space, not following the one-way system or the two meter social distancing. It has really opened my eyes to people and old people have been the worst

I'm with you original poster. I also work in a supermarket and although the vast majority of customers have been so nice, there has been a small minority that have been..well.. rather unkind to put it politely. One of my colleagues got personally insulted the other day and it brought her to tears, the first time I'd seen her cry in 14 years. There really is no need for that.

Well done to all the key workers working at a time like this. It isn't easy for anyone whatever situation your are in, but we will all get there and let's hope things will get better. Xx

Care Home office worker. Lots of fear early on when it seemed everyone else was safe at home having to venture out into an environment with no PPE and people getting ill and dying with a cough but no testing for care homes.
Then slowly PPE came in and finally testing the end of April. Think I’ve had it pre testing so can’t be sure. Having to leave DD’s alone for a lot of the day for various reasons they couldn’t go to the school. No support to allow WFH constantly torn between their well-being and keeping the bills paid.
One week at work it seemed every call or visitor we were giving condolences handing over belongings in boxes.
So tired too head always running in circles.

I only returned to work as a nurse about six weeks ago. I am redeployed to a new hospital and have worked in new areas as well as my actual job. I have found it very challenging but my colleagues who have been there from the start are all exhausted and stressed from the new normal. Nursing is emotionally difficult in usual times, but much harder when people don’t have their families, I find that very upsetting.

I'm tired and don't know whether I can face doing it again for a second wave.

Our whole team is tired. Tired of uncertainty as well.

I'm knackered too. Nhs manager, same story as others, trying to get services started without people or space.

Hats off to NHS who have saved us & shop workers that have kept us going through all this
Am a bit knackered now, civil service, keeping infrastructure hanging together despite being understaffed, under funded and generally ignored. Skeleton staff in office ticking along ok, definite cracks starting to show, especially between those being told we must go in and those allowed to wfh. Think prospect of traffic increasing again may be the last straw.
Thanks OP you are a 🌟

NHS here, I work with kids with emotional and mental health issues, it has been tough but we are expecting the worst is yet to come. I'm exhausted, been working from home since lockdown and as a pp said I miss having a team of people around me to bounce things off and for some reason the last week I just hit a wall and found it very hard, which seems to be a common theme. Absolutely dreading a second wave, I really don't know how me, my team, or the wider service will handle it.

GP

I feel mentally tired but not exhausted. I miss how my job used to be and not seeing many of my patients face to face. It is much harder to deliver the level of care that I usually would when I’m not face to face.

The constant changes and new guidance is sometimes overwhelming as is The constant cleaning, decontaminating, donning and doffing PPE but it’s actually the knowledge that this is not going to end soon, there’s no holiday, no break, no light relief to look forward to that’s most tiring to me.

Meanwhile our patients want to “get back to normal” and balancing their expectations with a vastly reduced service, a large back log of referrals and continuing the time consuming social distancing and PPE measures is going to be tough.

I might start baking cakes to take to work, I think we will need them!

What a common theme that we're all exhausted. Literally exhausted with little left to give. I have to say I have utmost respect for supermarket staff and have emailed the one I use to pass on my huge thanks to all staff. We are clapped for, given free meals etc etc but not all essential workers have had that. Everyone that has worked deserves all we've had and more. I'm lucky my trust gave us a £200 bonus, we're really valued but it goes beyond that and what we now need is stop any second wave so we can recover

Newly qualified nurse working in acute medicine. Totally overwhelmed. Hanging by a thread. I'm on antidepressants that I haven't needed for a decade and I'm sad at seeing so many seriously sick patients.

Im down about it all. I won't get my graduation that I worked so bloody hard for. I'm working extra hours and thought I'd love being a nurse. But I'm fighting the dread....

@serraserra36

Please can I say a huge thank you for all everyone on this thread has done and continues to do?

There's a whole lot of us who see you, who thank goodness every day for the caring, committed people who do health work, teaching, deliveries, admin, supermarkets and food prep work, deliver public transport, Carers and many others of you who go out to work during this crisis.

I know none of you chose to work under these conditions. I know many of you haven't had the equipment, pay or guidance you need. I'm sorry. It's really crap. I'm sure you're beyond knackered. I hope the one good thing that comes from this mess is the pay, recognition and respect that all these roles deserve.

I'll continue to try to stay home for you because you can't. Thank you again.

Thank you, very much. I can put on a good front day to day but your post made me cry-not in a bad way, just appreciate it so much.

It’s hard. I’m only a shop worker, I can’t even imagine how hard it must be for NHS and care workers right now. A massive thank you to you all.

But if everyone in the Wales/England border area could stop treating shop staff like they’re automatically made immune by doing a minimum wage job, that would be great 👍

I’m sorry, my MH isn’t great at the best of times, right now I’m hitting the wall. At the same time I can see how much harder it is for others so feel bad for struggling if you see what I mean.

Onwards and upwards?

I'm NHS (clinical) and I'm so tired. My job has changed beyond recognition and the managers have decided now is the time to overhaul our whole service. We've had policy changes daily (several times per day) and it's not letting up. My annual leave was cancelled but there's no way I'm cancelling my next booked leave. Seriously considering leaving my profession.

e-learning for the NHS. I've gone from a nice, relatively relaxed job where I could get stuff done in between my work to barely leaving my desk all day and working extra at weekends. We've had a lot of the sessions for COVID, the Nightingale hospitals and now Test and Trace. It has been relentless, but the one thing that strikes me is how much harder the frontline staff have it. Every day I feel for them.

I'm exhausted. Emotionally and physically. It got to the point where I had to instruct my team to count the amount of bodies we had in the region to ensure we had mortuary capacity. They did this daily. We had to keep the death pathway moving, respectfully and with dignity for our patients, to ensure we didn't backlog the NHS. Please don't take me acting so cold and formally about it as disrespect. It's not, it's the only way we can deal with it. Now we're working on the recovery of the region in accordance with legislation and guidance. Off topic but I'm thinking of ways to thank my guys when we've stepped down, is it cheeky to ask you guys for any suggestions?

Funeral director. It's been shit, bit better at the moment as things have calmed down, but we know it's just a question if when not if it all starts again.
It's been so hard not being able to give families the funeral they want, and working all hours on a very reduced staff; as well as struggling with ppe procurement because it was all directed to NHS (fair enough but we need some too), procedures changing at one point daily, and the general emotional toll of it all.