If I made a mistake, or think I did, at work, this horrible anxiety

[raccoon]

just washes over me.

I'm not an air traffic controller or cop or in some job where peoples' lives are at stake.

I have to struggle with this. Usually if the mistake is something small, I’m able to get myself out of the anxiety within a few minutes--thank goodness.

I had some pretty traumatic work experiences some years ago, and I know that’s where this started.

Anyone else have this problem?

[rrneck]

1. A therapist friend

says I have "inner critic" issues. Whatever I do the result is never good enough. It causes me a lot of stress (and costs a lot of money).

I find that patience helps. Try to wait a while and it probably won't matter. Also, I try to structure what I do to allow for opportunities to correct mistakes.

[MicaelS]

2. You sound like a perfectionist..I'm one too...

I brood on minor things that no one but me really cares about.

[bigwillq]

3. No.

Life goes on. It's really not that big of a deal. We all make mistakes.

[hamsterjill]

4. I used to.

You have hit the nail on the head in your realization that this started with a previous bad experience at work.

I worked at one law firm for a while and was under a supervisor who was just a bitch. To describe this woman as anything less, would be doing a disservice to my explanation. She was HORRIBLE to everyone. I started getting paranoid about doing something wrong, which of course, MADE me do something wrong!

I started having panic attacks, so I quit. First time in my life I quit a job without another one lined up. Scared the hell outta me. But I found something else within a few weeks.

But since having that experience, I still have pangs of angst sometimes when I think there is something I didn't do right, or something that others think I should be able to handle that I don't have information to handle, etc.

Moral of the story is that we ALL need to learn to be a little more gentle with ourselves (as per Desiderata!).