I'm Lost! Can somebody help me out? I’m burnt out

[MNLady]

Sorry for posting so much on here. I have high anxiety, and it’s a lot easier to ask questions anonymously on here than in real life.

I’m a full time college student. It’s finals season. And I work near or over 40 hours a week even though I initially said that I want 20 hours a week (the interviewer put 30 max), but I guess because I'm new/seasonal and it’s the holidays, my hours have spiked. Anyway, due to all of the things on my plate, I went through a burn out this week. I’ve had multiple anxiety attacks. I’ve had a tough time sleeping, and I oversleep when I finally get to sleep. I had an anxiety attack at work a few days ago and left early without telling anybody and the next day I NSNC. Am I fired? Is there a way to tell if you are fired? Will they call me? I can still login to all of my work stuff online.

Please don’t respond with “you should’ve just talked to HR.” Unless you have anxiety yourself, you probably don’t know how hard it is to be vulnerable and open about it. I planned on calling HR and asking them to cut my hours, but I was told that it wouldn’t be possible because I’m new and temp. They already have the schedule written out for the next two-three weeks, and that’s when seasonal ends.

I don’t even know why I’m making this post. I’m scheduled to work tomorrow, but I don’t want to go in if I’m fired just to embarrass myself. I could resign online. I just feel like I’m in a no-win situation. Either way I’m going to be on the blacklist from ever being hired again. The only way I could see a happy ending is if they somehow don’t fire me for leaving early and the NSNC, and then cut my hours from 40 to 15-20.

Ugh maybe I’ll call HR and tell them everything and ask for less hours, so I can say I tried. Or I’ll just take the L

 

[Planosss]

Ask for less hours, just ask. It will be ok, I promise.

 

[JAShands]

Ask for less hours, remind them it’s finals time and you had initially asked for much less hours each week. As far as the NCNS it’s very likely not going to be enough to term you. Especially this time of year. Job abandonment is an easy way out, but you’ll burn a bridge that you might need/want in the future.

I’m going to suggest posting shifts on the swap board. Someone out there will be looking to pick some hours up. Or even half of a shift! Those are usually easier to get picked up. Ask around to see if anyone wants any of your hours too, then look at your schedule with them so they can see what will work for them and post that with them there to sign up for it.

Target isn’t a career for most of us. But there could be a time you just need a little side gig to help with any random expenses and Target does pay pretty well for that purpose.

 

[MNLady]

So a bit of an update: I emailed my manager, which I did not know was possible (her work email is on Workday), and told her everything. I told her I’m a full time student and it’s finals time. I told her I’m extremely burnt out because of overworking myself. And I told her I want less hours or I’ll have to quit. I tried to be as nice as possible since I NSNC twice pretty much, which I apologized for. And none of this is her fault really. I should’ve spoke up sooner before it got to this point. I even told her I would completely understand if she needs to fire me.
She responded. She said that we can talk more about the absences AND that she could “absolutely” give me less hours if I’m still interested in the job.
So I’m going to go into work tomorrow to talk to her and see what’s up. I literally thought I was going to resign or be fired less than 24 hours ago. I’m a little nervous that it’s going to be super awkward between us now because of all of this mess, but we never really had much interaction before anyway. Worse comes to worse she fires me or I have to quit to focus on school and family, which isn’t a terrible worse case scenario.

 

[Tessa120]

I'm going to give you some hopefully good advice, but I do tend to be direct.

8 of your 13 posts have been starting a new thread, and a lot of those have been asking what you should do with your work life or what your leadership is planning on doing to your work life. Things that no one but you can answer.

You have to take control of your professional life. If you are struggling with asking the questions and saying the things that need to be said at Target, then what about your post-college job in your field? This is a practice warning for your future professional life.

You say it's anxiety and I can get that. But if you have such a severe reaction to Target, what happens when your car is in an accident or breaks down and you have to take on the insurance company and the body shop. What happens if your health insurance denies a claim and you are facing a huge bill and have to appeal the claim and tell the doctor rebill it? What if, god forbid, it's not you you're having to advocate for, but a loved one like your future child who is seriously sick or impaired and needs someone to fight for them?

That means you have to get control over your anxiety. Go back to your doctor and tell him your current treatment isn't working and it has to be treated more aggressively. Once the more aggressive treatment takes hold and you are no longer trying to willpower through a physically ill brain look into therapy to learn how to think well. That way you run your life, not your anxiety.

Get someone in your circle who can be your disability advocate, someone who will sit with you while you make important calls and ready to step in, who will go with you to the doctor's and make sure what you can't say is said and can assist you in following through, someone who can help research work accommodations. Through them, learn how to be your own advocate.

And check out Commie's ADA thread. I'm on my phone, so it's difficult to link, but it's sticky'd.

Your threads aren't just about Target. This is a test of your future life and you're not doing so hot. It's time to get your mental house in order while it's still the Christmas money level of seriousness.

 

[MNLady]

I appreciate your comment. I really do, but I never felt like it was that deep. I just come on here to ask questions or vent about things. I had a question about Kronos, so I asked it here. I had a question about cutting my hours, 2 week notices, and first day questions, so I asked them here. I ask these things here first because there are probably dozens of people here that went through similar things who can give advice. That way, I can be prepared without bugging my etl everyday with a new questions that probably could’ve just been answered here. I thought that this is what this site is about, and I apologize if I’m mistaken. Sure, my anxiety could make these post seem more dramatic, but I honestly have it pretty under control. Nobody is immune to burnout whether you suffer from mental issues or not. I just posted on this site to see if anybody else went through something similar and what their advice would be. Target has been a great place to work this past month, but it’s just a part time, seasonal job at a big company that would be unbothered if I didn’t exist. There’s not much to get too anxious about. Sure, I’m sure I would get anxious if a loved one got extremely ill, but I’m not going to worry about it until it happens, which is hopefully never. And if it does happen, I will be by their side and do what ever I can to help. If I get into a car accident, I will call the insurance company and do what I got to do. And yes, I will probably still ask for help and advice from people that have been through similar situations.

 

[Tessa120]

Yes, this is a place to vent. And this place offers valuable information. But your post above seemed to be a cry for help, not a simple "how do I address an absence?" post.

 

[StargazerOmega]

Trust me, it can be nerve-racking to speak with your ETL, but they'd prefer you come to them with concerns rather than suffering though it. It would also be a great time to ask any questions you have then as well. They get asked the same question multiple times a day, so it's not a new thing for them. They want to make sure that you know how to handle things on your own eventually.

This forum is a good resource for the inner workings of Target, but things like scheduling / LOAs etc. are best talked out with your leadership team. 🙂