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Imposter Syndrome in Healthcare

Imposter Syndrome in Healthcare

So you feel like an imposter? A fraud. Everything that you’ve ever achieved is down to dumb luck. You’ve blagged your way to where you are. How come nobody else has noticed except you? You’ve conned them all and now you’ll be found out. Sound familiar? If you’re suffering from imposter syndrome you’re in good company. Research suggests 70% of us will experience the phenomena at some stage in our lives. Let’s take a look at imposter syndrome and how to silence it.

Imposter Syndrome – it’s not just you

Look around you, is it really true that everyone else is smarter than you? Perhaps they’re shiftily looking sideways in your direction and wondering the exact same thing? But how to get rid of that constant fear that you’re so fake? With all the pressures facing the health service at the moment life is tough. One thing that you don’t need adding to your stress is that little voice criticising you for not being good enough. Here’s how to silence that pesky negative narrative.

Do you have Imposter Syndrome?

Popularised by Dr Pauline Clance in the 1970s, imposter syndrome remains alive and kicking today, fuelled by the use of social media and constant connectivity.

Experiencing something of a renaissance, you’ll recognise it by the feelings;

  • At that pivotal moment – you’ll be found out
  • You don’t deserve your success
  • Your achievements are down to serendipity or even worse pure fluke
  • At some point someone will notice
  • You feel bad for conning others
  • It’s hard to take a compliment because you don’t really deserve it
  • You constantly feel that others are smarter than you
  • You punish yourself with perfectionism
  • You’re working late to make sure everything is ‘just right’
  • If you manage others you feel that you need to micro manage them just to ‘be sure’
  • You avoid anything that you suspect you won’t be able to do
  • You’re convinced you’re the only one
  • You feel more than just a little exhausted keeping up the pretence

Now you know you’re not the only person on the planet who feels this way you can relax. But how can you start to overcome it? Here are some self resilience coaching tips to silence that inner critic.

Five Steps To Kick Imposter Syndrome To The Kerb

Self Acceptance: Imposter syndrome is part of being a human being. In fact, it’s prevalent amongst high achievers rather than perpetual slackers so recognise that your self assessment could well be skewed. Let go of perfectionism and acknowledge that you’re doing your best. Constant striving will just heap the pressure on and you can use your time more effectively than that.

Stop Comparing Yourself: If we ever stopped to have an honest conversation with others about how we really feel there would be a veritable avalanche of astonishment. If 1 in 7 of us has experienced imposter syndrome you do the math! That person who you are comparing yourself to is probably wondering why they’re not as smart as someone else. This is how we are as humans. When we constantly compare ourselves to others (upwards or downwards) it damages us. So much so that Iyanla Vanzant describes it as “An act of violence against the self.” We think she’s right.

It’s ok to be scared: You’re scared. That’s a normal reaction in the current situation. Whatever you are feeling – feel it. It’s ok. You can harness that energy and do something creative with it rather than feeling overwhelmed. Recognise that everyone experiences a learning curve when they try something new and you’re no different. As human beings we learn by failing, it’s what we do with that failure that matters. Develop a growth mindset (check out our growth mindset podcasts and blogs) and utilise new learning information the next time you try something new.


Acknowledge your successes. However small. Even it’s turning up every day. It’s an achievement. That’s right, your achievements didn’t just happen by themselves. Recognise that you showed up, you stretched yourself and you definitely did something right. Keep a box or file of successes (certificates, wins, momentos, thank yous, compliments or good things that people have said about you, photos etc) to remind yourself of how hard you’ve worked and what you’ve contributed to your successes. When imposter syndrome strikes, tell it to get back in it’s box by getting out yours.

Put Yourself Out There: Instead of avoiding challenges where you fear failing, launch yourself into them. Known as ‘flooding’ in psychology circles it will enable you to shake off the need for perfectionism. The more you attack your fear of failure head on the less you will be concerned with looking foolish. Say ‘Yes’ to new challenges and treat them as research. Each time you approach a new goal you’ll find out what works and more importantly what doesn’t, leaving you better equipped for the next time.

There’s only one you: That’s right, we’re with Chesney Hawkes on this one. You really are the ‘One and only you.’ Whilst you’re holding yourself back and allowing imposter syndrome to take the wheel, the world is missing out on the unique talent that is you. Once you kick imposter syndrome to the kerb and learn how to overcome it, who knows what you’ll achieve? You’re not an imposter. You really are awesome. You’re doing an incredible job under unprecedented pressure.

The Resilient Doctor provides online resilience courses for doctors and healthcare professionals along with resilience coaching for doctors. During the Coronavirus pandemic everything that we do is free to healthcare professionals and allied services. A huge thank you from us for everything that you are doing.

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Strategies to Manage Coronavirus Stress for Healthcare Professionals

Strategies to Manage Coronavirus Stress for Healthcare Professionals

If you’re feeling anxious and stressed about the Coronavirus, you’re not alone. It’s over one hundred years since the world has seen a global outbreak on this scale. As the disease spreads, it’s a natural response to be worried about the impact of COVID-19. Developing strategies to build resilience and reduce coronavirus stress during the outbreak can help.

Healthcare workers or anyone responding to COVID19 will be under additional pressure. Whilst this professional demographic is already one of the most resilient there is, working longer hours and understandable fear around the virus itself can be detrimental to your mental health. Many of your colleagues will be experiencing the same fears. Whilst some fear can be helpful to keep yourself safe and help you manage, it can also become counterproductive. The better you manage your stress, the better you’ll be able to manage your role. It’s crucial that you take

Most of us have never had do deal with uncertainty on this scale before. When you’re a doctor, nurse or allied health professional working on the front line, stress and fear can be a regular occurrence that depletes your energy. The novel nature of COVID19 means that we’re working with unknowns and that can increase anxiety. We may not be able to control what happens within the coming weeks and months, but what we can control is how we respond to it.

Avoiding a Coronavirus Stress Amygdala Hijack

Stress, Anxiety or Overwhelm? Let’s take a look at the difference between Coronavirus stress, anxiety and overwhelm.

Stress is an evolutionary response in your body to a particular trigger or threat. We all respond to stress in different ways. Learning to recognise your own stress signs and symptoms (and those of colleagues) can become a useful early warning system. Once you recognise it you can begin to employ stress management strategies to dial down your stress.

Generally, anxiety is the body’s response to stress. It can result in persistent worry, fear or panic about what might happen in the future. Stressful situations like the outbreak of Coronavirus may trigger anxiety. It can disrupt your daily life, skew your perception of events and reduce your ability to respond effectively. Most of us will experience anxiety at some point when faced with stressful events.

The ability to recognise and then manage our emotions helps us to avoid what Daniel Goleman refers to as an ‘Amygdala Hijack’. That’s when our fight, flight or freeze response is activated. Our emotions take over and we become overwhelmed, responding immediately and ineffectively to a situation without thinking clearly and rationally. Calming your brain during stressful situations is a skill that you can learn. Here’s how.

Identify Coronavirus Stress

It sounds counterintuitive but sometimes stress and anxiety can creep up on you. It can be hard to recognise that you’re stressed and anxious before you start to feel overwhelmed. We all react differently to stress , but some common signs that you or someone else is feeling anxious about the current outbreak could be

  • Frequent worry
  • Moments of fear and feeling helpless
  • A change in sleep patterns
  • Withdrawal from activities that you normally enjoy
  • Joylessness
  • Hopelessness
  • Feeling of frustration, resentment or anger
  • Sadness and or tearfulness

Recognising coronavirus stress is information that you can use to regain control and begin dialling down your stress levels whilst still taking necessary precautions . Allow yourself to recognise these feelings without beating yourself up for your response. It’s ok to feel what you’re feeling. Stress is information, it becomes unhelpful when it turns into panic.

Arm Yourself With Coronavirus Facts

The more you know about Coronavirus, the more proactive you can be in terms of prevention. Seek out accurate information from credible sources. This will help you to avoid the fear and panic that misinformation produces. Alia Crum, Assistant Professor of Psychology at Stanford University explored the role of mindsets and how they impact our stress response her research suggests that the way we perceive stress may be critical in terms of how we respond to it. Crum found that viewing stress as part of life, as a skill to be mastered, resulted in better health, emotional well-being and productivity at work – even during highly stressful periods. Viewing stressful events this way helps us to manage threats more effectively. Knowing the facts puts you back in control and enables you to take proactive steps to protect yourself. Useful sources of coronavirus information are:

Create News & Social Media Limits

Whilst informing yourself is a positive, being constantly connected to Coronavirus news feeds and social media can amplify feelings of anxiety and result in overwhelm. Remain informed but consider limiting the amount of time that you spend reading about Coronavirus. Manage tech time in the same way that you already mitigate against digital overload by switching off alerts, setting a time limit on your use of apps and removing your phone or device from your bedroom. Create news breaks and consider taking a day off from checking coronavirus news. Instead, spend that time on something that renews and energises you instead, for example, reading, listening to music, going for a walk, exercise or spending time in nature.

Focus on What you can Control

Energy spent on what we cannot control is wasted. Ruminating on what you cannot do will feed into stress and anxiety. Focusing on what you can control enables you to take more effective action.

  • Identify what you can control e.g. saying ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to requests from others, what you can influence e.g. working practices and what you can’t.
  • What can you do to prepare or plan for the areas that you can control? This might include preparing supplies in case you are quarantined, or talking to your family and friends about how you will manage a quarantine in practical terms.
  • Preparation can also include building your resilience (with our free toolkit) making sure that you prioritise your own self care or creating space in your day for stress reduction strategies such as mindfulness (another free toolkit) or exercise. Even small, incremental interventions of 5 minutes will begin to add up.
  • Create an action plan with a timeline.

Minismise Unhelpful Strategies

Whilst short term strategies like smoking and alcohol might work temporarily, they’ll add to the mental and physical stress in the long term. If you can cut down on these maladaptive stress strategies do – even a small reduction will help.

Coronavirus Stress & Sleep

Coronavirus stress may well keep you awake. It sounds obvious, but making sure that you get adequate sleep will help you to manage stress. Churning over the day or tossing and turning will exacerbate overwhelming thoughts and feelings. Take a look at your sleep hygiene and develop a bedtime routine.

If you can, go to sleep at the same time every night. If that’s not possible and you’re working night shifts, develop a regular pre-sleep routine that soothes your mind and body. That might include a hot bath, herbal sleep tea or relaxation app, along with anything else that relaxes you. Keep your bedroom gadget free, promoting a wind down space before you go to sleep.

Consider practising mindfulness. As well as helping to reduce stress, anxiety and depression, a randomized controlled trial of mindfulness meditation for chronic insomnia discovered that building mindfulness into your day can reduce chronic insomnia in adults.

Connect With Others

Stay connected with family, friends and support networks. The psychological impact of working in the centre of an outbreak or being isolated in quarantine are well documented. It’s easy to withdraw from others and shut down when you feel stressed. Talk to others about how you are feeling. Remember that sometimes it can also be helpful to deliberately talk about non Coronavirus topics, limiting the time you spend on topics that are likely to deplete you. Now is the time to consciously limit the time you spend with mood hoovers who drain your energy by being negative.

It’s possible to remain connected digitally if you find yourself quarantined. Speak to friends and family using video calling apps or phone calls to manage feelings of isolation.

Build Resilience Architecture

Think about the way that your day is structured. It may be that circumstances mean that your routine needs to change, at least for a while. Think about how you can design your day around self care and resilience. What new routines can you introduce that will renew and replenish you? For example, if you commute to work, getting off a stop early and incorporating a walk into the journey. Is it possible to limit the things in your day that drain you? This might mean saying ‘No’ to requests from others and putting yourself first. Are there opportunities within any changes you might experience that you can use to your advantage?

Exercise Self Compassion

Research has demonstrated that self compassion has consistently found to be key to wellbeing and resilience. It has also been linked to decreased amygdala responses – reducing the likelihood of an amygdala hijack. Instead of berating yourself when you experience stress and anxiety you can generate positive emotions and accept that sometimes things are difficult without apportioning blame.

Self Compassion Hacks

These compassion practices can be used to build kindness and self compassion into your routine.

  • When things get tough, take a self compassion break, even if it’s just 60 seconds.
  • Keep a journal focusing on the areas that you’re struggling with. Reflect on your journal entry with compassion. Imagine that you are responding kindly to a friend with your reflections.
  • Reframe your perception of failing as an opportunity to learn, grow and improve.
  • Monitor your self talk. When you hear your inner critic, talk back to it with kindness. Use phrases like “It’s ok to be angry about the situation.” “I don’t need to be perfect.” And when things don’t go as you wanted “Failing is part of being human.”
  • Limit the time that you spend on social media. Use that time for self care instead.
  • Prioritise your wellness and speak to someone when feelings of overwhelm persist.

How Should Leaders & Managers Respond to Coronavirus Stress?

It’s crucial for leaders and managers to protect their staff from chronic stress. It’s important to model good practice during periods of high pressure. Take breaks, make sure that when workers are working through periods where there is intense pressure that the next task they are allocated less intense tasks. Take a look at our piece on periodisation for more information about how to do this. Buddy less experienced workers with more experienced colleagues for additional support. The health service will be under pressure for some time so it’s important that as a leader you take care of yourself, recognising the importance of your own renewal (and making sure to model it).