Feeling squeamish every now and then is nothing to be ashamed of.
In fact, it can be a natural reaction to seeing blood or body parts.
Its been hypothesised that the ‘squeamish’ reaction is part of our human fight or flight response. In our minds, seeing blood is associated with danger, and so the body has a physiological response to get itself out of that situation!
However, feeling faint or squeamish is much less helpful when you’re interested in a career that, inevitably, will involve quite a bit of blood!
So, is it possible to become a veterinary surgeon, vet nurse or vet tech if you don’t like seeing blood?
My Experience with being Squeamish
To be honest, most vets and nurses that I know do have at least one specific thing in practice that makes their skin crawl.
I, for one, don’t like seeing blood clots. A lot of vets don’t like touching eyes, or seeing maggots. And I know one vet nurse who screams if she sees dogs with strings of drool hanging out their mouths (we try to keep her away from St Bernards).
We are all aware of what we don’t like, and we either learn to avoid that thing or develop techniques to deal with it.
However, if you’re squeamish about all of these things, you have to understand that you cannot avoid them completely as a vet or nurse. Surgery and anatomical study is a large part of the training for both vets and nurses, and unless you take on a non-clinical role, you will be expected to either perform or assist in animal surgeries during your career. You’ll probably also see lots of infected wounds, and even have to perform post-mortems occasionally too.
So the answer is- you don’t have to give up on your dreams of being a vet or nurse if you’re squeamish. But you will need to work on overcoming your aversion before you start the course!
Overcoming Aversion to Blood
So how can you overcome an aversion to blood, surgery, or other icky things before you pursue a career in the vet clinic?
Well, sorry to tell you but the best way is usually exposure. (In fact, squeamishness towards blood is actually more common in men than women, likely because women deal with blood on a monthly basis already- so we’re already exposed!)
Think about ways that you could start to introduce little bits of exposure into your life, in a controlled and safe way.
For me, I did lots of placements on farms with cattle and horses. This got me used to the sights and smells, and dealing with poop, pee, parasites and occasional blood.
You might also be able to find a placement in a vet clinic, but do talk to the bosses before you start about the fact you’re working on building a tolerance to blood. Its best they know not to put you in the surgical room until you’re ready.
You could also talk to a therapist about it. They might be able to suggest safe ways for you to start overcoming your fear.
If you feel like seeing surgery in real life may be too much for you, many vet students suggest watching surgical videos at home first. This way, you can be in a safe environment, with no smells or sounds, and can just watch a little at a time until you feel more comfortable. You can find plenty of veterinary surgeries on youtube if you look.
If you really don’t think you will ever be able to overcome your squeamishness, don’t feel too disheartened. You can always consider a career path with animals which isn’t quite so gory. Zoologists, biologists, zookeepers and animal trainers are just some examples of career options to consider that don’t usually get so gory.
Tips for watching surgery if you’re squeamish
Are you coming up to clinical placement, and worried about how you’ll go in the surgical room? Here are some other tips that vets and vet students use to combat feelings of light-headedness during squeamish situations:
| Tips for Watching Surgery |
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1) Eat and drink prior to surgeries. Keeping up blood sugar and hydration will help you keep your blood pressure up, and prevent you feeling faint. 2) Sit down rather than stand to watch if possible 3) Try calming techniques, like counting or taking slow deep breaths, to keep your mind from becoming overwhelmed. 4) Talk to your supervisors about it. Let them know if you’ve had troubles before so they can watch out for you, and help introduce you to the situation slowly 5) If you start to feel unwell, TELL SOMEONE. Tell your supervisor, leave the room, get some water and fresh air straight away. No one will judge you, and its much better than to take a break than faint and hurt yourself (read my story about this below). |
The Survey
So, can you become a vet or vet nurse if you feel squeamish seeing blood or watching surgery?
I asked the veterinary community on Instagram- here’s what they answered:
Of 131 respondents, 105 people said yes (80%), and 26 said no (20%).
Here’s some of their comments:
- “I’ve had multiple students feel that way that are now great vets and techs. Practice and exposure make a huge difference” – thorloki_361
- “It’s a matter of the mind, and the mind is flexible. It can be trained away” – hannaevaemilia
- “It’s natural to feel weird the first times [seeing lots of blood] as a student, since its not something you see everyday” – francescabona
- “I’ve been a vet for 9 years and nearly passed out watching my first ever surgery on work experience” – Katiefordvet
That got me thinking of one more question…
Bonus Question: Fainting!
I asked the same group of veterinary professionals: “Have you ever fainted in a vet clinic?”
26% of respondents said yes, they had!
And I am one of them! I passed out on my first week of clinical placement of a vet student. I didn’t take a break to eat or drink anything all day. Plus, I was too shy to tell the nurse that I didn’t feel so good. So, I ended up sliding down the prep room wall and waking up on the floor!
I’ve now been a successful vet for five years, and perform all sorts of surgery without any feelings of squeamishness. So it goes to show, you’re not the only one who feels squeamish, and it can be overcome!
Further Information
I hope that’s answered your question- and if not, feel free to contact me any-time on the Contact Me page.
Now, check out the rest of the articles in the ‘Can I be a Vet if’ series!
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