How can I stop getting so many bruises and cuts?

Question

My employer expects me to do 10 things at once. When I am working on a project for a customer that requires my full concentration, I have to stop frequently and run to the cash register to help the cashiers and find myself rushing to get things done. As a result I am always hitting my arm or hand on something and have a lot of bruises. I can't slow down because if I don't get all the stuff done I will get written up and fired (my employer is very unreasonable and emanding) and as a result I find myself constantly bruised. I can't go and put ice on it because I am not even allowed a break because there isn't anyone to cover my department and it is usually very busy so I have trouble even getting a chance to go to the bathroom. It is embarrassing and people thing I am being abused and I know they think I am lying when I tell them what actually happened.

Awhile back I got hit in the face with an item on the shelf while I was rushing to find something for a customer and had to go around with a bruise on my face which everyone stared at. It is just embarrasing to have to go around bruised all the time and no one believes me that it is work related. I am not being abused by a person, just my workplace

Answer 1

Yikes. I still think you ought to look for jobs elsewhere. But if you are going to stay where you are, you should make sure you are getting all your vitamins, and a bit extra Vitamin C (to help fight infection). And you MUST slow down, so you can do what's expected of you without being injured. If you keep this up you will sooner or later cause serious injury to yourself or someone else, or will break something. Don't let people push you to work faster than you can without making mistakes.

Answer 2

Welcome to my world! Stop fighting it and accept it.

I worked in an office and was surrounded by men who were either military veterans or retired police officers. And there i sat - a weekend horse trainer. When you train horses, sometimes things don't go as planned. I'd miscalulate what a horse would do in a given incident and find myself pinned or brushed into a barn wall or fence line.

And then there are gates that don't cooperate. You open it, you expect it to stay open until you close it. But as you make a quick reach into a stall to get something, then back out - find yourself backing into the iron gate that decided to close part way. Bump, bang, ouch!

And then there was my big dog - a St Bernard mix that I loved to wrestle with. I'd tag him and dart away and he'd come after me and tackle me. I'd like you to envision the bruises that a St Bernard leaves on a woman's forearms after he pins her to the ground to lick her face - confident that he won that round....

Oh yeah, I recall the comments and the looks at work. I was a battered woman alright - I had all the signs. Unexplained bruises. New bruises before the old ones faded. Scratch marks indicating I tried to get away from my attacker. At least one bandaged or wrapped arm/finger/hand/leg or walking with a limp. And I profusely denied it - blamed it on the dog. You know, that's the typical excuse battered wives give - that it was the dog.

But you know what irritated me even more than the comments and stares I got at work? The line of questions I got when I was at the doctor's office. Yup. It never ended. Didn't matter what I was there for - be it a cold, mammogram, checkup or followup appointment - there sat my physician studying a new bruise - or a particularly large one giving me what could only be described as an interrogation. Yup. Every single time.

I've been there and done that. My advice to you is to make light of it. If they don't believe you when you look them in the eye and give them a straight answer, then add some whimsy to it. "Oh, this, yeah, well, if you think I look bad - you should see the door that dared hit me - it's tinder now."

And then the people that had occasion to come to the office, would see me and ask if I had been involved in an accident. I'd look up and say yeah, but don't worry - the car won't be hurting anyone ever again." It's about the only way you can approach it.

I feel your pain.

Answer 3

Wow, sounds like a tough job. :( I'm not really sure of any good preventative steps. If talking to your employer about the pace expected of you, and the subsequent injuries doesn't work or is not an option, I would consider buying some instant cold packs and keeping them near the register to prevent bruising. I work with children, so we stock instand cold packs for when they fall and bump themselves. I, however, being rather clumsy by nature, find myself needing to use them also. :) If you're not able to use an ice pack, rubbing the (non-punctured) injury QUICKLY as soon as you bump yourself will disperse the blood and keep it from clotting under the skin (aka "bruising"). As for cuts and scrapes, I would suggest keeping some antiseptic wipes and Neosporin near the register. Applying Neosporin regularly will disinfect the wound and keep it from developing a secondary infection, while helping it to heal sooner.

Check out http://www.first-aid-product.com/industrial/instant-cold-compresses.htm for an idea of what the instant cold packs are like. To make them cold, you just squeeze them until you've popped a little "bubble" inside the pack, and - voila! - instantly cold.

Hope this helps!

Answer 4

Keep the same job, but transfer to another location, of course! That's EXACTLY what I did! Here's another option: call the corporate office of the company that you work for and file a complaint that your supervisor is an unreasonable son of a *****! (Tell them in a professional way, though.)

Answer 5

If you want to make the situation better you have several choices, some of which won't make you popular with your employer, but you may need to take a stand to make the situation better for yourself and others. Anytime you sustain bruises in a relatively non-physical type of job, it is abuse:

1. Talk with your employer/supervisor and explain the problem, and that it's a safety hazard, and you want him to provide a safer work environment.

2. Take a camera to work and ask a co-worker to take pictures of your bruises each time it happens. Write the date and a brief description of what happened on the back of each photo. Print out two or three extra copies of each photo. This will be your proof for the next suggestions.

3. Visit a clinic after getting bruised, explain the work conditions, but also explain you want to see if there is a medical reason why you are bruising so much. I suspect they won't find a medical reason for the bruising. While you're there tell them about the requirement that you work instead of going to the restroom. Tell them you need to use the restroom _____ often (one hour, two hours) and are concerned about possible kidney damage by not urinating when you need to. (You won't even feel the kidney damage until it is severe.) Ask the doctor to give you a letter for your employer explaining the number of restroom breaks you need to prevent damaging your kidneys.

4. Check for safety signs at work that refer to OSHA standards. There are certain types of work that require the employer to post Safety warnings. Take pictures of all the work areas to document if there are no safety posters in sight.

5. The next time you injure your face, even if you think it isn't serious, go to see a doctor. If you sustain a bruise, there is the possibility you could damage nerves in your face that control facial muscles. If you notice headaches, dizziness or faintness after getting hit in the head or face, tell your employer you got hit in the head and don't feel well and are gong to the emergency room. Take off whatever time your doctor recommends and have your doctor send a letter to your employer explaining that you need to take time off from work. The doctor will need to write another letter explaining you are fit for work when he recommends it's okay to resume work. Have your employer work with you to complete a workers' compensation form to report the injury to the Dept. of Labor in your area. The idea is to document each incident as much as possible.

6. Contact the Department of Labor in your city/area and fill out a complaint explaining the problems. Say you are concerned the business is in violation of Occupational Safety & Health Act (OSHA) standards. Include a copy of the letter from your doctor regarding the need to use the restroom to avoid kidney damage. Describe the requirement by your employer to hurry so fast it is causing injuries. and provide copies of the photos of bruises with descriptions of the incidents.

7. Get a blood pressure cuff and take your blood pressure before going to work, at lunch, in the late afternoon, and after work. Keep a log to see if your blood pressure is going too high from the stress at work. If you continue at that pace, you will end up with high blood pressure and will need to go on medication because your body won't be able to handle the stress of such a fast paced work environment.

8. Update your resume right away, and start applying for other jobs. Usually the bigger the company is, the more employees they hire and the less stressful it will be for employees. When you get another job, write a resignation letter to your employer explaining that you are resigning effective immediately for health reasons and request your final paycheck be mailed to you within three days (three days is the law). Walk out and don't look back. This employer doesn't deserve two week's notice of termination, and your health is more important than this job.

Answer 6

Sounds like you work at Walmart.

You may want to go to the doctor to get a blood test to make sure your platelett count is not low. ITP can be cured on it's own..just in case you find out this is what you have.

Answer 7

Well, you may be anemic. Do you get a bruise from the tiniest bump?

Otherwise, find a new job. I've worked places like that before - understaffed, overworked, no breaks, etc. It'll never get better.

Answer 8

Try taking iron supplements, and the full ranged vitamins that they make. They sell both at walmart or any vitamin store

Answer 9

You're killing yourself,slow down. if there is too
much work for one person,maybe you should talk
to your boss,or get a new job.

Answer 10

It seems like you will continue to get banged up if you continue working their. You can quit, or you can tell people that if they don't believe you, that it's none of their business anyway.