Crisis Line

Tonight was my first shift serving on the Crisis Line for Sarah's Inn. Our Crisis Line is 24 hours and staffed by volunteers (with staff constantly on-call). The line is for anybody experiencing domestic abuse, anybody who has experienced domestic abuse, or for people who need more information for others about available resources. As Volunteer Coordinator, I've been scheduling Crisis Line shifts for three months now, but I haven't been qualified to work it myself until after training.
I was terrified to put myself on the schedule, even for a relatively short weekend shift. Obviously I'm not going to go into any detail about any of the calls (ever), but I'm very glad to have worked my first shift. As somebody who works specifically with volunteers I spend most of my time at Sarah's Inn emailing people and making charts, not interacting with clients. Being available to talk with people who could use some support, and having the training and resources to help them find useful services, is worth being nervous. And even though my shift's been done for hours, I still feel a bit nervous. My boss assures me that it'll get easier over time, but right now I'm just looking forward to feeling a bit less worried during my next shift.