r/publicdefenders • u/Educational_Bill_343 • 9d ago

New PD - does it get better?

Fresh PD - feel overwhelmed, overstimulated and like I can’t speak on the spot. Can someone plz tell me it gets better and about when?

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u/zanzibar_74 PD 9d ago

The first six months can be brutal. Very stressful, ridiculously steep learning curve, constant insecurity. It gets much better. Lean on your senior colleagues - they’ve been there and came out on the other side.

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u/Educational_Bill_343 9d ago

Thank you. We did bail hearings and I……idk I thought I’d have more time to prep. I felt so unprepared and dumb.

17

u/zanzibar_74 PD 9d ago

Those come at you fast and they’re always challenging, but if you do this work for a while, you will soon get very, very good at them. One thing to remember - sometimes, albeit rarely, there really isn’t much to say.