New RN; I want to quit my job already.

mushyrn, BSN, RN · Jan 26, 2014

You only work 3 nights a week - use those other 4 days to rest and have fun. Leave work at work. There are other nurses to take care of those patients when you're gone. Skills take time to get down. Night shift may be affecting you, I couldn't really say for sure... I work nights in med/surg and love it! It works well with my body's rhythm. I was miserable doing orientation on days; I hated waking up early and constantly dealing with excess people all day.

That said, I have a friend who HATED hospital/bedside care because of what you said, moved to hospice and still loves it. Maybe shadow a hospice RN or find PRN hospice work to test it out? But try to not leave this job without having another lined up.

DalekRN · Jan 26, 2014

I am a year and a half in and just this week I am feeling super solid on charting as I go (as in not having a ton to chart after report) and knowing most of the little things. It is insane that we have to feel this way, when people are at their most vulnerable, their nurses are at their most stressed. I am there with ya. Ask for help and keep asking until you feel solid. Find a friendly mentor on night shift. Take your vitamins and do your fun healthy cooking, just do a bunch of it on one day so you have it in the freezer for your busy days. Self care!!

pseudo_name · Jan 26, 2014

Hello I am a new graduate RN who has been so lucky in her current job in a PA hospital on a busy intermediate/telemetry floor. ( I was an aide for about 2 years on the floor- so everyone had all these crazy high expectations for me) I have been here as an RN for about 6 months now (Ive been on my own for about 2 months now- 12 hour night shift). I am trying to give it time, honestly I am. But I cant do it anymore. I have come to dread my job, I hate it when Im there, I hate it when Im home. I feel like I am always in a fog and my relationships and friendships are failing because of it. I cant go to the gym anymore or have time to cook healthy (which is things I used to love doing!), or do anything I once loved. I have seemed to find myself in this depression and constant anxiety. I am always trying to catch up on sleep and when Im with my friends and family I can barely even follow the conversations I am so tired. I am always crying (at home, at work- embarrassing!-, on the drive home from work). I dont feel like I fit in on my floor (with the nurses, I am so focused on getting my work done) and I am a complete nervous wreck. I am so disappointed in myself; I am so bad at IVs, I feel so stupid on my job, all I have time to do is get my tasks done. I am so scared I am not going to notice when my patients going down the tubes or what I am going to do when that dreaded first code for me happens. When I finally do have a good day the day shift comes in and gets mad at me for not knowing something little about the patient that I didnt think to ask the day shift I got report from. Im miserable, depressed, and at a loss of what to do. I cant quit because I need to have another job in order to do that. And if you havent noticed the job market is not that great for a new graduate with less than a years experience. Ive discussed some of my issues with my boss but he just says thats nursing, this is normal. I dont think its normal to be crying almost every day and losing yourself because of it. I really dont want to go to a LTC or a SAR because I feel like it will be even worse (med passing and not having enough time for my patients) Does anyone have any words of inspiration or ideas of other places (or search terms for new jobs) to apply to? PS. Let it be known I do not want to quit nursing, just my current job. I know nursing is for me. I love nursing, I really do. What makes my days are my patients and when I have a chance to sit down and spend time with them and not worry about all the charting I have to get done and all the medications I am behind on. I had a patient that was going to die and it was so amazing to sit there and hold her hand and make it easier for her to go. That being said Id love to go into hospice/palliative. But it seems even for that you need > 2 years experience! I think its really just this floor that is killing me. The patient ratios at night are crazy for patients that are so critical. Ugh. ( I dont feel like I am giving my patients all the time they deserve) That being said my hospital is very small and there are no other floors for me to transfer to. Help.[/quote'] Hey irishlynn, your post made me tear up a little bit because I can relate so much to it! As a fellow new nurse, I think it's completely normal to feel the way that you feel. I found that staying super organized, as in writing EVERYTHING down helps me so much.
I also have apps on my phone like medscape and micromedex (and allnurses!) to look up diseases, procedures, meds when I'm just plain unsure! I also bought these CCRN course DVDs by Laura Gasparis that have been immensely helpful!!! I bought "The ICU Book" by Dr. Marino that has loads of great information in it... Helps me understand the "why" behind tasks/procedures etc. even better.
Also I started taking St. John's Wort, 5-htp, B-complex, fish oil tablets, calcium/magnesium, and "stress solutions" (from vitamin shoppe) to help me with my feelings of depression & anxiety (when I began working as a nurse) because with the stress I was feeling too anxious to my job at my best at times... PLEASE check with a Doctor first though as these are just suggestions of what I've tried and what's worked for me...
But anyway, are there any other new nurses on your floor? If so, it helps a lot to talk about these things with them because they can relate to you and also they can give you great advice on how to stay organized and on top of things. If it's a feasible option, maybe you can arrive to the unit 30 min before your shift just to look up all your orders, labs and even consult notes so you have a better idea of the what the plan is for the patient.
One more thing, during report do you check on the patient together with the previous nurse? I've gotten into the habit of now making sure I check dressings, IVs, Foleys, etc. with the previous nurse so that any issues like moist dressings, pt in pain, infiltrations, etc. can be taken care of right away/right there instead of me having to find these things at 8 o'clock when I do my assessments.
It's so true that "preparation is key". I've found that getting there early to look up this extra info helps me feel more informed about my pts and in turn more confident. I hope you can hang in there though and know that I have had many days where I've felt exactly the same as you do right now. I wish you the best of luck and I hope things get better...

dudette10, MSN, RN · Jan 26, 2014

I don't understand the "get off night shift" suggestions. I am also on night shift and many of the OP's complaints echo my own. Day shift is so much busier though. Wouldn't being blasted with the stress of day shift be detrimental to a new nurse who is still working on their time management?

agreed that's why, in my post, I advised that she needed to determine exactly what the problem was--night shift or new nurse--before making a request.

For me personally, when I was new nurse working night shift, it was definitely a new nurse problem. When I felt that had resolved, I changed jobs to get a day shift. That plan of attack worked very, very well for me.

GundeRN · Jan 26, 2014

Besides, most people want day and it's just not feasible. They aren't going to give them to a new nurse.

BuckyBadgerRN, ASN, RN · Jan 26, 2014

Yup, exactly what I thought. "Just get off of nights" isn't feasible advice because its going to be near impossible to achieve

Besides, most people want day and it's just not feasible. They aren't going to give them to a new nurse.

ChiTownRN5 · Jan 26, 2014

I felt the same way when I first started nursing. About 6 mos in, I felt more confident. By a year, I didn't have as much anxiety going to work. Don't be so hard on yourself. I know some older nurses like to give the newer nurses a hard time. Just keep your head up and take every day as a new opportunity to learn something new. As for the ivs, I wasn't very good either when I first tried. But I volunteered to start everyone's iv every chance I had, practice makes perfect. As for the nights..I can tell ya I'm on nights right now and I love it( never been a day person). I think that might be the reason you're still having a lot of those feelings. Definitely try small meals, cook on days off and freeze meals so you have healthy stuff on nights you work. Blackout drapes for your bedroom, try to get to bed as soon as you get home. Plenty of water and limit the caffeine (I only drink it from 7 to about 1, then only water after that and I sleep like a baby when I get home). The best advice I can give is find a seasoned nurse and have her take you under her wing. We ask each other all the time about stuff we've never come across and I still look up new medications or a new diagnosis. Just build yourself a solid foundation now, cause this what your career will be based on. And don't be so hard on yourself, I'm certain everyone has been in your shoes as a new nurse.

Sam J. · Jan 26, 2014

I simply do not like the nature of bedside care, the meaningless paper works, patient requests that seem so worthless of my time; I want to go into an environment where a nurse and the team needs to do something or else patient may die; like ER, ICU, cath/gi lab

All I can do is hope I never have a nurse that considers my requests worthless, hates bedside nursing, yet feels it's appropriate to be in a position to make life or death decisions on my behalf.

DavidDudley · Jan 26, 2014

It very well may be the case that the OP may not be able to get on days for quite a while at their current hospital. I think at the end of the day, if the person is serious about their future as a hospital RN then they will pay their one year dues and immediately get out of there, or they can leave the hospital now for a non-hospital job. Just depends on what the person's long term goal is.

If it was me I would start putting in my app for other hospitals for day positions immediately, I absolutely refuse to work nights. Some hospitals will hire you even if you don't have your 1 year of experience if you are at least already working in a hospital during the time you apply. Someone who is working acute care with 6 months experience is may more valuable than someone who isn't working at all. I got a buddy who had 3 months of tele experience was offered 2 ICU positions at a couple hospitals, something that would most likely never happened had he been unemployed.

So to the OP, if you feel like you can't hack a full year being where you are at, don't be afraid to start putting in your app elsewhere for other hospitals. Just make sure you have a new job lined up before you quit your current one.

sunshyne17 · Jan 27, 2014

I must admit it was long and I too, couldn't finish. But 2 things

1) everyone wants dayshift for the same reasons you do so it's always going to be tough to get.

2) It sounds like you are suffering from anxiety. Try to find a way to de-stress before going into work (yoga, etc). I blast music on my surround sound while I am getting ready and give myself plenty of time (rushing makes me anxious).

You will do better. There are people who will complain about you no matter what shift you work or how great you are. People like to diminish others to make themselves feel better. Let it roll off your back. GL!!

KariZayBSN · Jan 27, 2014

I don't understand the "get off night shift" suggestions. I am also on night shift and many of the OP's complaints echo my own. Day shift is so much busier though. Wouldn't being blasted with the stress of day shift be detrimental to a new nurse who is still working on their time management?

Not necessarily. Some people (speaking from personal experience) just do not function well at night. During day shift, despite the activity, there are more people to assist you and your frame of mind is different. I have worked all shifts in both ICU and medsurg and, for me at least, I was more stressed and flustered at night than at any other time. Just my honest opinion.

KariZayBSN · Jan 27, 2014

Also, you never know if the nurse manager will allow you to go on days unless you ask. She may be open to allowing you to work 3-11. I have worked for many hospitals and know that hospitals having spent a lot on training and recruiting new talent, don't want a new grad to leave simply because they aren't functioning at night. Ask. The work the manager can say is no. You wouldn't be worse off than you are now. You may be surprised and your request accommodated, especially since you say you've worked there as a Nursing assistant already. Your manager knows you're a valued employee.

Good luck and be positive!