Originally Posted by EaglePacerRN
Greetings All. I am so excited to have found this website. I am a new RN who graduated in May. I took the NCLEX in June and passed with 75 questions. This is my second profession and I am struggling with confidence in being a new RN. I am working in a busy Emergency Room and feel like I have had a good orientation. I am constantly asking questions and feel supported by the staff I am working with. My problem is confidence. I want to be a great nurse, but when things go wrong, I am so fearful and just don't know what to do. I am starting the night shift before too long and am also terrified about how this is going to work. Does anyone have any suggestions about how I can build some confidence without having to dread going back to work. I really do love what I am doing, but sometimes I feel totally overwhelmed. Maybe I am developing an anxiety problem in my 30's! Thanks for the advice..
Hi, and welcome! I'm in much the same boat, except that I'm 49. I work on a neuro floor, rather than ER. And since I'm working these things out myself, I can't offer much sage wisdom.
For what it's worth, I'm trying hard to cherish every success, however small, and to look upon every ridiculous blunder as a learning experience. If I were doing a careplan on myself, it would say Learns best by: the hard way. I won't say nothing comes easily. My patients and their families seem to know that I really do care, and that helps, sometimes a lot. Caring isn't enough, but it's a start.
I had a good night, night before last. Got an admission right after report, so I had five head-to-toes and an admission. Got a quick peek at all my patients, head-to-toes on the two worst, did my admission, and finished my assessments just in time to start 2200 meds. Had one pt with severe pain and nausea, had to page service a lot and they wouldn't do PRN meds, so each dose was a one-time order. By midnight, I was starting to see some light, but now it's time for another round of full assessments, and still having to page for toradol and phenergan. By 0200, I felt like I was pretty much on top of things, by 0700 everything was done except one PEG dressing I forgot, and charting. Wound up staying over three hours to chart (bad) but on the whole, digging my way out of a mess was a good experience.
I know the day will come when I can manage these things better. Entering orders on the computer eats a lot of my time, since a lot are still unfamiliar. We're strongly encouraged to strongly encourage the docs to put their own orders in (less chance for miscommunication) but the more I do it, the more I learn how.
The next night (last night) was a lot easier, and that's good, because I needed it, but I learned a lot more while I was swamped.
I get butterflies on the way to work, every time. I get close to panic from time to time at work. I get discouraged, frustrated, and even sometimes almost feel a little cheated that I was a very good student in school, and now I'm having to fight and claw my way to some semblence of competence. But, gee, you know what? It's fun. Who'da thunk it?
Good luck with your transition. I know it's hard. Apparently it has to be hard. I'm not sure why, but I guess that's how it is. We are so going to laugh about this, someday.
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