Socially awkward nurse?

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Hello everyone! I'm new to the forum so apologies if I posted in the wrong section or if I haven't quite gotten the lingo down yet. Anyways, I'm a nursing student who will be starting Nursing I in January. I'm currently finishing up my general requirements and taking my CNA, which is also a requirement for my school. I'm definitely what you would call an introvert, and i've always been socially awkward, largely due to my anxiety. I do very good one on one, people always tell me i'm very friendly and personable, but I always shy away when theres too many people. And, for some reason I always feel very uncomfortable around the elderly. I have a lot of respect for them but I just don't really know what to talk to them about. I have no idea why they make me uncomfortable, they just do. And of course CNA clinical is done at nursing homes. I just had my first day of clinical this week and I found myself freezing up and not knowing what to say. I just kind of smiled and laughed awkwardly a lot or just stayed quiet. I really feel like this could hold me back in my future career, and it just doesn't make me feel good about myself in general. Has anyone else experienced this and have any tips or advice for me?

direw0lf, BSN

1,069 Posts

You don't have to worry what to talk about to the elderly. They most likely will love to talk to you about their whole life. I thought I was shy and awkward too but you might find you're not in this situation! It's like the "nursing student" confidence or personality or whatever takes over. Coming from someone very shy: don't over think because you are probably not as awkward as you think. You don't need to fill in every silence. Video yourself practicing with a fake patient and watch yourself so you can see what you can change.

Specializes in Hospital medicine; NP precepting; staff education.

Let them do all the talking. Maybe ask them what was their career or where did they grow up? For the most part, they love to tell stories and I, for one, love hearing about it. It's sad that so much of our society's history is lost because of the dying art of story telling.

Good luck to you, grasshopper.

The good thing about nursing is that there is ample opportunity to practice those socially awkward moments and you'll naturally find the right words to say, either through trial and error or listening to how others interact. The more practice you get, the more it will feel like second nature. As with the elderly, I find a friendly smile and asking how their day was is a great start as they love to share what's on their mind. This can lead to other topics, and I have found the older generation to be a wealth of knowledge ready to share their experiences to those who will listen. Good luck :)

Specializes in CVICU, CCRN.

Honestly, I am just like you. And as a senior, I would just like to add, I'm still socially awkward. It's just something you get used to.

And if anything, I think I use my "awkward" charm on people, use it to your advantage. So what if you awkwardly laugh? That's fine. I say it's even cute! :) I still do that, haha. It's okay to not always know the right thing to say. It's a process, and you'll develop your lingo eventually, but that comes with time, patience and experience.

A way I try to do it is by remembering and telling myself: These patients are just people.

Also, like I said, it's something dynamic - You'll eventually get used to routine. Usually when I see patient's I have a set list of phrases I say to EVERYONE: "Hello, Good morning, How are you? How are you feeling? What's that's nice! That's great! Oh, wow! See you! Take Care." I also add in things like asking about hobbies, interests, current events!

Hope I could help!

Specializes in Critical Care, Med-Surg, Psych, Geri, LTC, Tele,.

I found that learning how to communicate therapeutically was a learned skill. I had little experience working with the elderly when I first became a CNA. My only experience was loving my grandma, who has dementia.

I learned in Cna school and through CNA work how to interact appropriately with these very special people.

Now, I am very good at it. I love working with this population.

I used to often wish I'd known as much about how to work with the elderly when my grandma was showing signs of dementia. I really sucked at it back then. I suffered some guilt over it once I learned more about the needs of the elderly.

I say this all to tell you, the skill can be learned!

pmabraham, BSN, RN

2 Articles; 2,563 Posts

Specializes in Hospice, Palliative Care.

Hugs:

You are not alone; you are in company. I'm an introvert who not only cannot stand small talk, is terrible at it. Add that as a guy, I have negative interest in sports, cars, and many of the stereotypical guy things. That stated, I followed similar advice given per above... and that is let them do the talking. Ask simple questions like "how long have you been here?" "What did you do before?" "How is your family?" and the like, and let them talk. It's about serving them, so that works wonderfully.

Whispera, MSN, RN

3,458 Posts

Specializes in psych, addictions, hospice, education.

I'm always uncomfortable around groups of people. That doesn't stop me from doing what I need to do. I just do it!

I figure I'm not going to die from being nervous.

The more you interact, the easier it will get, truly. Each experience will make it more obvious that you CAN do it.

Practice saying things. Make up a list of questions to ask. Then go with the flow and see where the conversation goes.

UmmIbrahim

60 Posts

Specializes in Cardiac.

Trust me when I say with time and practice and experience it gets easier...speaking from experience here...

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