drowning in nursing :(

tokmom, BSN, RN · May 19, 2012

That's good news!

MissRN80 · May 23, 2012

First 3-6 months: felt frustated and even shed some tears (at home)1st year : wow! I didn't realize I'm doing and feeling alot bette with skills and nursing judgement1yr 6mos: uh...started to Charge...feeling challenged this time.2 years: gaining more knowledge and skills. Still alot to learn though but you gained confidence.Best advise I got from another nurse: Suck It Up! (and man,guess i did!)Glad you are feeling so much better! God bless!

AtivanRxPlz · May 30, 2012

Unfortunately, lots of our learning is trial and error. We all strive for perfection with our patients but it doesn't work out that way. Do the best you can every day, show up and tell yourself "I'm going to have a good day today." Use your preceptor or charge nurse when you have questions. Listen to your gut feeling...if something is bothering you about a patient be sure to bring it up to other RNs on your floor. Show up to work 30 minutes early to look up your patients and fill out your brain sheet, it helps you feel more in control of the day, even if that's a temporary delusion :) Things get better, suddenly everything clicks and you feel like a nurse that is capable of any assignment you are given. Stick with it, you will learn something new every day.

MedRN11, BSN, RN · May 31, 2012

Hi Everyone, I'm a new nurse really struggling to keep afloat. I've always been hardworking and very determined. I have always known that with determination and hard work I can achieve anything. I have now been working in the Med/Surg floor for almost 3months and while I feel like I get the vey basics of my job I Constantly miss things that are then caught by my Preceptor, I get frustrated that I myself can't get it right. I feel like I come off as a ditz which in reality I'm not. This whole hospital job is really out of my comfort zone and I've never had to work with so many different challenging personalities, and while I absolutely love my job the fact that I just can't get it right is really starting to affect me. I need some help

My first 3 months on the job were really tough...I remember going home and feeling totally defeated most of the time. A couple of times during that period I cried before going to work in the morning because I was just sure I wouldn't make it through the day! Around 8-9 months, I finally started feeling like I could handle most of the situations I was getting, but I would get off late because I'd still have too much charting to handle in a timely manner. Finally, around the year mark, I started to feel like I had it together - handling things well and getting off on time for the most part. Hang in there...it DOES get better!

That being said, there will always be THOSE days - the ones where nothing goes right, you have tough patients or families, time-intensive treatments, etc. The difference comes in how you react to that. I recently had an insanely bad day where I had to ask my charge nurse to help me out multiple times. When I first started nursing, I would have felt stupid about having to do so, bad that I couldn't handle it all on my own, and like I just couldn't get it right. Today...I reviewed the day in my head when I got home, examined my decisions and actions, and came to the conclusion that I did the absolute best I could with a very tough assignment that involved a number of bad situations that took a great deal of time. I know I prioritized correctly, and that there was no way I could have gotten to everything by myself...I would have had to have been in 3 places at once! That's the difference. While I still went home tired, had to chart late, and felt exhausted and slightly defeated, I knew I was still a good nurse (even if the day had kicked my rear-end!).

coupb8222 · Jun 8, 2012

Liz!

Don't worry about feeling like a ditz.

It's about patient safety and their care.

The best advice I ever heard from a preceptor was. All that matters at the end of the day is that your patient's are happy. If you forgot something, or didn't document something, or looked like a fool for a little bit. All that matters is that the patient was satisfied with your care, and that you did your best. All that matters is the patient at the end of the day, not your ego, or if you feel like a Ditz. It goes away after a while then you 'get it' and are not novice RN anymore. When you feel bad say you yourself "I did my best, and my patients were happy with the care they received, I am not a ditz and I'm always learning, I will improve my practice!"

Hi Everyone, I'm a new nurse really struggling to keep afloat. I've always been hardworking and very determined. I have always known that with determination and hard work I can achieve anything. I have now been working in the Med/Surg floor for almost 3months and while I feel like I get the vey basics of my job I Constantly miss things that are then caught by my Preceptor, I get frustrated that I myself can't get it right. I feel like I come off as a ditz which in reality I'm not. This whole hospital job is really out of my comfort zone and I've never had to work with so many different challenging personalities, and while I absolutely love my job the fact that I just can't get it right is really starting to affect me. I need some help

suanna · Jun 8, 2012

I'm not a good multi-tasker,-it makes it tough to be an effective floor nurse. What I found helped more than anything else was to start off after report with "What do I have to do RIGHT NOW before I start my rounds"- there was always some left-over problem that had to be resolved before I got into the meat of the shift.

Next- "What do I need to do in the next 30min"- med pass on rms 14,18 and 20? complex dressing change, labs.... When you get that done, look to the next 30min. If you break your night into manageable bites you will be suprised how much you can accomplish in a shift. If you are always interrupting one task to do another you are doubling your effort and getting less done on time.

If you are still feeling uncomfortable in a couple more mos, it may be worthwhile to have a frank talk with your preceptor or a member of staff you work with and respect. This floor may not be your cup-o-tea.

I would strongly encourage you to TRUST YOURSELF. If you are stumped and need a bail-out, ask for help, but I find a lot of newbie nurses I've worked with spend half thier time looking for a more senior nurse to bounce things off of before they act and the other half double checking what the did get done (with or without a mentor). That dosen't leave much time to work. You are a smart, educated, skilled health care professional. Believe you can do the job you spent the last few years learning to do.

AweSmiles · Jun 23, 2012

Liz.LVN,

If I went back to my 3rd month as a nurse on my unit, I think I would be writing the same sentences as you. When you are just in your 3rd month as a new nurse on a unit, there are so many things happening and so many things your are learning that they do not teach you in nursing school. Such has the policies and protocols specific to your facility, when to page the on-call physician, on top of learning new skills, handing out meds, learning their documentation system... The list goes on. I felt like a ditz as well. Even though I knew I was very intelligent.

I ended up not talking to my preceptor because I realized that the way I was being treated was just her personality and talking to her would not make things easier but rather make an uncomfortable work environment.

My suggestion is to hang in there. Once you are off orientation, it might seem a little scary at first but also a relief because you will no longer be followed by someone which in my opinion is when we all tend to make the most errors. If you need to talk some more about this, you can always PM message me. I remember spending a lot of time writing in a journal when I got home while on orientation and I frequently wrote things like "I feel so stupid." or "they probably think I'm so dumb." Just know, you're not alone. Hang in there. ?

latentcat · Jul 19, 2012

Liz,

You are being way, way too hard on yourself. As Dalla mentioned before, one does not have a good, general grasp of this art we call nursing until one spends at least one year at a medical-surgical floor. Trust me. And you will make mistakes, I GUARANTEE IT. What is important is 1) learn from your mistakes (so you won't repeat them), 2) attempt to develop a tight relationship with your preceptor and ask questions, no matter how basic they sound and 3) take care of yourself during this trying time. In time you'll look back at this period of time and remember it for what it was...an opportunity to grow. And in time, hopefully, you will be passing along those skills to others, much like it was done with you. Take care.