Discouraged new RN

Hello all, I am new to this mesage board so I want to give you all a quick shout out ::Hello:: before I start my whine!! I have been an RN for about a year and a half & I am really miserable. I have had three positions in this time period:the first one was in a Birthing Center and the other nurses were not having a new grad so this along with other things (very insecure & not greatly skilled)= failed probationary period. Job 2 Oncology, I gave this position up ( preceptor worked 6 twelve hr shifts in a row) I just couldn't do it. Position 3 Charge Nurse PRN in a skilled wing in long term care & rehab. center this position was not great for me either as I did not have the skills that I needed, I worked when asked but after they hired someone full time (no insurance provided so I was not interested) no more calls for me. I have now been looking for a position for the last 3 months with no luck, I will get interviews then when they check my references someone must be lowering the boom on me. I only quit one position and the other was pretty much temporary (long term care)so I dont understand what is the problem. I really need to get to the bottom of this bad work reference thing & try to fix it. I have went to school for four years to get this degree & ran it in the ground in less than 2 years. Oh yeah, I have been a housewife & Mom for most of my life so I have very little work experience. Thank ya'll for listening & if you can help, please do.....

Lesi RN

Hello Lesi! Welcome aboard here!

Don't give up applying for nursing jobs. The right employer will give you a chance, and precept you more kindly than the one you worked for in the past. Believe in yourself and what you as a person can bring to healthcare. Stay plugged in here at allnurses....read the "General Nursing Discussion" forum regularly and you'll learn a lot from the nurses who post there about nursing in general, and how to conquer your fears as a fairly new nurse. I wish you all the best!

Lesi - first, you need to stop and take inventory of what it is that you want to do in nursing. Nursing presents a lot of choices for new graduates as well as experienced nurses. As a new graduate, you need to determine why you got into nursing and where your passions are. I think once you can discover this, perhaps you will be able to settle yourself in a position.

The first step in securing another position is to recognize that failures in the past are only building blocks to a better future. Once you have determined where in nursing you belong .... apply for those jobs that you think you can be successful with. During the application process, it is important for you to be honest with the nurse manager that will be interviewing you. Let her/him know that you have struggled in the past with knowing exactly where you belong. Let them know that you have taken inventory of your abilities and your passion and that you now know where it is that you want to work and your plan to stay for at least a minimum period of time (at least one year).

As a nurse manager myself, I would be more inclined to hire you than I would someone that was not truthful with me. Beginning a career in nursing can be tough . There are many fears that we have and many things that we do not know. Please do not take this first year as a personal failure, rather, take it as a learning experience and learn from it.

Most of all, keep your head up and remember you have friends here . Come back and visit with us and let us know how you are doing.