Burnout after 1 year?!?

[S_q_u_i_r_e_l]

Hello to my fellow brothers/sisters! I need some insight and encouragement (if any of you have any spare energy to give...true story)

Backstory:

I am 26 years old and have been working as a full-time RN for a year now; the last 6 months I have also been doing my BSN program online (also full-time). Before I passed my NCLEX I was in school/working for 4 years (this journey began when I was 21).

After working for a year as an RN, and now onto my second job as a clinic nurse/circulation OR nurse for a cosmetic surgeon, I am finding myself to be COMPLETELY fried and burnt out. I am one of 2 nurses there, so support is lacking...In the past 5 years of school/work I have taken a week at a time, here and there, to take a road trip and get away; some relief was offered, but nothing that would last for long. There have also been a few deaths in the family and other life-related struggles that everyone goes through. I am at the point now where I question (severely) if this is where I am supposed to be. I dread going to work every day, I cry at least every other day, my migraines are coming back, and I am flat-out tired. The thought of work or school is absolutely repulsive and makes my stomach churn.

That being said, I love working with my patients; but I know that I am completely drained at this point. A week is not enough time to re-charge. I am thinking of going back to being a server while I complete my BSN degree this year.

End Goal:

I would love to do national/international travel nursing, but the roadblock I continue to run into is that agencies require 1-2 yrs in an acute care hospital. I feel trapped at this point, as the hospitals around here are not hiring unless one has a BSN (I have my ADN). I honestly do not feel as though I could make it another year (to finish my BSN)...hell, I hardly feel like I can make it another week!

Has anyone else gone through something similar? I wonder if this is a normal response or if I am weak or not cut out for this?

Thanks for reading!

[Marshall1]

I have worked in MD offices in the past..they are more stressful than a lot of nurses realize..most think of the M-F no weekend/holiday/nights/call but I can say that the culture/work environment and yes, the schedule, is not for me and I would not work in an MD office type setting again unless it was my only option.. It sounds like this may be the case for you - nursing not being the problem so much but the type of nursing....think about home health, hospice, LTC...

[jk2185, BSN, RN]

Sounds like an existential crisis. I can relate. Here's my question....if money were no object, what would you do with your life (for work especially)? and I don't mean buy a yacht and move to the Hamptons, i mean realistically.

[Soliloquy, MSN, APRN, NP]

Sounds like an existential crisis. I can relate. Here's my question....if money were no object, what would you do with your life (for work especially)? and I don't mean buy a yacht and move to the Hamptons, i mean realistically.

ooo good question! Psychotherapist. I'd love to get my masters to become a counselor in a nice private practice!