confused, stressed and scared.

webmansx, ASN, RN · May 14, 2010

Relax. Deep breathing, lots of h20. This is very normal for a new RN.

You JUST finished orientation, give yourself a break. You will feel like this for the next 6 months to two years. Just take it one day at a time.

dfs1961 · May 15, 2010

What you are feeling is completely normal and expected! I have been a nurse for 2 and 1/2 years and I still get scared every shift. I have come along way and I am a great floor nurse - I can handle 5 busy patients, admissions and discharges, but if I have a patient that is really sick - I mean desating, tacky/brady, sob, cp - I get scared and nervous and still don't always know what to do. I was charge nurse for the 1st time the other day and I felt like a fraud because seriously, I don't know what to do in difficult situations.

Give yourself some time. I have found that I learn the most when in situations that I am anxious about. And really, it is never as hard as I think it is going to be and I am always glad that I stayed in the situation to figure out what the solution is.

My best advice - take a deep breath, think things through logically and ask a seasoned nurse (who is willing to help and won't rat you out) for assistance.

mightymitern · May 18, 2010

don't ever be ashamed or embarrassed to ask questions, That is how we learn. I have benn working for only 1 year on a M/S tele floor and ask questions every day, especially if I have not done a procedure. Many nurses would rather you say... " I've never done this would you be willing to come into the room with me and walk me through it". I find that line good. Don't get frustrated you will get it. I think every nurse gets a bit scared sometimes because we are the ones at the bedside, and we deal with different situations each day. Good luck you are a good nurse by admitting you're scared in the first place.

noreenl · May 19, 2010

Here's what I have been doing when I come across something new i take notes at work ( without HIPAA violations) and i look it up at home or on sites like this one and then add it to my Looseleaf notebook library library that I have divided by body system! this way I will have my own reference library to fall back on.

Neferet · May 20, 2010

ConfusedRN123,

I was in your shoes, two years ago. Just take a deep breath. Starting a foley and taking out stitches and staples are the least of your worries. I used to be sooo stressed over those procedures, but after I watch someone do them, and have done them myself, they were sooo simple! Don't be afraid to use every chance you get to watch someone perform a procedure or do it yourself! I think the hardest thing is the staff. If you have great co-workers that are willing to help, even if you think they think you're stupid, you can do it! It takes team work. Of course people will be annoyed if you ask them to show you how to do one thing many times, that's why you get your paper and pen out and write notes for yourself. Show them that you're a fast learner, and also that you're thankful that they could be of good help to you. Basically, just get out your procedures book, read through what it says on a procedure and make sure you understand, and then get your materials ready, grab a co-worker and go do it! My first 6 months was like that too. I always wondered why I always came home late. When I started my job, I was dead scared of starting IVs and hanging them. But now I start IVs every day, and I love doing the IV stuff! It just takes practice, practice, practice....and pretty soon, you'll know more than others. I am still inexperienced in things like trachs, EKGs, tubes, and wound vacs, because we don't have those much on our floor. Sit down, and make sure you have a plan before you go off to work. Make sure you have time management down. Do things right the first time, so you won't have to go back and fix it again. One thing that is helping me right now is to do something when I see it. Get it done now if I have time, so that I won't be stuck doing it later. Also try to bunch all the things you need to do together in groups. For example, you can bunch room 27's pain meds, scheduled meds, and wound care together so you won't have to go back at a different time.

I've learned that I'm not like those geniuses in my class. There were those students that seemed like they knew everything, and some of them sat around bored while I was running by butt off. They caught on easily and were so confident. But I'm not like that. And I can't be confident just for the sake of being confident. That's when I learned that I'm really a hands on person. I need to do things and evaluated them, practice them in order to remember. I'm very meticulous, and like being thorough in my chartings, procedures and assessments. And that's why I spend more time staying behind. But with time it will get easier and easier.

What helped me is to differentiate between what's important and what's not. Prioritize. Throw out excess information that you don't need, and keep what's important. And then delegation. Things that you can have others do, delegate it to others.

And you're not supposed to know everything! For the first one year, you'll be overloaded with so much information, you'd think your brain will not hold. But more and more, you'll learn them, and erase them out of your notes.

It's better to be honest and say, "I need help doing this, I've never done it before." Than to pretend you've done it before, and make a fool out of yourself.

Take a deep breath, and keep on fighting. Tell yourself that you worked hard to get where you're at and you won't quit. Tomorrow is another day, another challenge.

Do some relaxation and breathing excercises! And pat yourself in the back after you've succeeded doing anything! Give yourself some credit!

Chelle79 · May 21, 2010

ConfusedRN....You sound so much like me that I have to tell you, reading your message gave me a slight sign of relief. It wasn't long ago that I myself posted a message on this site asking for advice just like you. I graduated from nursing school last May and put off finding a job because I was full term pregnant at that time. I finally started my career in November (yes JUST 6 months ago).

Everyday I would drive to work and my stomach would just be turning in knots and I would feel so nauseated. There were days I would leave work and the moment I got to my car I would just start crying and continue crying until I got home (mind you I work 40 minutes away). I hated every aspect of my job and I never wanted to return. I would search the newspaper everyday for something better, perhaps a doctors office. I had worked in a doctors office for 5 yrs as a medical assistant and was so use to having that quality time with my patients. I got to my med-surg unit and I felt like I was robbing my patients of that time. We can hold up to 40 patients on our floor and I have had as many as 8 at a time....talk about pulling out my hair. On top of that I stressed over the fact that 5 of those beds are specifically for prisoners who are serving life sentences for murder. My stomach turned just walking into those rooms knowing that at any moment anything could happen regardless whether there was a guard standing there or not. Needless to say, I AM STILL in my same position and I have to tell you it HAS gotten much better. I ask a TON of questions still and there are times I can't get my IV's started and I have to ask someone else to try for me, but than I remind myself that everyone started out where I am and if I just give up I will never get to where they are. I have been offered a job in a psych unit where I won't necessarily have to deal with all these complicated skills daily but after 6 months I have decided that I don't want to lose these skills I am learning on a daily basis.

Hang in there because I know EXACTLY how you are feeling. I would always tell myself just get to the next month. When I hit my 6 month mark I started to panic because I can now get pulled to other units and the first time they pulled me they sent me to CCU of all places. But I got through it and you will find that MOST nurses will help you out and walk you through things. And for those who don't they can be a good reminder of how you DON'T want to me when you are well on your way and someone needs YOUR help. :) Take a deep breath each and every day, tell yourself that you are only ONE person and can only do so much in your 12 hour shift, and you are part of a TEAM!!!

renr_j · May 31, 2010

i never thought joining allnurses.com can be this great. i just started my work as a company nurse. now everyday seems to pull me down deeper of fear and doubts about myself. i keep on asking myself if this is where i should be. i want to be helpful and productive for all the patients that comes in but there are still things that i dont know and are not really particular. all this things piles up in my head and i cant even think straight. unlike you, most of the time it is my decisions and actions that are being done in the clinic cause we only have 1 nurse per 12 hrs shift. and it kills me just thinking of the fact that we can never know what will happen. im starting to lose hope and find another job away from nursing when ive read this. now maybe i'd start lifting myself up. and i guess the best thing we can do right now is to equip ourselves with alot of gutts and knowledge. just like what i do now. thanks for posting this. its really of great help