Ever felt like a MORON

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Have you ever felt like a moron? (in clinical or in class)

This is my first post thus new to this site and forum.

It would be nice if we could share the times where we felt about ½ inch tall. Although we nursing students are intelligent, there are times when we have... um... brain flatulence.

Last night was my first clinical of the summer semester. My clinical instructor said, "follow you RN around every where". We had five patient to care for during the night. My RN asked me to d/c a foley then report back to the nursing station to find her. Well, I did... I saw her and followed her, as instructed .... STRAIGHT INTO THE BATHROOM...I looked around to make sure my clinical instructor was not watching me... and of course she was! my clinical instructor was nearly on the floor laughing at me so bad that she nearly urinated on herself. She said, "I did not mean follow her EVERY where.". Every time I would pass by her, she would start to laugh.

:imbar

I have no idea how I am going to face my instructor or the nurse next week.

:chair:

Specializes in Utilization Management.

My moron moment? How about a moron period?

It took 5 months for me to realize that I had been calling coworker Kelly "Lynn" and coworker Lynn, "Kelly."

No particular reason, just did.

I scare myself sometimes..... :uhoh21:

You're Hilarious! I've had the same exact response before, except I had been out of nursing school quite a while! Like having a very intimidating cardiologist staring and fuming at you while you try to set up the balloon pump the frist time by yourself, and everything you ever know just flew out of your head!! And the patient is critical! When your anxiety is high enough, the brain just shuts down!

my moron moment: LAST day of clinical recently. I am feeling really good. Have hung tons of IVPB's, done lots of IV bag changes...you can see where this is going....

Get into the room, I bring my instructor along because I am just a little fuzzy about the details and even tho I figured it would come to me as I went, I wanted her there.

Instructor standing in doorway, arms crossed staring at me.

Patient in chair, coughing, looking at me.

And me, the confident SN. One bag of LRS, one 50 mL bag saline/meds...staring at that IV pump like it was from another planet.

What button? What port? What freaking bag? What is the principle of gravity again?

Oh it was TERRIBLE :smackingf :smackingf How could I forget this?

Well, she ended up talking me thru the whole darn thing and it was surreal. At one point I was crouched down in front of the machine staring at it. Trying not to vomit. Hoping I would faint so it at least wouldn't be my fault for totatlly compeltely blanking out. The more she told me what to do, the worse I got. Red blotchy face, shaking hands...wow. By the time I had mistaken which bag needed to be higher I thought it was over for me and that I would fail the whole semester. I think my life went by my eyes a bit there.

Later I went to the instructor and told her I was SO SORRY. I had completely forgotten every single thing I'd learned. She said other people blank out too...but not quite as much and as dramatically as I did! :)

Anyway, I went back a while later, hung the next IVPB without a hitch.

But boy, I was CONVINCED I had lost my mind!

Specializes in Emergency & Trauma/Adult ICU.

Too many moron moments to count ... :rolleyes:

But there was the time with the IV tubing that inexplicably sprang to life and gave me, my patient, her husband & the MD a nice, cold shower of saline ... :imbar :selfbonk:

That went over well ... :rotfl:

Welcome to allnurses :)

Specializes in CCU, MICU, Tele, L&D.
If I had a nickel for every moron moment i've had...well, i would've been able to retire at 23... :chuckle :chuckle

one such moment was when i mixed up two patients doctor's orders, went into one patient's room and went on and on about how great it was that he wouldn't have to drag around his IV pole....the IV was going to get D/C'ed.....yup, wrong patient....

poor guy! :imbar

when my instructor discovered this mistake and questioned me about it i could feel my face getting redder and redder. i was shaking, sweating..the whole nine yards. i felt like such an idiot... :o

:rotfl: :rotfl: thanks, i needed that one. so easily i can see myself in ur shoes. so did u d/c the iv?

love it! cute!

Specializes in CCU, MICU, Tele, L&D.
My moron moment? How about a moron period?

It took 5 months for me to realize that I had been calling coworker Kelly "Lynn" and coworker Lynn, "Kelly."

No particular reason, just did.

I scare myself sometimes..... :uhoh21:

at least the names where right. :idea: :confused:

Specializes in CCU, MICU, Tele, L&D.
You don't mention if you're male or female, but either way, they won't forget you! :)

OMG lol ... i'm a female thank God, b/c the RN was female

My moron moment? How about a moron period?

It took 5 months for me to realize that I had been calling coworker Kelly "Lynn" and coworker Lynn, "Kelly."

No particular reason, just did.

I scare myself sometimes..... :uhoh21:

Well, shame on them for not correcting you!

Specializes in Med-Surg.

Just finished my first year of nursing school. Took a CNA class prior to that and throughout the CNA class and clinical and almost my entire first year of nursing school (complete with clinical and lab) I never once had a problem taking a BP. In my last lab session in the middle of a competency scenario I proceded to put the cuff on wrong and blow it up wrong. I had to take it off, squeeze the air out, and put it on again... but I did it wrong again! and again! and again! I got more nervous and flustered with every screwed up attempt. My instructor (playing the voice of my patient) is saying... "What's wrong, how long have you been a nurse?!" I'm playing it down with, "Oh It's a cuff I'm not used to, sorry!" but I finally had to set it aside and say, "Let's come back to that." When I did come back to that my instructor (again, as the patient) is like, "Oh no, not THAT again!" Thank god I got it on right that time. I have never felt like more of a moron!!!! I left the simulation room to confess my humiliation to my classmates and had one gal reassure me that she had done the exact same thing in clinical and knew exactly how stupid I felt, and she used to be an MA. We all have idiotic moments, that's why sharing them is so good, we begin to understand how universal it is!

Specializes in ER.

Too many moments to count!!!!

Funny one though! I was working with a psych patient who was very aggitated, and talking/joking around was helping her calm down and not be so anxious. She had OD'd, so of course she was on monitors, IVs, you name it. I was trying to help her get more comfortable in the bed, and I made the joking remark, "no wonder you're so uncomfortable - they have you all tied up with these wires and tubes!" She just gave me this "go f*** yourself" look, and I turned bright red as I suddenly remembered that she was handcuffed to the bedrail!!!! (arrested for stabbing her bf who was trying to keep her from ODing). The officer watching her was laughing so hard he had to step out of the room.

Some days, I think I should just start of by saying, "Hi, my name is DOH!!!! and I'm going to be making an a** out of myself today! How are you feeling?"

One more - klutz that I am, this has happened multiple times! After unhooking BP cuff, O2 monitor, and moving IV pole out of the way to help pt ambulate to the restroom, I say, let me move this BP stand out of the way so you don't trip on it, okay? I move the BP stand (ours are the automatic ones on roller wheels that can go anywhere you need them), grab an arm, get pt out of bed and standing - then proceed to back right into said BP stand, trip, and end up giving said pt a big hug. Most memorable pt, middle aged gentleman very sweet, distinguished, wife by his side, says with a twinkle in his eye, "honey, if I knew I was going to get such a warm welcome, I would have come here much sooner!" (His wife had been begging him to get his dizzy spells checked out for months!) :rotfl: :rotfl:

Keep 'em coming folks - I love knowing that I'm not the only one out there!

Specializes in cardiac/education.

OMG, I am not even in nursing school yet and I have already had these moments!!

CNA classes.......tying the knot onto the bed for patient wrist restraints. You know, that weird break-free knot. Could not get it for the life of me! The instructor came over and stayed watching.:stone :angryfire She seriously was going to stay there until I got it. With each try, I could feel my face getting hotter and hotter, my heart rate speeding up, sweat pouring off. Everyone else got it on the second or third try and I kid you not, it took me, like 20 times! I also will never forget my fellow classmate who I barely knew who saw my embarrassment and walked me through all twenty times until I nailed it for the instructor. (May God bless her)

Of course, I forgot how to tie the knot as soon as I walked out of clinicals.:rotfl:

I thought, "Boy, if I can't even tie a simple knot, how in the world do I expect to succeed in nursing???"

I hope all my future clinical experiences don't go that way!:rolleyes:

Don't worry about it. Everyone is a moron sometimes.:chuckle

Specializes in Community Health Nurse.

I've done many more "moron" things in my personal life than in nursing, but yes...we all do moron things in our professional lives that make us feel a half inch tall (or short). :rotfl:

Don't beat yourself up over those "moron moments" though. Even after you are a "real nurse", you will still have those on occasion. :)

:balloons: By the way.......Welcome to all the new Allnurses members posting on this thread! :)

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