Just finished first year... asked to redo orientation

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I just completed my first year on my floor and I like working as nurse. I like the hours, I LOVE LOVE LOVE my patients, I get along with my coworkers and I thought I was doing better. All through nursing school, I felt discouraged because I was just not grasping the concepts. I almost did not want to be a nurse post NCLEX because I foresaw an imposable struggle with becoming a good nurse.

I am pretty sure I have ADHD. I've never been diagnosed but I have crippling fatigue and horrid brain fog that gets incredibly strong every time I step on the unit. It has been hard to develop as a nurse because I feel like I am constantly struggling just to physically get through the day let alone pick up and retain new concepts. My memory and attention span and work is about 35 seconds and it makes it really hard.

So I am now being asked to redo orientation. I am told that I am forgetting lots of small tasks that can add up to a big deal one day. I appreciate my managements willingness to work with me and am hoping to conquer this fatigue issue and start developing as a nurse.

Are there any suggestions out there? My game plan is to see a psychologist and try to find a treatment plan for this add/brain fog/fatigue because I feel like I would have much greater odds to develop. Outside of that I am hoping for the best but planning for the worst.

I work on a Med/Surg floor and the one thing that I can say I am gifted at is starting IV's

It's not medical advice to recommend that neuropsych eval. Call your psychologist and tell him/her that you can't wait until February, and why, and beg for an earlier appt with the neuropsych. These specialists are extremely helpful about pinpointing deficits and suggesting compensatory actions/meds-- you owe it to yourself to clear this up stat. If your insurance balks or won't pay for it, pay for it yourself and when you get a specific dx, you can use it to get reimbursed. You really don't have any time to waste here.

In case anyone was interested to hear how this story ended... here is the tale. I continued to be hazed and bullied on my unit (not that I was perfect in my practice... far from it) until I had finally had enough. I pulled my managment aside and said "I have had enough of you guys pushing me around and only telling me what a bad nurse I am; I don't expect you to not hold me accountable for my mistakes but I do expect to be treated with some respect". They argued, so I stood up and said "okay, thank you so much for the job, I have loved working here by I resign. I can be gone in two weeks". Suddenly they sprang up and said "well wait! don't do anything rash" so we sat down and I got them to agree to back off me.

The next day, Noticed something just wasn't right with my patient so I went to my charge nurse (one of my manager nurses who was bullying me) and her words were "oh, don't worry about it, she is probaly faking". So i went over her head to the doctor and, one thing lead to another, we got a stat CT and the pt was having a hemmoragic stroke. My management actually appologized to me after that.

In the end, I ended up changing units and I now work in Peds. I am still developing and have a long way to go but I am able to think much clearly when I am not under constant stress and negative feedback.

Specializes in psychiatric.

I have had the same experience as you with the brain fog and fatigue. After years of trying everything I figured out that it was my diet. When I eat lots of carbs and bad ones at that I am exhausted. When I limit the simple carbs and eat more pure protien like chicken fish and red meat I have tons of energy. I am not a skinny girl and I enjoy food a lot, I don't rule anything out! But diet is definitly the key to my energy and thinking. Just my experience and something to think about. Also, excellent job standing up for yourself and finding a different niche!

Specializes in Critical Care, Postpartum.

OP, from your original posting you stated you got along with your coworkers. And the truth was you were being bullied at work. That environment alone would cause added stress and anxiety making it difficult to function. Happy that you were able to move to a different unit and apparently the better environment helped to lessen the "brain fog."

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People on my unit were very friendly and liked me on a personal level but I had a few people who were really making things hard for me behind my back. It was one of my proudest moments finally standing up to them because, in the end, I was never a bad nurse. I just needed to have people believe in me and build me up a little bit.

One thing that really helped my brain fog was starting a whole food smoothie regimen in the morning. I wake up and blend together Avacado, greens, fruit and chia seeds and drink it down at work. It really helped to improve my mental clarity. I do need to start cutting out simple carbs and eat more protien though.

People on my unit were very friendly and liked me on a personal level but I had a few people who were really making things hard for me behind my back. It was one of my proudest moments finally standing up to them because, in the end, I was never a bad nurse. I just needed to have people believe in me and build me up a little bit.

One thing that really helped my brain fog was starting a whole food smoothie regimen in the morning. I wake up and blend together Avacado, greens, fruit and chia seeds and drink it down at work. It really helped to improve my mental clarity. I do need to start cutting out simple carbs and eat more protien though.

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