Hitting the wall.

itsmejuli · Apr 2, 2010

When I get the feeling of being overwhelmed I find something relaxing to ease my mind. This can be listening something relaxing like a hypnotic/meditative cd, a walk in the park or I can sit in my backyard, listen to the birds and contemplate with the Buddha in my garden.

If I'm feeling anxious/antsy/manic and my brain is spinning circles and going nowhere I get on my treadmill with some fast music and work my tail off for 1/2 hour. This helps me regain control of my mind and be able to concentrate.

Find yourself something to distract you from your anxiety and get in the habit of doing whatever it is that helps you.

You'll get your careplan done by five, you just have to gain control of your mind.

Boog'sCRRN246, RN · Apr 2, 2010

I know where you're coming from! I hit my Wall a few weeks ago. I'm a LPN in an accelerated transition program (meaning we've done peds, OB, and psych, each covered in four weeks with 3 weeks of clinicals per topic :uhoh3: ). It's extremely overwhelming and the paperwork that goes along with each clinical is 15-20 pages. I'm on spring break right now, but we go back Monday and I start clinicals that evening, have a quiz, and on Thursday we've got a test that covers 43 chapters of psych and OB.

Your instructor was right, though. As long as your standards of care and clinical work are up to par, you can relax with theory! I've found studying for theory, then seeing it put into action during clinicals is what makes things stick for me.

dudette10, MSN, RN · Apr 2, 2010

Thank you so much for responding. It's nice to know that you're not alone in this journey and there are ways to make it through.

HyperSaurus, RN, BSN · Apr 2, 2010

When I gave overly stressed like this I either take a nap or play Pokemon. Some form of game where there's not a whole lot of thinking involved.

hikernurse · Apr 3, 2010

I found NS to be much easier, with the added benefit of not always being sick, when I set a firm bedtime. I'd study as hard as I could then at 2200 I would stop and put all my books away (in the other room). I'd read for half an hour, then lights out.

When I got overwhelmed I would spend 20 minutes studying, then 20 minutes in mindless activity--tidying up, washing dishes, playing a game. I would alternate my twenty minute segments and it really helped with retention.

Hugs, Dudette. NS is hard but at least you've got ten weeks down :). We've been where you are; it's not easy, but you can do it!!!

Do-over, ASN, RN · Apr 3, 2010

I've hit a wall also, with only a few weeks left until I am actually finished with nursing school... I just keep putting one foot in front of the other... And, I try to get all the sleep I can. It really does help. Also, I think if I had taken better care of myself (eating right, exercising) I'd feel better.

The funny thing is, I am in a great clinical and am enjoying the topics this rotation - I am simply exhausted. I think 2 years of high anxiety is starting to catch up to me! I tell myself, like the Nike commercials, to "just do it".

Hang in there, it will go by fast - even though I know it doesn't seem that way now!

karraj123 · Apr 3, 2010

My heart goes out to you!! I just graduated from my LPN program and start an RN transition program in the Fall. I hit my wall during my second quarter, summer quarter. 17 credits in 7 weeks plus my first quarter in a hospital clinical setting with a clinical instructor from HELL!!!! Clinical was every Monday and Tuesday from 2pm until 11pm with a 30 minute commute each way. I would finally get to bed around 1am after trying to unwind only to be up by 6am to study prior to clinical or attend class from 7am to 5pm the rest of the week. A minimum of 3 exams each week and this was the first quarter of both med/surg and Pharm. So I understand, believe me :)

You will get through this!! I am an admitted overachiever :) I enjoy getting great grades, study probably way too much, and expect a lot of myself because I know I'm capable of doing well.

My cousin who is a surgeon told me during second quarter, after I called her bawling...She said "this is a marathon and you are going at a sprinter's pace!" So true!! I felt so burnt out after devoting 18-20 hours a day to school in some way. I MADE myself relax, watch a movie, go to dinner with friends and I really tried to enjoy it and not feel guilty, like I should be studying :)

Continue to put your head down, focus, and keep your eyes on the prize my friend! Best of luck to you, you will do GREAT!!! :)

dudette10, MSN, RN · Apr 3, 2010

You guys are really great! Thank you so, so much!

jsano19 · Apr 3, 2010

I think pretty much everyone here understands the concept of hitting the wall during nursing school (and if they don't, they either haven't hit it yet, or are lying!) Not saying that to be rude, it's just one of those things that happens to all of us!

I will tell you, I was a Computer Engineer for a few years before I decided to transfer over to the Nursing profession. My mother is a nursing instructor, so I heard the whole time during my prereqs "You are going to hit a wall at some point, but just keep going, you'll make it through, trust me." Pffft, wall, come on now, I've been to Engineering school and then a Master's program with a 3.8 GPA, I 4.0'd all my prereqs, I don't hit walls. But, guess what, I did! Not only is Nursing a completely different beast than computer stuff, but I am also a male nurse, so the transition for me from a male dominated program to a female dominated one was waaaayyyy different than I had ever expected. I didn't have the male comradery that I was used to on top of having to think about everything in a completely different way than I previously had. I hit the wall about 3/4ths of the way through my first semester of my accelerated program, and then again in my very last semester. The wall I hit in my first semester, I was about to quit. I had told myself "if I fail any of these classes, I'm done, nursing must not be for me." And I was only telling myself that because it gave me a goal to actually finish the semester, had I not thought about it that way, I would have just dropped out there on the spot, but I figured if I made a deal with myself that I had to see what my grades were before I made any decisions, then I could at least complete one semester. Well, somehow I managed to get to the end of the semester (I swear that I blinked my eyes and it was finals week already), and my grades came back, and I had passed. Now, had I actually failed a class, I'm not sure I would have quit on the spot, but even looking at those passing grades, I wasn't sure if I was still going to pursue the next semester or not. A few weeks of break and I decided, okay, lets give this a go again, and strangely, just the felling of accomplishment for having finished that first semester made me more confident in my second semester. I started understanding the clinical scene more, some of the concepts started to come easier because I was less stressed about it in my mind.

Then came the last semester. This was a different wall. The wall of "too much stuff to do and definately not enough time." There were so many papers, tests, clinicals, precepting, etc. I think I wrote approximately 90 pages of papers (and that's just major papers, not counting clinical logs or care plans) during my last semester, including a senior project and presentation. This wall is slightly different than the first, but a wall at the same time. The nice thing about this wall is that in your last semester, you can actually see the light at the end of the tunnel. What would be the point of giving up now, so close to the end! I can't exactly tell you what made me actually get through the walls, but somehow I did. I graduated in December!

The point of the story I'm telling here is that I didn't believe anyone when they told me I'd hit a wall during nursing school and I hit 2. But, just because you hit a wall, doesn't mean you can't pick at it little by little to eventually make it crumble below your feet and be able to walk right past it! Hang in there, you've got this!

dudette10, MSN, RN · Apr 3, 2010

I hit the wall about 3/4ths of the way through my first semester of my accelerated program, and then again in my very last semester. The wall I hit in my first semester, I was about to quit. I had told myself "if I fail any of these classes, I'm done, nursing must not be for me." And I was only telling myself that because it gave me a goal to actually finish the semester, had I not thought about it that way, I would have just dropped out there on the spot, but I figured if I made a deal with myself that I had to see what my grades were before I made any decisions, then I could at least complete one semester. Well, somehow I managed to get to the end of the semester (I swear that I blinked my eyes and it was finals week already), and my grades came back, and I had passed. ...
The point of the story I'm telling here is that I didn't believe anyone when they told me I'd hit a wall during nursing school and I hit 2. But, just because you hit a wall, doesn't mean you can't pick at it little by little to eventually make it crumble below your feet and be able to walk right past it! Hang in there, you've got this!

It's weird that I read this on this day. It's perfectly on point.

Just got back my score from a first test in the class that I mentioned above...the one that would be a struggle to bring up. Boy, will it EVER be a struggle to bring it up. I barely passed it. Straight A's in pre-reqs and block 1...down the tubes block 2. Wow.

Being the Type A personality I am, this is a kick in the gut. It also tells me that The Wall is very real (I posted this thread before I found out my grade), and I need to figure out a way to work around it.

That's all there is to it. It must be done.

Thanks for your story! :)

RNMeg · Apr 4, 2010

I hit the wall. I'm there, right now. I have 4 weeks until graduation, and one enormous group project standing in my way. I should be working on it right now, but instead I'm browsing allnurses and hoping if I ignore it long enough, it will go away But I know, I have to get through it, one day at a time. I didn't come this far to give up now.