How to not look so nervous at clinical

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I wear my emotions on my face--and have been informed that I cannot look nervous or unsure of myself at clinical--or I will fail clinical. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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Specializes in med surg home care PEDS.
I wear my emotions on my face--and have been informed that I cannot look nervous or unsure of myself at clinical--or I will fail clinical. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Remember back when you were a kid and you would play/imagine you were a nurse, doctor, mother, cop, cowboy etc. You would just go right into it how much did you really know about being any of those things, Well do the same at clinical visualize, think positive, you are here to learn, be prepared read over your assignment, know you procedures in your head, ask for tips from the professor and don't be afraid to try something new, jump right in, YOU CAN DO THIS>

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Specializes in None.
I wear my emotions on my face--and have been informed that I cannot look nervous or unsure of myself at clinical--or I will fail clinical. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Me and you must be kindred spirits, I have the same problem. I start my first clinical on Thursday, what about you?:yeah:

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Specializes in Ortho, Neuro, Detox, Tele.

Remember, all the world is a stage...and you are always on. Especially at clinicals. Try not to be detatched...but understand that you have to be "professional". Good luck!

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Specializes in ED.

ME TOO! I literally feel like the deer caught in headlights. So you are not alone! :) I got over it after the first hour or so, but I'm sure its gonna come back next time. We'll get through it!!! Don't worry.

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Specializes in CDI Supervisor; Formerly NICU.

Stop doing it.

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An old AA/NA adage: Fake it till you make it...

Your confidence will build as you overcome the obstacles.

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One suggestion is to remember that it's okay to not to know what to do all the time. Your instructor may give the impression that you're supposed to know everything backwards and forwards but there is only so much you can master at any one time. If you are studying, getting assistance when you have questions, looking things up as you go, there's simply not more you can do. If it's not enough, so be it. Do your best and leave the rest up to God or universe or whatever you might put your faith in.

Worst case, your instructor fails you. Does that mean you are hopeless? No! Maybe your instructor isn't good at working with nervousness but others are and you just had bad luck. Or maybe you DO need to learn to be more comfortable working with patients... no problem... get a job volunteering or as a nursing assistant... or take a speech class! That can be useful to help get over performance anxiety.

Another thing to remember is that no matter how clueless you feel, you're not going to kill anyone! You're not, are you?! You're not because you will be careful!! Your nervousness shows that you aren't the type who tends to act before thinking. You're not going to infuse cleaning fluid into someone's intravenous line!!!

If you make the usual kind of mistake, what's important is admitting it and taking care of it. The usual kind of mistake? Administering a medication that had already been given earlier. Forgetting to hold the food tray for someone who's supposed to be NPO for a test. If these types of things happen a few times in your time as a student, it doesn't mean you are doomed. They are problems, but not the end of the world as long as they are aberrations and not continuing problems.

As long as you are careful, hard-working, and responsible, you won't hurt anyone in any significant way. You might not give an injection perfectly and it hurts more than it should. You might make a patient wait a bit longer for their pain meds while you triple check everything.

Nurses and nursing students through the years have made it through this learning phase without causing permanent damage. You're no worse than they are. Remember that.

So you can smile at your patients with the confidence that you WILL take good care of them!!

Best wishes to you!

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I graduate in December and I remember like yesterday how nervous I was my first clinical ( can we say ready to pass out?). I am still nervous with each new challenge or situation that comes my way. Reading these posts reminded me that I think I have again begun to get that deer in the headlights look ( when speaking with my instructors). Now that look is based more on "OMG what do they want from me?" rather than on being unsure of myself re patient care.

When it comes to patients I have always tried to remind myself that I could be in their shoes and what I would want most to make me feel secure is a smile, compassion, honesty, and for noone to say OOPS! So if you take vitals and can't do it as quickly as you would like etc., remind yourself you are still learning ( your patients know you are a student also). Don't let it add to your anxiety, just do what you need to do and if someone asks a question you don't have an answer for ( be it instructor, patient, staff) tell them you are not sure, but will find the information.:typing

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Specializes in med/surg, telemetry, IV therapy, mgmt.

Two words: good acting.

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