ICU to OB--new grad

Semper_Gumby · Apr 8, 2017

Are you off orientation and on your own yet?

For what it's worth, I went into newborn nursery as a new grad and it took months before I started to feel comfortable there. I can only imagine how long it might take for a specialty like ICU. I am sure whatever's going on in your personal life is not helping the situation but my first inclination is that, unless you are expected to do things that are extremely unsafe (I hope not!), try to stick it out a couple years. It takes time to transition from being a new grad into being a competent nurse and to feel like you know what you're doing. I've heard from several people in ICU environments, particularly, that they felt nervous/anxious to the point of feeling sick before each shift and would have to give themselves "pep talks" to be able to go in and do their job, so I think what you are feeling is pretty normal.

I recently tried to move from newborn nursery into a maternity (mother-baby and antepartum) unit and in a lot of ways felt like a new grad all over again! It would have helped me to go into an adult specialty out of school so that I'd have that foundation to fall back on in case of moving and having difficulty finding work (which was my situation when I took this last job). Whenever you do end up moving into OB nursing, you will probably have some of that feeling too! But for now--my advice is to focus on learning your current job, get comfortable (or reasonably so) with it, and once you've got a couple years under you (or at least a year), start looking at your next step.

Good luck!

EastCoRN · Apr 8, 2017

Thanks so much! Yes off of orientation about a month and a half. I appreciate your advice.

Semper_Gumby · Apr 9, 2017

No problem. :) Hope it was helpful.

Ruby Vee, BSN · Apr 9, 2017

Hello all! Im a new grad nurse in the MICU and was wondering if I made the right decision. I know all these feelings are normal and I've only been working since December I was just hoping for some advice going forward. I wouldn't leave before the year is up but honestly sometimes it's so bad I feel devastated. I can't bear to even say it out loud. Every time I come to work I basically make myself sick. It's not a happy/good time in my life currently (which is hard for me because I'm a happy person). I thought this was my dream job. I always loved maternity but feared that coming straight out of school to maternity it'd be difficult to be well rounded because it's such a specific specialty. Also, I recognize that ICU is a speciality but the thinking definitely more inclined towards the ICU preparing you for anything. Is this the blues? Should I give myself more time? Should I actively look into maternity starting now or focus on just being in this moment? I'd appreciate any advice. Thank you.

ICU isn't the specialty that "prepares you for anything." That would be Med/Surg. However, I doubt what you're feeling has anything to do with where you're working. You've been a nurse for what? Four months? Five months? Are you still on orientation, or are you on your own now?

The first year of nursing is very, very difficult -- almost everyone hates their first job. We all went through it -- crying on the way to work because we know it's going to be awful, crying in the bathroom at work, crying on the way home because it WAS awful. WE stress about work when we're at home, can't sleep before a shift and are so stressed out we make ourselves sick. We hate our jobs, we're sure our co-workers hate us (and sometimes they don't really like us because we're too stressed out to be friendly, likable people) and our homelife sucks because of the job stress. This is "the blues", or what we used to call, when I went through it, reality shock. Most of us found that somewhere toward the end of our first year, we realized that we were catching on, something fell into place and we felt that "click" that signaled we were on our way to becoming competent nurses. (Which actually takes about two years, not one year.) Until then, the first year of nursing sucks and the only way to GET through it is to GO through it. Good luck -- you're creeping up on halfway through it.

BSNbeauty, BSN, RN · Apr 10, 2017

I could of written this myself. I started in ICU as a new grad RN but my passion was always OB. Long story short, I left within a year and pursued post-partum. 4 years later and I've yet to regret my decision. I was miserable in ICU and it was just not for me. I learned a lot but just wasn't my thing.

Workitinurfava, BSN, RN · Apr 10, 2017

What is keeping you from leaving?, if it is others opinion then just let it go. Some sort of happiness is priceless. I worked in similar setting and left med-surg altogether. I planned to leave eventually but that setting pushed me out faster.It wasn't for me.

EastCoRN · Apr 11, 2017

Thank you!

EastCoRN · Apr 11, 2017

Hi!! Thank you. How was the transition?

EastCoRN · Apr 11, 2017

What is keeping you from leaving?, if it is others opinion then just let it go. Some sort of happiness is priceless. I worked in similar setting and left med-surg altogether. I planned to leave eventually but that setting pushed me out faster.It wasn't for me.

not others just me and how I've been personally feeling. I wouldn't leave before the year is up.

Where did you transition to?

EastCoRN · Apr 11, 2017

I could of written this myself. I started in ICU as a new grad RN but my passion was always OB. Long story short, I left within a year and pursued post-partum. 4 years later and I've yet to regret my decision. I was miserable in ICU and it was just not for me. I learned a lot but just wasn't my thing.

Hi! Thanks for posting. How was the transition?

BSNbeauty, BSN, RN · Apr 12, 2017

Amazing. I went to another hospital. Started fresh. I love love love it !