In need of some advice..

allnurses Guide · Sep 24, 2023

If you are just looking for someone to run things by I would be happy to help, but accountability has to come from you. Early in any career is a time of gaining experience, moving from novice to expert and generally figuring out how this will effect your life. In short it's paying one's dues so to speak. Staying at a job shows commitment and desire to excell.

When we first start in our careers it is normal to feel unsure of ourselves but as we gain translatable skills our path becomes more focused and direction oriented - Unless you are dealing with out right bullying try to stick it out. Push past the discomfort in much that same way that an athlete trains for victory. The other perk is that you will develope relatioinships with other nurses that can assist your climb.

I don't know it any of that makes sense but hope so.

Hppy

IndecisiveRN97 · Sep 24, 2023

@hppygr8ful thank you so much for responding. I agree and I see what you are saying. I'm not sure what the issue is. I think for the most part burnout has been the main factor in all this. I get burnt out quickly. Any tips on preventing burnout especially working M-F jobs? I find that the weekends are just used to recover and prepare for the week ahead.

allnurses Guide · Sep 24, 2023

I work 6 days a week one week and 5 days the next. My hours are 7-3 so I don't have a lot of time to myself. Burnout happens to us all. It may seem simplistic to endorse self care but I do endorse it. I have several instrests outside of nursing and am a bit of a science nerd so I am always working on one project or another. This week I created a cryo chamber with an old ice chest and dry ice to freeze dry vegetables from my garden. I got massages twice a month and am training my dog to do search work. My son is in college and my husband is a Very hign functioning Autisic with his own rather narrow interests so I pretty much do what I want within financial reason.

What is one thing you would enjoy doing?

Hppy

IndecisiveRN97 · Sep 24, 2023

@hppygr8ful I think I'm still in self discovery mode. I'm in my mid 20s still figuring out life, hobbies, interests. At one point I was going to the gym and had a trainer but I worked 3 12s then. If I work 5 days a week IDK how well I can incorporate that. By the time you get home, it's usually time to eat dinner, relax and prepare for bed. I think the healthcare field on a whole should talk about burnout more. I always feel like I'm the only one affected/feel overwhelmed/stressed etc. I usually hang with my family, but to be honest I'm more of a loner/introvert. So I normally spend my days off at home.

allnurses Guide · Sep 24, 2023

Well I am 60 years old and nursing is my third career and I have been doing it for 20 years. I am also a bit of a loner. This is why my vegetable garden is a workable hobby. One planted and established it doesn't take a ton of mainatnence and I don't feel guilty if I miss a day. The end result is reward enough. This past year I have made to jump to heirloom plants and seed saving and have met some pretty entertaining folks at seed shows.

hppy

IndecisiveRN97 · Sep 24, 2023

@hppygr8ful oh wow. 3rd career and here you are still going at it. I agree that I need to find something enjoyable to do outside of work. I guess this will be my mission in life, to try at things and keep committed to my job. I already told myself that the next job I have, I'll need to stay at for a while. I'm in dire need of stability. I just need to figure out the burnout part.

FullGlass, BSN, MSN, NP · Sep 25, 2023

Reading your post, and some of the answers here, it appears you need to just bite the bullet. You wrote that you were doing well in orientation and were asked to start a normal work schedule, but did not do so. In the future, just do it!

While many people would prefer a 3 or 4 day work week, the majority of people work M-F. If you really need a job, and that is all that is available, then take it. Give it a shot. If most people can do it, then you can, too. You can always look for another job if you don't like it.

You may want to consider locums/traveling. For a young, single person, it can be a great way to make more money, have variety, and see different parts of the country.

If there are not a lot of opportunities where you live, then move! California is desperate for nurses. CA offers the highest pay by far for RNs, RNs have a union, and there are strict nurse to patient ratios. Find a location where there are different nursing opportunities like hospitals, research, and schools. Most of the hospital RNs I know work three 12-hour days per week.

Being a school nurse could be a good option. While it is M-F, there are a lot of school holidays that you will not have to work.

Since you have only been a nurse for 2 years, I don't think 1 year as your longest job is the kiss of death. But for your next job, unless you do locums/traveling, try to stick it out for at least 1 year or more. You have to pay your dues. Frankly, you sound rather entitled. I had a lot of crappy jobs when I first started out. My first career was in high tech, and they work people like dogs and treat them like crap. Nursing is my second career and my first couple of jobs were difficult. Now I am happy with my work.

Given you lack of self-confidence and other things you said, I strongly advise you to get some counseling/therapy. There may be other issues at play preventing you for realizing your full potential.

Best wishes.

IndecisiveRN97 · Sep 25, 2023

@FullGlass thank you for your response. Do I think I'm entitled, no. I'm a new nurse who is still figuring out the field and herself. But I guess if that's your opinion... have a good day.

IndecisiveRN97 · Sep 25, 2023

Also @FullGlass you said you have had a couple first jobs that were difficult and finally found where you are happy. But OK

FullGlass, BSN, MSN, NP · Sep 25, 2023

IndecisiveRN97 said:

@FullGlass thank you for your response. Do I think I'm entitled, no. I'm a new nurse who is still figuring out the field and herself. But I guess if that's your opinion... have a good day.

IndecisiveRN97 said:

Also @FullGlass you said you have had a couple first jobs that were difficult and finally found where you are happy. But OK

I am going by what you wrote. I am concerned that you may be suffering from depression, which can occur with burnout. That is why I suggested talking to a mental health professional.

Yes, I struggled with my first 2 jobs. However, I was not picky and I buckled down and did the work M-F. If I was asked to do something, I did it. When looking for a job, I did not have a whole bunch of "can't do this, don't want to do that, etc." My 1st NP job was in a very rural area, so rural there was no high speed internet and cell phone service was unreliable, GPS didn't even work all the time. Sometimes I had to cover for other providers and drive to even more remote clinics. Coming home from such a clinic, I hit a cow (that was "free range" country) and totaled my car, suffering a severe concussion. Frankly, I was lucky to be alive. I was not given enough time off from work, but back I went, even though I still had obvious signs of brain injury. Even with this horrible event, I stuck with the job. However, I was let go as I was slow in my work after that. I scrambled to find another job, driving long distances. I was able to get a 1099 gig doing veteran's disability exams, driving over 100 mile round trips on the days I worked at that. Then COVID hit and primary care was in total chaos. Got a temp gig and still did the veterans exams on the side, driving long distances on weekends (3 hours on Fri and 3 hours on Sun). I then got the job I have now, continued with veterans exams until my patient panel increased, and also went to school part-time to earn my PMHNP. In short, I hustled. I'm in my 60s. You are in your mid-20s and come across as very low energy, which is a sign of depression.

Reading your posts, I do not sense that "hustle." You basically threw away your most recent job. "Left because they wanted to take me off orientation earlier than expected because I was doing "good". I asked for 2 more weeks and they didn't want to give it. Now I've been out of a job for 2 months." Why did you do that? You could have tried cutting orientation short and doing what was asked. They gave you good feedback. You could have said something like, "Thank you for your confidence in me. I am a bit nervous about doing this without complete orientation. Is there a way I can get extra help/extra time for the next 2 weeks if I need it?"

You don't want to work in an office or nursing home. You don't want to work M-F. You got burned out in med-surg, but don't want to lose your hospital skills. In other words, you are making it very hard for you to find another job. If you need a job, then take what you can get for now! Let's say you take a job in a nursing home. Do that for a while so you can make some money and then, after 1 year, look for another job if you want to. You might like working in a nursing home.

Your other option is to move or try locums/traveling, as I explained. Also, you could look into home health. When my mother was terminally ill, an RN came to our home 2x week to check in on her and provide any needed nursing care. Those nurses really knew their stuff and provided an invaluable service. They told me they really enjoyed that work because they had a lot of autonomy and it was not as high stress and med-surg.

Seriously consider getting counseling, as well.

Best wishes.

IndecisiveRN97 · Sep 25, 2023

@FullGlass. Okay, I get what you are saying. Not trying to make excuses for myself or anything. I do get counseling, and I can admit my confidence is not 100% there and my counselor knows that about me, coupled with the fact that I am still a newer nurse and have yet to find that confidence in the field. I have been thinking about getting on an antidepressant in the future, which may assist with the feeling of burnout. Thank you for the advice.