Intense Fear keeping Me from getting a Job?

[Tree2144]

Hi all,

I am a new GVN, and I take my boards next week. I am intensely afraid that I have not prepared myself enough for this exam. I am using the Saunders Review Book and doing the C.D. During school, I have never made below a B in any class or on any exam. I have confidence in myself that I believe I can pass boards.....but my biggest fear is yet to come.

I have this overwhelming fear of causing harm to a patient. That alone just paralyzes me and makes me diaphoretic. During Med. pass in clinicals, my sense of alertness was very sharp....especially when it came to meds. and watching for reactions, and pt. status and assessments etc.

I am currently looking for a job also, but I am afraid because this is all new to me and I am afraid of doing the wrong thing, losing my license over something stupid, or something happening (a code perhaps) and I freeze up in the critical moments.....

My question is should these feelings be enough to drive me out of the profession before I even begin? The anxiety of this career change is intense and some people have told me that it will go away with experience. I haven't even entered the hospital setting yet and already I feel like I am inadequate, weighed down, "green", and scared poopless....lol....

Any words of advice are greatly appreciated, I feel like I need a good :crying2:

Thanks you all for listening to me...:)

[clee1]

Rational fear (as opposed to IRrational fear) is a GOOD thing. It keeps you alert and detail oriented, which is never bad. Everyone (even those of us that hide it well) are scared of new experiences and situations, ESPECIALLY when responsible for another person's care or perhaps even their life.

You WILL be amazed at how your training and education will pop into your head during an emergency. It IS a mental reflex, and unless you have some type of anxiety pathology, it won't let you down in a pinch.

Trust yourself, trust your training, and trust your co-workers to help you out of a bind. If you did that well in school, and you pass your boards, then you are ready to take on the challenge.

Good luck, and don't give up!

[Pekoe-RN]

Wow, this could have been me 7 months ago!! I did pass the boards quite handily and also never got below a B+ in anything in school. But absolutely SCARED TO DEATH of doing something wrong when actually in practice!!! I put off finding a job, and used the excuse, well, I'm not in a hurry.... I want to take some time off ..... when I was still having nightmares of not being adequate and having some harm come to a patient of mine, because I SCREWED UP.

Well, I finally did start work in October, got a really great orientation, and started taking my own patients end of November. There are still times I think , oh crap - I'm scared to do this - like trying to start an IV, or not being familiar with a procedure - but I have to settle myself down, take a deep breath and just think. That, and the nurses on my floor are SO supportive - they tell me they don't EXPECT me to know everything!! They tell me I have a "natural instinct" with the patients and I ask questions - that's what counts the most, and the rest will just come..... While this is still incredibly frustrating, and I am not completely stress-free, I just try to hang in there.

And I still do stupid things - forget to bring Pt A something cause Pt B was bleeding a little too much post-procedure, or just forget cause I'm tired and overwhelmed - but I am definitely, CONSTANTLY learning. And my fellow nurses always ask - do you need anything? can I help you with something? That's when I realize - I can do this. Sometimes I really just have to write things down - it's better to take a minute or two than rush and make a mistake!!!

And remember why you went into this to begin with; I think of the nurses who cared for my father when he died and my mother with all her hospitalizations.