last semester and burned out...

msbuttons · Jun 4, 2010

I understand where you're coming from, I'm also a nursing student taking my last class this summer before graduation. What we have to keep in mind is that we are on information overload and have been studying non-stop for the past 2 or 3 years. Try to do something fun when you have time so that school doesn't consume you. Reflect back on that positive attitude you had when you started the program and remember that you have made it this far for a reason. Good Luck! I know you'll finish out strong :)

Heinz beans · Jun 4, 2010

In the same boat too. Try not to stress about not being on some high, its been a long slog and we will get through this day by day.

Trust me that other students are having the same thoughts...I hope it helps :)

patricianyc · Jun 4, 2010

Thanks y'all! Its just frustrating that I'm so close but feel so frustrated. I thought this semester would be different. Guess its time to put my big girl panties on!! lol

mb1949 · Jun 5, 2010

Hang in there, I just graduated and felt that way the whole semester last semester, I couldn't wait to get out of there, didn't feel like studying, really did not look forward to clinical, struggled to get through, but made it, now I don't know I am trying to study for NCLEX but feel so burnt out, Just put your head down and do it, you are overloaded and exhausted, but you will get through it.

llg, PhD, RN · Jun 5, 2010

As others are telling you, what you are experiencing if very common. By the time people reach their last semester or two, many "just want it to be over." And, as you have identified, it is a form of burnout.

Use this experience to explore the topic of burnout. You'll experience it many times over the course of your career (and life in general). Learn how to deal with it. Learn when and how to take breaks that refresh you, find meaning in your routing activities so that they nourish your spirit, and keep going when the going gets tough.

Pay attention to your physical and mental well-being. Eat right, get some exercise, socialize with friends and family a bit, etc. Establish those habits now that you will need to use on a regular basis to prevent burnout as a nurse.

There's light at the end of the tunnel. ... You're almost there. ... Just put 1 foot in front of the other and keep going. ...

tlc365 · Jun 7, 2010

Same boat here too. I am in my last 6 months of my education LPN-BSN and its been over 2 yrs. I am just trying to find one thing about the class I am in to keep excited and just to have something to look forward to. It is a struggle but I have come this far and its not an option to quit now esp with dwindling opportunities as an LPN. Keep your eyes on the prize :anpom:

CAL05699 · Jun 7, 2010

I just finished my accelerated BSN in May and I didn't want to learn anything the last semester, just do as little as possible and get out. It's just a normal reaction to studying so hard for so long. Unfortunately it has now carried over to studying for the NCLEX -- I don't want to do that either! I am hoping that once I start a job I will feel excited and interested again, and remember why I wanted to be a nurse in the first place.

lkwashington · Jun 8, 2010

The burnout feeling is when you are working hard to accomplish something in life. You are tired because you have studied hard and you did it for 2 or more years. When you finish take a break or better a vacation or two. Take some time for yourself and say I did it. We all wanted it to be over. I never heard anyone say when they finished nursing school it was easy. The nursing students who made all A's. They had to work hard to keep them. The nursing students who made all C's. They had to work hard to make them. If too easy it is not worth it. You work hard for it so claim it. You are just tired and ready to do something different such as being a nurse in the real world. Just a thought.

Donald11 · Jun 8, 2010

Same boat here too. I am in my last 6 months of my education LPN-BSN and its been over 2 yrs. I am just trying to find one thing about the class I am in to keep excited and just to have something to look forward to. It is a struggle but I have come this far and its not an option to quit now esp with dwindling opportunities as an LPN. Keep your eyes on the prize :anpom:

Can you elaborate further on the dwindling opportunities for LPNs? I am planning on doing an LPN and, after working for a year or 2, go back for my RN. I don't want to become an RN right away so that this way I do everything gradually and avoid the very same burn out that is the subject of this thread.

patricianyc · Jun 8, 2010

Thanks! I appreciate all of your thoughts. I never anticipated this semester being so difficult after looking forward to it for so long!!! I am trying to be optimistic and really making an effort to put a lot of effort into this material. :)

Chronicallychanging · Mar 8, 2018

I am totally with you! I am 56 years old and on my last 6 weeks before graduation. I am struggling every single day to stay focused. My grades are not that great and I feel that my studying techniques are not giving me the results that they used to. When I do NCLEX practice questions some of my test scores are in the 40's. I'm just so over it all. I wish I could just study for the NCLEX and be done with it all. I graduate the beginning of May and hope to take the NCLEX the end of June. I figure I better not take a break because I might not come back.Just need some encouragemnt I guess.Put my big girl panties on and get on with it. Back to studying anther Exam in 3 days