My fear....I need advice

gr8rnpjt, RN · Jun 2, 2006

Smiley:),

Do not despair. My best friend in nursing school was very queasy and she thought she would have to quit. The first time we went to the hospital lab to shadow phlebotomists, she almost passed out. Something about seeing the blood rushing into the tube, made her very lightheaded and she almost passed out. But she stuck it out and by the end she was albe to handle everything (well almost. she never did get over her aversion to suctioning trach tubes) But she is a nurse in LTC and she loves it. You will get used to it. You might try watching discovery channel those trauma shows, etc. it will desensitize you and it will be safer to you since you are only watching the tv and are not seeing it up close and personal. The more you see, the more desensetized you will be. (you'll be fine) Take care and good luck! :nurse:

GIJay, BSN, RN · Jun 2, 2006

Sounds like the easy answer is to become a nurse and work anywhere else but in the ER. There are plenty of nurses who want nothing to do with the blood and guts of the trauma room but are great in other areas. I worked in the ER for 5 years and loved it but have since moved on to greener pastures.

KeithEMU · Jun 2, 2006

One thing that is nice about nursing is that there are so many options once you get there. There are lots of positions that you aren't likely to see this kind of trauma, and even some you don't even see patients. If your heart is in L&D then focus more on that. There are some heart breakers there too, but you can prepare yourself as best as you can for that. Many nurses have trouble with certain things in the beginning, but most of them pass. There are many threads about phobias and either getting over them or going to other positions.

mandana · Jun 2, 2006

You may also want to keep an open mind and see how you do the next time. I recently had my first clinical day in a busy trauma ER. I was completely shell-shocked when I came home and was dreading, absolutely dreading, my 2nd clinical day there. Well...that clincal day was yesterday and I had the most amazing experience! The cases were much worse yesterday than the first day, but I handled it all quite well and by the end of the day I really felt like I could be there. That's just my experience. Yours may be totally different, you may not like it any more the next time around, and if that's the case, that's OK. The great thing about nursing is that you really can find your niche.

Amanda

MA Nurse · Jun 2, 2006

I'm a nursing student. I started volunteering at a local hospital (which receives alot of trauma patients). The reason I volunteer is to overcome my fear of seeing badly hurt people in other words disfigured. I know if I want to be a nurse I can not have this fear/anxiety/phobia. Last Sunday I was in the ER in the red zone area. A badly disfigured patient that was in a car accident was Life Flight in. I saw this patient and I was okay for 5 minutes but then my heart started beating fast, I felt lighthead, nausea, etc. I walked out the room because I couldn't take it. I'm thinking about changing my major but I love taking care of people and help them. I really want to be a L&D nurse or work at a family practice clinic. I have three kids so I know I can handle L&D. I know I will have to do my clinical at this hospital and I know I might have to see some of these people. What should I do? Is Nursing for me? Will I ever overcome this fear?

You don't have to become used to seeing these kinds of people in the ER. They are very different than most of your patient population. Trauma is much different than other areas you can go into. I can't stand ER, but I've been a nurse for about 20 years.

Check out other areas to volunteer in, such as holding sick babies.

chadash · Jun 2, 2006

I would give it some time. I think you will find that when you are more in a position that you can help, you will find these feelings replaced by "what do I need to do". I am not a nurse, but being task focused has helped me to deal with yucky looking wounds and such.

purplemania, BSN, RN · Jun 2, 2006

Everyone has something that bothers them. Nursing is so versatile that I am sure you could find your niche.

buildingmyfaith57 · Jun 3, 2006

i would think working in a nursing home or a rehab maybe would be the best at least you'll have less blood.

beautifulb · Jun 3, 2006

I used to have a fear of sputum. With just the sound of suctioning I would feel as if I had to pass out. Knowing that as a nurse I would always have to deal with sputum, I started working in a respiratory hospital where I got over my fear almost immediately. I think as a previous poster said, you almost have to desensitive yourself from it.

On the other hand, during my first OR clinical I was watching a diagnostic laparoscopy. I thought everything was fine until I started to feel hot. I started to walk away from the OR table to get some fresh air when I felt myself fall to the ground. In the distance I heard someone say "someone get her", so needless to say I just about passed out.

After that incident in the OR, I knew that I was not able to deal with cutting. The way I avoid that is just not working in the OR. There are some times when I may need to assist in an I&D on the floor, but it is not that often.

Don't give up on nursing! The most badly disfigured people you will see will be in the ER. You never have to work in the ER. You will see disfigured people throughout your nursing career but not enough to avoid the career altogether.

There are so many opportunities for you.