Nervous in clinicals

sbaker935 · Sep 5, 2013

I'm pretty nervous also! We start clinicals in about 2-3 wks and it's just gonna be very nerve wracking and fast pace yikes! Good luck, hope it gets better for you. Be confident in yourself and know you can do this! Just takes practice to get the hang of it, I'm sure.

coronel23 · Sep 5, 2013

Yeah I know it will take practice. Hopefully this nervousness goes away soon and good luck at your clinicals :)

nurseprnRN, BSN, RN · Sep 5, 2013

"The patient is the one with the disease."

"Fake it 'til you make it" applies here, really! Imagine that's your grandma or grandpa in the bed, and the nursing student approaching him is too nervous to talk. How does that make him/her feel? Pretend it's someone you know, pretend you feel perfectly at ease, and you know what? Sooner or later ..... you really will.

DalekRN · Sep 6, 2013

Listen more than you talk. Ask questions to your instructor or a nurse who you are fairly sure will be nice. Before you ask a question, see if you can't find the answer in a reference first. Nurses are busy and can't or often don't want to answer questions or have a student around- don't take it personally and just move on. Eat breakfast with protein, fat and plenty of carbs. I don't care if you aren't a breakfast person. Don't ignore the feeling of having to faint... Ask for a chair or lower yourself down, do not try to be brave and stick it out. Get to clinicals 15 minutes early, so much better to sit and enjoy coffee and review material than to fly in at the last second. It's worth the lost sleep, let me assure you.

CordaeP · Sep 6, 2013

I still have anxiety. Even more now that I am going into peds.

ScientistSalarian · Sep 7, 2013

I'm a very reserved person and trying to "communicate therapeutically" with my patients and interact with busy CNA's and nurses who want nothing to do with pesky students takes a huge amount of effort on my part. I was a wreck after my first couple of clinical days, taking every little thing way too personally and beating myself up for not being an hyper-competent super-nurse right off the bat. But I've come up with an ultra-dorky solution that seems to be working so far: I come to clinical as prepared as I can possibly be and then once I walk in the door I pretend that I'm my favorite (confident, powerful, BADASS) video game character. I am fully aware of how incredibly nerdy this sounds, but it really helps me in the "fake it until you make it" department.

minniebrown · Sep 7, 2013

It is natural to be nervous. It will get easier for you. You are there to learn and no one is expecting you to know it all. Just keep at it.

CordaeP · Sep 7, 2013

I'm a very reserved person and trying to "communicate therapeutically" with my patients and interact with busy CNA's and nurses who want nothing to do with pesky students takes a huge amount of effort on my part. I was a wreck after my first couple of clinical days, taking every little thing way too personally and beating myself up for not being an hyper-competent super-nurse right off the bat. But I've come up with an ultra-dorky solution that seems to be working so far: I come to clinical as prepared as I can possibly be and then once I walk in the door I pretend that I'm my favorite (confident, powerful, BADASS) video game character. I am fully aware of how incredibly nerdy this sounds, but it really helps me in the "fake it until you make it" department.

What do you do to prepare for clinical each time?

**NICU Guy, BSN, RN** · Sep 8, 2013

You prepare by being confident in your assessment skills and vitals. You walk into the patient's room and confidently introduce yourself and say "I'm XXXX and I am a student nurse from XXXX school and I will be taking care of you for the next X hrs. If you need anything let me know. I am going to take your vitals and listen to your heart and lungs" Once you start assessing your patient, you ask them about why they are in the hospital. If they are older, they will talk your ear off. My patient this past week talked for a half hour straight. A lot of times they don't have much visitors and just want someone to talk to. Once you develop a good rapport with the patient, your job just got 100 times easier. You become more at ease with them and they are at ease in letting you do what you need to do to them. They are people and not aliens (that comes in your mental health clinical :android: ). I had a person tell me that if you have trouble speaking in front of an audience, imagine them in their underwear because you can't be intimidating in your underwear. Well, patients are pretty close to being in their underwear. You have your nice uniform and they are in a gown. Who is the one that should be scared? you or them?

ScientistSalarian · Sep 8, 2013

What do you do to prepare for clinical each time?

We have a ton of research-based paperwork due each morning of clinical (medical orders, lab results, medications, that sort of thing) so I try to finish early and then take some time to really put all the pieces together for myself - What kinds of symptoms/complications am I likely to see in the patient? Are there any specific assessment areas I should be focusing on? Why is the patient receiving this specific medication and why is the dose larger/smaller than recommended? What drug side effects should I be looking for? And on and on and on. I really enjoy the academic aspects of nursing, after that it's just a matter if psyching myself up to act more assertive and confident in front of patients and staff than I really am.

dawniepoo · Sep 9, 2013

I'm in practicum now, so I have had lots of time to get used to going to clinicals. Would you believe I still get nervous? It isn't all day, but when I first meet my patient and when I have to do something new, but looking back, it is infinitely easier now than during my first semester. It will get easier, but never let your guard down. It was great advice to suggest you get there earlier than you need to be so that will have time to relax before starting. Don't be afraid to ask questions too. Hang in there!