New Grad feels lost... not cut out for nursing?

Nurses New Nurse

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I don't know if i'm fit for this profession... I'm a new grad who started working on an orthopedics unit and i just feel... discouraged! I am so stressed before I start my work day, and when i leave my mind is running around thinking of all the things i might have missed.. The other day, i made a really careless med error giving a higher dose than was needed. I was so disappointed in myself that the 5 R's had eluded me at that one moment :( i was lucky that there were no adverse effects, but i felt terrible for the patient and myself. The other nurses told me not to worry about it; that they had done many careless things throughout their career... But for me, my day went downhill from there.. i felt like a nervous wreck.. and it hit me: this career holds so much responsibility and there is VERY little room for error. I think the nurses on the unit can see it on my face that I feel anxious, and they are so great! offering me their assistance and letting me know not to be shy to ask for help.. my patient load is on the easy side (5-6 who are relatively stable) to allow me to transition from school to work,.. honestly, i have been told several times that my floor is known for it's kind staff, but I feel that even in such a supportive environment, maybe i'm just not cut out for it... I have read many posts about the ridiculous hours some nurses work, and the catty nurses who make their lives hell, or the condescending Dr's.. i haven't quite experienced that at all! Most of my colleagues have been great, no rude Dr's ..yet, haven't dealt with the "politics" really and the head nurse has given me a really flexible schedule - only days, at the moment. I think what it boils down to is ambiguity of this profession; not being able to read Dr's orders (handwriting), getting used to normal "abnormal" values, encountering new diagnosis, procedures, and meds everyday, different patients with unique and difficult characters, Dr's orders that get slipped in middle of the shift and only noticed at the end of my shift :(, pt's and families with multiple inquiries that i just can't answer, people in pain, people i have to consult with... the list goes on. I was contemplating quitting and trying the OR where the skills may be more redundant but i might feel more confident in.. but I just feel terrible leaving this job after only 5 weeks, and my pride doesn't make it easier :S I thought nursing was for me because I thought I loved caring for people but now that's it's become a profession i'm payed for and i've become ultimately responsible for pt's lives , i find myself feeling miserable and inadequate and STRESSED out. not healthy!

sorry for the long rant! any advice would be greatly appreciated..

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Hi there,

I can totally relate. When I was a new GN I too felt that way. Believe me no one could tell you the truth about the stress you feel working in a hospital until you live it. Part of it is the nursing shortage. We run around like chickens with our head cut off becuause of the lack of staff. Nursing is a wonderful proffesion. The good thing about is that hospital nursing is not for everyone. Don't let your pride get to you. You might be too hard on yourself. Nursing school and real live nursing is not the same. It's really hard to transition. If you give it more time you will start to feel more comfotable. You will never know it all. We learn new things everyday.

Don't let this feeling or experience make you change to another proffesion. Nursing is so versitile. You can be working elsewhere and love it. You have to find what fits you the best. They say it takes about a year to feel comfotable in the hospital but I found that 6mos into it I felt the stress decline. Hosp nursing will alway be stressful but it does get better.

Orthopedics can be stressful to as so many pt are in pain. The post-op and all but, you will get more confident. You have it good that your staff is great! Some of us didn't have that. take advantage of that. Ask lots of questions. you are new and you should be asking questions, that is how you learn.

Its ok to feel stress. But if you find yourself sooooooooooo overwhelmed then who care if you've only been there 5wks. You have to do what is best for you. Maybe OR is for you. Who knows until you try it. Good luck

Just wanted to let you know that you are not alone. This is very common actually for new grad to feel.

take care and is ok to feel like you missed something

OH and the med error thing, many nurses have done this wether they want to admit it or not. Don't beat yourself up for it. At least now you learn from this and will always be careful. I 've done really careless things too. But you never do it again. WE are just HUMAN not perfect

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soffy, i had to double check to see that i hadn't written that post.

i'm also a new grad on ortho and have been on the floor now for almost 2 months. we only had 6 oreintation shifts on the floor and were assigned a "buddy" with whom we are supposed to go to and ask questions. (i tend to usually just ask whoever's closest to me at the time).

i'm completely overwhelmed half the time and just feel like i'm barely staying afloat.

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Specializes in Birth center, LDRP, L&D, PP, nursing education.
I think what it boils down to is ambiguity of this profession...

I was contemplating quitting and trying the OR where the skills may be more redundant but i might feel more confident in.. but I just feel terrible leaving this job after only 5 weeks, and my pride doesn't make it easier :S I thought nursing was for me because I thought I loved caring for people but now that's it's become a profession i'm payed for and i've become ultimately responsible for pt's lives , i find myself feeling miserable and inadequate and STRESSED out. not healthy!

I have zero advice for you other than I just got the worst 30 day review ever and I know part of it is my lack of orientation program and a preceptor with lacking teaching skills. However, I made an appointment with my manager just to honestly ask her what I should do and to tell her how unhappy and unhealthy things are for me right now... Suffering in silence isn't doing me any good.

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Specializes in L&D.

I could definitely have written this post myself. I have to assume that it's normal to feel overwhelmed sometimes as a new grad. All I can say is to fight your way through it - eventually we either feel capable and confident where we are, or we find an area of nursing that is a better fit. It has to get easier, I think.

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We are all in the same sinking boat. I came to this thread for advice. I haven't even been posting on this site b/c I have nothing positive to say lately. It's really hard on the psyche being a new nurse. I have made my mind up to just make it through each day and, since, I am usually a very proactive person, meet and discuss how things are going and how they could be better. If nothing else these discussions will hopefully be able to at least ground me and let me know if I need to transfer or take less patients or whatever before anything escalates. That's all I can think to do at this point. Just know you are definitely not alone!

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Specializes in Ortho, Neuro, Detox, Tele.

Let me say that as a long-term member of AN.com....I agree.

I work on a ortho unit, and there is a LOT of stuff that goes down. Home meds/regular meds/standing orders/prns/ new orders/charting/etc...I start at 5 and the next thing I know it's 9! Mistakes happen...it's part of nursing. I will be honest....have I made mistakes and had to go back and double check stuff...OH YEAH. Have I (almost) given a patient a pill that would have bottomed em out...yep. But I learn. I worked as a CNA for 2.5 years on the floor. And that I feel has give me a leg up. I'm responsible for a lot now...but I NEVER assume that I'm gonna to hurt someone. Self-fufilling propecy and all that. I'm on my 6th shift and I've had up to 5 stable patients....I need to take some new admits just to see what's going on with that.

Every doctor handwriting takes some getting used to...often, I wind up just double-checking that they wrote what they said they would.

If a patient/family asks a question I can't answer, I simply say "I'm not sure, but I will check with someone and get back to you." And do it!

It takes at least a year to become comfortable...and I have wished to go back to that CNA role...but I feel like I can give much more responsible care to my patients now that I am allowed to do a lot more for them.

Take a deep breath, and make it a mission to learn one new thing each day.....and make sure that you chart ASAP....never know when the brown is gonna hit the fan.

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You are definitely not alone!! It's tough to transition from school to the real world. I find that I'm okay with managing the tasks, but I don't have time for the critical thinking that was stressed at school. It's as if my mind is filled with so much info from orientation that I have forgotten to access the pathophys I learned. But, what I've been reminding myself is that once the day-to-day tasks become secondhand, my brain will once again be able to make connections between assessment findings & diagnoses. Fortunately, that's already happening for me here & there. I keep reminding myself to take a deep breath and think......before running & asking.

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Sounds normal to me.

The worst part I remember is the interrogation performed by the oncoming 3rd shift.

Stuck it out if you can, as time goes on newer nurses will be hired and you won't feel so overwhelmed.

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Specializes in PACU.

Your feelings sound all too familiar! I graduated in December and have been so lucky to start out in an area (PACU) where there are nurses with MANY years of experience who are so great to help me out. A few days after I started I definitely had that same panicked feeling about how much responsibility nurses really have...people's lives! Which I think is a good thing to realize as people would be more concerned if you didn't realize that! Just keep asking for help if you need it. If I am unsure about something i ALWAYS ask, even if I feel dumb. I would rather double check than make a mistake that could have been avoided. And everyone makes mistakes! Hang in there, give it some more time!

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Your situation seems to be the norm. Can you believe it?! (Just hope you don't need to use the hospital someday yourself.)

I'm disgusted with the "system" we have been handed, but let me give your some encouragement. I've been at it 10 months (6 on my own) and IT DOES GET EASIER. You learn so much every shift and that knowledge builds, making future shifts more fluid and leaving a little room for critical thinking. (last shift, the doctor asked why actos is on the pt med list, did you give it? well, yes i gave it--it's on her med list. "well, she isn't a diabetic, why did you give it?" because it's on her med list. what am i suppose to do, go back and make sure that every order is followed since admit and that there are none that don't exist?!! jeez. next will it be to make sure that the correct anti-HTN is prescribed? "doctor, do we really want to use a ca-ch blocker here?"

sorry, a little rant out of control. back to the encouragement: also, ask for help. everyone here expects that. "Don't sink--call for help."

And after one particularly hellish shift, i called the floor manager and told her i couldn't work like that anymore (and all that happened and all the reasons) and my message was: "You won't have me anymore (and after so much investment on your part) if you keep this up." So far, no more like that. But i can afford to quit, if need be. That may no be true in your case.

The 'system' expects you to be learning all this and to be making mistakes--don't be too hard on yourself. Learn from you mistakes, take questions home and research the answers, re-learn stuff and it will slowly sink in and become more automatic, leaving room in your brain for important stuff.:wink2:

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I was on a med/surg floor for 7 months and barely started to feel comfortable as it was insanely busy all the time. I was given the opportunity to go into the ICU (in the same specialty) so I took it. I have been on orientation for about 12 shifts now and am feeling completely overwhelmed and stressed out again like I did on the floor.

I recently spoke to my nurse educator to tell her I just couldn't do it anymore and felt unsure about my decision to become a nurse. She told me not to give up on myself and give it more time.

I am trying my best to give it a year even though I feel stressed out a day before my shift. I start on nights tonight (we rotate to nights every 3 months for a month) and have decided if nights wreak havoc on my body - I will have to find a job in another area of the hospital.

There is nothing wrong with doing what is right for you. If you feel completely stressed out or feel like the area you're working in is not for you - then find some other specialty. Nursing has so many areas a person can work in, it's just a matter of finding one's niche. There's nothing wrong with changing jobs until you find the one that works and I plan to do that!

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