new grad in over head

I think you need to give it time. What you are describing sounds just like most new grads go through. You feel you arent connecting the dots and are second guessing all you know and all youve learned. It's NORMAL!

Go to your preceptor, or the unit supervisor and talk to them about your feelings,, they will probly give you the same paragraph i just did.

I remember just getting off orientation and having to be the only RN on the floor until someone got back from lunch. I felt in a total panic. But i was fine, i finally felt more comfortable about it, it comes with time and experience. You will do fine,, just stick to it, be careful and dont let yourself get rushed. Thats when mistakes happen.

Hi, as a fellow GN that graduated in December as well and started work in February too, I feel compelled to reply! I am working on a ortho/neuro unit in the hospital where I went to school at, and it is pretty overwhelming!! We do not deal with monitors or intense cardiac stuff, but it is still stressful!! I can tell you that all my classmates that I graduated with (that are in diff areas, cardiac, ICU, med/surg) have all felt overwhelmed/scared at least at some point! I think it is totally normal! Everyone experienced that I have talked to says it takes about 6 months- year to be comfortable and even then there will always be questions to ask! I see things now, even simple things that I never did in school, might be a little nervous, but ask about it and then do it and it usually wasn't that bad. I know when it gets busy it's hard to think sometimes. I would talk to your preceptor about your concerns and see what advice she has. :) Not to cast a negative tone, but as for me, I want to try to get into dialysis-- which from people I talked to who do it is less stressful which sounds good to me(although less $$, but at least better scheduling too-- 7 day stretches stink )!! Well, hopefully you decide on whatever is best for you!! Best wishes & good luck!! :cheers:

Thank you all for your support- I did talk to my resource nurse who said, yes, give it some more time. My main preceptor is wonderful and supportive, but only works part time, so all the other times I get someone different, and for the most part they are supportive too. I guess my biggest fear is that I will do something wrong or miss something really important, and with the acuity of these patients, I don't feel there is room for error. I don't want to get sued for missing something or causing harm- I'd have a hard time living with myself if I caused any harm. I guess I'm so paranoid about this, I check my meds many times and check orders often, and then check on my patients a billion times a day. I don't even take breaks cause I'm afraid of missing something. Part of this is my personality, obviously, but some of it is this floor and the acuity of these patients. I know I could never work in an ED or ICU. At this point , I have no choice but to stick it out, but I was wondering if there are other types of nursing jobs that aren't so intense. Thank you all for your support- I will keep it in mind for tonite's 7P-to 7A shift -JR

I am also a December grad, and I began my job last month. I don't think they talked about how overwhelming this was all going to be. I say if you don't feel ready for the floor you have started on ask to transfer! I don't think they will mind at all. Talk to your manager ask if there are other openings in the hospital, and maybe suggest that after you are more comfortable with your nursing skills you can re-join the unit in a year or so. Personally I would rather admit that I'm not ready for the unit than make a major mistake.

I worked with new grads for years. No one knows your situation like you do, but I will say that how things look to other people is not important. We are talking about your career. I would try another unit, maybe med-surg, until I built up confidence. Lots of nurses change units every few years so as not to get stale. Who cares what someone else thinks??? Do what is best for you or you will get burned out and end up making bad decisions.

I worked on a Surgical/Trauma unit right out of school and ended up feeling so overwhelmed and discouraged after a few months. I began feeling as though I was not the right fit for that floor (or maybe the floor wasn't the right fit for me). I weighed my options, spoke with my manager so she was aware of my concerns, tried a few interventions, and tried to tough it out. Eventually I made the decision that that unit was in fact not right for me, so I asked to transfer. The hospital said that it woud take at least "several months" before I would be able to start interviewing for other positions because holidays were coming and reviews were appraoching. According to the people I spoke with, "managers felt it would be unfair" to me if I switched units and had a review shortly after by someone who wasn't very familiar with my performance. I didn't really buy that and I didn't believe I could last "several" more months on a unit I was so frustrated with. Maybe that was normal, but I had to do what was best for my mental well-being and I was reconsidering changing careers at that point. In the end, I put my notice in and quit before my 6 month milestone. I am now working an a med-surg floor (which I dreaded doing when I was in school) in a smaller hospital and feel like I have finally found my niche. You have to do what is best for you. Be honest with your manager or preceptor. That way they can help you figure out what might help you feel more confident and ways to address the issues you may have. If that still doesn't work, then it may be best to switch units. Good luck to you. Please keep us posted. :)