I am a new nurse, graduated last December and I have been working on Cardiac/Respirtory Unit (CABG's, Vents, Dysrhythmias, Vtac, kinda like setting, MI).
I have been a nurse for the last 4 months and I am so Stressed out "overwhelmed". I can do the job just fine and finished my shift just fine as well. But with lots and lots of heart palpitations and anxiety and it's dragging me down.
For the last 4 weeks, it had been difficult for me. As I mentioned, my situation: 3 pts having way too elevated Blood pressures, calling rapid response team, on top of that admissions then having an MI. I kinda know what to do but I am scared. I thought I was actually doing ok. But everytime there's an incident, it drags me down again and increases my anxiety thus I don't even want to go to work anymore, not that I can't do the job, but I can no longer tolerate the stress level, it's affecting me and my family now, simply because of this stressful, dragging, tiring, draining feeling.
Is this still normal? I know some of the things I have learned at school. But I kinda studied it myself to figure out what my problem is, and it boils down to me experiencing an incident I never had before, Like MIs, or two of my patients having super HIGH BP which was happening at the same time, plus an admission. So to me, I just need more exposure, I guess.
But how will I get rid of the "anxiety". I am so so anxious, there are times that I just wanted to scream and cry. I know I'm guy. But it has been a hell of a ride for me since I became an RN.
Dude, just a thought for you to toss around. I see you truly are a newbie to this board. A therapeutic intervention for you might be to stop by once in a while and impart your wisdom to others in need here. I am sure you have volumes of knowledge already.
Also, well known is the fact that you are now in the "other world" of healthcare in practice. Check yourself and any hard feelings you might get with your family's not being able to understand. They never will unless unusually perceptive. Someone told me this is akin to "jumping in" (joining) a gang. This is not a world like any other, you have to be special to get in. Sometimes that's a good thing and sometimes it's not. Hang out here when you need to vent and just plain come out and ask for a hug... knew you really wanted one, that's why I ran up and grabbed you :kiss
Wanted to add, your benefits should probably have in them a source/allowance for psychiatric help. I think most places have a hospital appointed psych specialist for us to go and discuss things with, plus an allowance of maybe 10 visits to an outside psychiatrist or psychologist (maybe a $25 deductable per visit)?
My situation was different than yours, but when my mother suddenly had a terminal illness, everything changed, and I needed help to cope with life and work. I choose a psychologist (no drugs), and that was a very beneficial thing for me to do! Believe me, I liked to think that I could handle things on my own (never thought I'd be participating in psychotherapy sessions - and it felt wierd), but it was an option available to me...
Specializes in Neuro-Surgery, Med-Surg, Home Health.
New Dude,
I remember when I was a new RN in the early 1980's working in a large publicly funded and owned trauma center in Northern California. I was assigned in a neurology/neuro-surgery/otolaryngology step down unit, with chemo to spice things up a bit more. I was in my mid-20's and in one year I felt 10 years older! My wife told me I had changed. No kidding.
I had 1 1/2 years LVN experience in the same hospital before I became an RN but I felt that I had to learn everything all over again. To make matters worse, no one among the veteran RNs wanted to be the charge nurse when our regular charge nurse had the night off (They all knew something I did not know?). So imagine my terror when on the first week after my night orientation they told me, "You are the charge night tonight!!!" I was a just rookie, for crying out loud! Good thing these days it's almost guaranteed that that will never happen in that hospital again. Charge nurses in that hospital now have to be highly experienced nurses and picked by the nurse manager, and have to go through another training as charge nurses.
Knowing what I know now and what I have seen these almost 30 years as a nurse, I would not advice a new RN with no experience to start working in a step down unit or in the ICU. I certainly don't want a new-grad RN taking care of me as a patient or any of my loved ones in the ICU. That RN may have been the brightest student nurse but experience counts a lot.
After working there for almost 28 years I took early retirement from that public hospital almost a year ago this month, and I am doing a different line of nursing for the past six months. I have very little stress and I enjoy my new job. What is it? I can tell you but then I have to...tickle you to death. (Well dude, I take that back...about tickling you!) Dude.
About being stressed at your job, well, hospital nursing per se is a very stressful job. You are not alone. Listen to the many advice experienced nurses have given you. Take good care of yourself, physically, mentally and emotionally. I almost went bananas myself but I discovered that I truly enjoyed jogging. Ten years later when my right knee could no longer take the pounding, I switched to brisk walking and believe me, the outdoors, fresh air, and nature's beauty kept me sane. Do something that you enjoy to "de-stress" yourself. ....just as long it is not alcohol, drugs or any other harmful substance. Those will make things worse for you.
It's hard, isn't it? After six years of floor nursing, I transferred to ICU and for the first 8 months, I felt as though I would fall apart after every shift. I was petrified of going into work. I felt over my head and as though I would never ever actually get it. But I did, or at least, I can look back and see I've made significant strides in my critical care learning curve.
I think that some of us have a harder time adapting to new situations, especially new situations wherein we are not in full control. I do not like being the one who doesn't have the answers. I definitely don't like not understanding what is happening to my patient. It makes me bonkers! But once I am over this hump, I think I will perform very well as an ICU nurse. But for a while, I wasn't so sure.
Stick with it a while. Give yourself at least a year and then if you still don't feel good about it, change specialties. Good luck!
I get depressed too... And I can relate to the spouse/family not understanding. It's hard to try and vent about work to someone that's not in the medical field. They just think I'm crazy!
Dude, it isn't just you! Canoe had it right--you're at the point where you are finally competent to see how far over your head you are. For me, 5-6 months was the nadir, but the whole first year was like a rollercoaster with very few ups. I hope you are doing all you can to form good relationships with the more experienced nurses around you.
Forget benzos. Take a little time before you leave for work to take some deep breaths. Talk to yourself. Yes, it's possible you are in the wrong place at the wrong time, but regular acuity med/surg ain't no picnic, bucko. It's all hard. If you are in the wrong place, you probably don't need to ask anyone. If you think you might be in the wrong place, you're probably fine, so look at it this way: if you can survive the next 6-7 months, you can survive the next couple of years, and by then there won't be anything you can't do. That's not to say you'll be anything like an expert, but you'll have all the tools you need to work toward becoming an expert. Plus, by then, there will probably be some hapless newbies around who are so lost, they'll think you have the answers. Cool!
Specializes in Acute care, Community Med, SANE, ASC.
You're not alone. I've been a nurse for 3 years and I already fantasize about some sort of low-responsibility job where I won't feel responsible for someone else's life.
I come to this site to find people who understand the job.
Don't be afraid to ask for help--no one does this job alone.
Realize that no one does this job perfectly--impossible in my opinion. Do the best you can--and, yes, I have trouble accepting that as I am also type A but it's just the way it is.
Another thing that helps me is that I generally only work 8-hour shifts. I know that is not always possible and means you have to go to work more days of the week but for me an 8-hour shift is much less daunting than a 12 and it works best for me--just something to think about.
Try running..it helps me clear my mind/sort thru things and i feel refreshed and stronger physically and mentally..the 1st year sucks but i promise it gets better..take care of yourself!
I can totally 100% relate. My first job out of school was in the ICU at the only level one trauma center in the state. I worked in the same unit for a year as a tech but it made it no easier for me. I stuck it out for close to a year as an RN but my anxiety level was just getting worse because my pt load was getting more critical.
I was taking antianxiety meds, my pulse and bp were always elevated. This job was ruining my life, even on my days off I was not able to cope with the extreme stress. And the thing was, I was a good icu nurse, I had a great team of nurses and drs, I tool great care of my pts and had good critical thinking and assedment skills for a new nurse. But I just couldn't take it anymore and gave my notice.
I now work in psych and I love it I can honestly say. I'm very happy and have no regrets about leaving that job, it just wasn't worth it to me. I now sleep great, have no anxiety about work and just feel great. I'm no longer stressed or depressed.
Good luck with whatever you decide to do, just wanted to share my experience.
My 2-year anniversary is coming up next week, so this is very fresh for me. I went through the very same thing, and as others have noted, 8-12 months seemed to be the point at which things started to come around and click for me.
The ironic thing (which I learned later) was that I was considered to be very capable and calm nurse, and that the charge nurses were purposefully giving me very critical patients both because they felt I could handle it and to help me develop my skills further (and it should be noted that I work in a very supportive environment, so I'm not saying I was completely thrown to the wolves). In hindsight, this was very helpful in my development as a nurse.
Sounds to me that a similar thing may be happening with you. I really can't offer anything very helpful, I can only say that what you are going through and feeling is very normal. There is a painful learning curve in nursing, and as trite as it sounds, the only way through it is through it. What will happen is one night you will have horrendous, busy shift, and things will be coming at you fast and furious, and in the morning, you will realize that you handled everything, your stomach isn't in knots, and you actually feel ready to come back and do it again.
I know I'm guy. But it has been a hell of a ride for me since I became an RN.
netglow, ASN, RN
4,412 Posts
Dude, just a thought for you to toss around. I see you truly are a newbie to this board. A therapeutic intervention for you might be to stop by once in a while and impart your wisdom to others in need here. I am sure you have volumes of knowledge already.
Also, well known is the fact that you are now in the "other world" of healthcare in practice. Check yourself and any hard feelings you might get with your family's not being able to understand. They never will unless unusually perceptive. Someone told me this is akin to "jumping in" (joining) a gang. This is not a world like any other, you have to be special to get in. Sometimes that's a good thing and sometimes it's not. Hang out here when you need to vent and just plain come out and ask for a hug... knew you really wanted one, that's why I ran up and grabbed you :kiss