when you are a nurse...

[sophie<3]

so i just have a quick little something to say. i had my clinical evaluation this morning for my last day of my first Med/Surg rotation of my second semester in nursing school (wow that's a mouthful :))...next week I will begin my OB rotation! my clinical instructor basically told me that she enjoyed having me, i was professional, displayed great critical thinking skills, had excellent care plans and paperwork, and appeared very confident and comfortable with my patients. she asked me if i had ever worked in a hospital, when i told her no she was shocked because she said i didn't seem inexperienced at all. this was such an amazing compliment to me because on the inside i have been doubting myself for a long time. i know there is no such thing as "perfect" but at the end of my clinical days i would always go home beating myself up about something i should have done or said differently. being the youngest in my clinical group i felt like i was on a different level than everyone else and i was always fighting to prove to everyone that i was just as mature and serious about school as they were even though there is a 5-25 year gap between me and all of them. at the beginning of the semester i felt like i was going to puke during the 30 minute drive to clinical twice a week...i felt like i was awkward with patients and lacked focus. i even had a nurse yell at me on our first day about a medication (apparently she was just a difficult nurse to work with according to my instructor and other nurses on the floor). so to hear my instructor tell me that i was confident and comfortable...or at least that i appeared that way to her felt so good because i personally can tell i have grown since Day 1 and it is nice to know that other people notice as well that I am trying. Also, she said that she would have no problem being a reference for me anytime for a job or externship and even "when you are a nurse"...I don't think instructors realize the impact that phrase has on nursing students as well...not IF you become a nurse, but when you are a nurse...meaning they know you will get there and you have what it takes anyway, thanks for listening!

[Aurora77]

yay! It sounds like you're doing a great job.

I know what you mean--I'm older than you, so that's not my issue, but I always feel like I'm fumbling around. Like everyone else knows more than me. Then I get my evals and my instructors (who aren't the fake compliment kind of women) tell me I'm doing great.

We're just so much harder on ourselves than others are. We see our flaws, while they see our strengths. Congrats on what you've accomplished so far!!