Please define "burn out"

hrtprncss · Aug 23, 2005

when u get up in the morning not looking forward to be a nurse anymore. when all u wanna do is just get ur shift over with and get ur paycheck. when u follow orders from a doc just because he told you to, when you dont care what happens to the patient anymore after ur shift is over. when u just come back from vacation and ur planning the next one already.

live4today, RN · Aug 23, 2005

Burnout? Been there...got the tshirt!

Editorial Team / Admin · Aug 23, 2005

when u get up in the morning not looking forward to be a nurse anymore. when all u wanna do is just get ur shift over with and get ur paycheck. when u follow orders from a doc just because he told you to, when you dont care what happens to the patient anymore after ur shift is over. when u just come back from vacation and ur planning the next one already.

:yeahthat:

And, you feel like you could be dangerous around your patient.

You start to have physical symptoms, nausea, fatigue, headaches....

You start to have anxiety, depression, panic attacks, fear, loss of social interaction.

Others notice a difference in your personality.

You cannot allow yourself a good, restful, productive, happy day for yourself.

You find fault in others too easily. . . . . .

live4today, RN · Aug 23, 2005

Burnout? Been there...got the tshirt!

Burn out is when you've taken all you can take of the present condition you are in. You need an out. You need rescued. You feel like screaming at the top of your lungs to everyone around you "LEAVE ME THE HECK ALONE!!!" or "I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!!! :rotfl: You CRY a lot. You feel SAD most times. You feel anxious and jittery. I would even become nauseus and start having stomach aches and pains. It was time to address my "burn out".........thus...my sabbatical the past few months. :uhoh21:

stidget99 · Aug 23, 2005

when u get up in the morning not looking forward to be a nurse anymore. when all u wanna do is just get ur shift over with and get ur paycheck. when u follow orders from a doc just because he told you to, when you dont care what happens to the patient anymore after ur shift is over. when u just come back from vacation and ur planning the next one already.

That's definitely not me. Still love nursing.......can't stand all of the bureaucratic BS

Works2xs · Aug 23, 2005

It's when you spend all week praying for the weekend to hurry up and get here and then spend the weekend fretting over having to go to work again on Monday. And everyday, you look for the slightest excuse to stay away from the job. Gotta be home for the plumber; car needs a tune-up; and even looking for a reason to go to the dentist to have a tooth extraction. Then, you pretty much stop doing the things you enjoy because you feel the need to save all your energy to just get through the next work day.

malenursetobe@21 · Aug 23, 2005

wow, from my point of view it seems that some of the replies to this thread seems too true to be just replies....it seams as if the person making the replies are experiencing or have experienced what they replied... :idea:

Editorial Team / Admin · Aug 24, 2005

wow, from my point of view it seems that some of the replies to this thread seems too true to be just replies....it seams as if the person making the replies are experiencing or have experienced what they replied...

You are exactly correct. Many of the posters could have experienced similar physical and/or mental burn out as indicated in the above replies.

It is not a fun experience.

I commend the OP for properly recognizing the possibility.

hrtprncss · Aug 24, 2005

but that's the beauty of nursing, u get burnt out, then transfer to a different specialty, so many options to consider. variety is the key. that and also when u see people come back to thank you walking and talking when a month before they were lying in front of you, grey matter on the bedsheets. that might be graphic but it's true, seeing patients walk out after a train wreck is the most rewarding thing about nursing.

Thunderwolf, MSN, RN · Aug 24, 2005

When "starting" to feel burned, NOW is the time to begin making changes for oneself before a crash and burn results. There is a strong correlation between stress and depression with many overlapping symptoms. Wonder why so many nurses are burned out and/or depressed? Stress...much from impossible and/or unrealistic expectations on the work site. Stress reduction and health promoting activities are very important in reducing burn out. Sometimes, removing yourself from the environment is just as important...vacation or transfer or look elsewhere. To thine ownself be true. With regard to management or with a manager, you can't change them. It is not in your control. But, you do have control of your life choices. Wish you the best.

jkaee · Aug 24, 2005

When "starting" to feel burned, NOW is the time to begin making changes for oneself before a crash and burn results. There is a strong correlation between stress and depression with many overlapping symptoms. Wonder why so many nurses are burned out and/or depressed? Stress...much from impossible and/or unrealistic expectations on the work site. Stress reduction and health promoting activities are very important in reducing burn out. Sometimes, removing yourself from the environment is just as important...vacation or transfer or look elsewhere. To thine ownself be true. With regard to management or with a manager, you can't change them. It is not in your control. But, you do have control of your life choices. Wish you the best.

:yeahthat:

You can still love taking care of your patients and be "burned out." You can still love being a nurse but be "burned out." Most times, it's not the patients or the nursing care that burns us out, it's the people that we work with (TPTB) that do it to us. We'd have a lot more bedside nurses out there if the powers that be would recognize that. There's going to be crap wherever you work, but there are better places, and there are better managers and supervisors that actually support the nurses that work with them (and not FOR them).

Like Thunderwolf said, YOU have control of your life choices. Your job doesn't. You can get up and leave. You can find and deserve something better. Don't get yourself in a rut where you think that you're stuck and can't do anything about your present situation. There are good jobs out there.