Please help: New Grad in ICU

[bearRN2019]

Hey guys. I just wanted to reach out and see if anyone has any input on my situation. I am a new grad nurse in the icu. I have been working for a month in a half. A couple of weeks ago while I was at work,, I started crying and couldn’t stop. I am not sure if it’s the fact that I’m overwhelmed or if I’m scared. Since then I have gotten worse. I can’t eat at all. I am crying all the time. I am even having palpitations and feelings of my stomach dropping. Even when I talk about my emotions toward the icu I start crying. I can’t stop. Is this normal? When I think about transitioning to a medsurg floor I get a feeling of relief. I say this because I was taking care of a patient that was maxed out on all of his drips and vented, he slowly got sicker everyday. Then I took care of patient that only needed home meds and I could talk to her and husband and I loved it. I am not sayin medsurg is easy, but I feel that I could better talk to my patients and teach them. I can watch them get better and go home. I just feel like I am not a safe nurse. I feel as if I need more experience. The nurses on my unit are great. They are super hero’s. But they also have 20+ years of experience. I feel that I need a position less critical.

PLEASE HELP

[Hoosier_RN, MSN]

shadow before you change. But realistically, ICU, like any other dept, is not for everyone

[Wuzzie]

On 6/24/2019 at 1:18 AM, bearRN2019 said:

Even when I talk about my emotions toward the icu I start crying. I can’t stop. Is this normal?

No, this isn't normal. You're anxiety is getting the better of you. Please make an appointment with your health care provider and hang in there.