jsrn88

I've been an ICU nurse now for about two and a half years, 1 year in Medical / CICU, and now 1.5 years in CVICU, and I find that I freeze during critical situations or codes. I'm feeling discouraged because I've been doing this for two years, yet I will still find myself in this situation. Essentially, when something happens to a patient that is an acute change, I will freeze and my mind will go blank. I think part of the reason I do this is because, not knowing what the correct action may be to take, I choose to not act as opposed to doing something that would harm my patient or be incorrect. Ultimately, I don't want to make a mistake that would hurt someone. After talking to my charge nurse about it, she reminded me that it takes time and for some people, it takes them longer than others, and it's a matter of experience. That was reassuring to a point, but I don't really know what else to do. I would think that, at this point in my career, I would be at a point where I no longer do this, and I don't know how to fix it. There are some situations where I know exactly what to do, because I've been through them before, but when things happen to me that I've never encountered or seen, I lock up and freeze. Any advice?