whit717

I have been an RN on our med surg floor here in my small town for about 6 months. Yes, this is my first year in nursing and I love it! No doubt, I run all day long like all nurses. And when I get home I am just soooo completely drained. I have two small children in school and I do well to talk with them, interact in homework and get them in the bed (forget cleaning and washing clothes like I should!). I have stopped answering my phone most of the time, don't really talk to friends too much anymore....all I do is work and sleep. When I am at work I love what I'm doing, but I am finding it so hard to keep up with my life outside of work, being so tired all the time. So here it's close to Christmas, the kids are having parties at school and Christmas programs, and I feel like I just can't do it! I have had jobs before, but none so demanding of my energy of course. How do you balance being in such a demanding, albeit rewarding, career such as nursing, and all of the other things we as mothers and women are expected to do?? Surely there is someone else who has experienced this?

I completely agree!! Can't express my gratitude for all of yall's kind words and advice. It is so nice to be able to come here and talk to others who know where I'm coming from. You can talk to family but it's just not the same. Thanks again for all the perspective. It really helped!!

I agree with what you said, but I just kept thinking: she is going to have to evaluate my performance when all this is over. Normally what you described is my attitude exactly, she just didn't strike me as a person who would appreciate my honesty about her character flaws. Were I put in the situation again, I would definately stand up for myself more - live and learn right?

Thank you all for your advice. I was going to say something to the DON, but I didn't want to sound like I was whining or being unprofessional. Your posts have really put it in perspective for me. I had thought no one should treat other people that way, regardless of the situation, but you all reinforced my feelings. Thank you all for your encouragement. Means alot to hear this from other nurses who know the situation so well!

:uhoh21: OK - so I am about 2 weeks from graduating nursing school, and I did my preceptorship at my hometown hospital. My preceptor was a complete you know what! I mean we've all heard the saying that nurses eat their young, but this really drove it home. I was only there a total of 4 days and she managed to embarrass me in a multitude of different ways. If I couldn't remember how to do certain paperwork specific to that hospital, she made a show right there in front of all the other nurses and CNAs. In front of patients she would scold me like a child for doing things she didn't agree with, even though that is how I was taught to do them in nursing school. I have never pretended to know everything about nursing in the limited time I have spent in nursing school and all of my clinicals have to add up to be about three months tops! I really thought that if I didn't know how to do something I could ask without fearing some awful outcome. By the time I got through there she had me resistant to ask questions, and that made me miserable. Of course I would never endanger a patient for lack of knowledge, but how much humiliation can one person take?? Now I find that I have lost confidence in myself and my nursing abilities, which I know only I can allow that to happen, but I find myself asking: what if you really can't keep up? I LOVE nursing, everything about it. But I want to be good at it as well. Was she too harsh, or was I really unable to keep up like I should have been able to. I'm lost! The worst part is this is the hospital I will be going to work at after I graduate and pass boards. How can I handle working with her, especially if she is who is going to train me?

Thank you both for your encouragement. It helps to know that I am not on my own in my concerns! Sometimes everyone is so busy trying to look confident (myself included!) that you start to feel like you are the only one wondering how you will do when you get out there on your own.

Hi - I am about to graduate from nursing school in about 2 months and I am really worried about being on my own. The main thing that worries me is that I won't remember everything I am supposed to like all of the medication stuff, IV compatibilities, lab values, signs and symptoms that mean something bad is about to happen. I guess I'm just scared of being the one who is totally responsible, with no help there, like the instructor that has always been there for us. Do nurses really remember all this stuff right when they get out, or is it just something that comes over time. I have always made good grades in nursing school, just scared about applying it to real life! Help!

Hi. I am a student as well, about to graduate in two months. I too felt overwhelmed and confused at first with all of the work we were expected to do. One thing that might be helpful is realizing that they are not going to tell you exactly what is going to be on the test. You will have to learn to take the concept or procedure they have given you to learn and pick out the most important things about it - even if that means going back and reading in the book over material they didn't cover. Believe me, they are looking to see who can function independently. Also, you might try going to the instructor's office after class, set up an appointment to see her. I have always found that those instructors who were so scary in class turned out to be completely different people when you are one on one with them. Even when you develop your own method for studying the important concepts of each subject, you may still find it is hard to answer questions they might ask. It is always helpful to try to learn the personality of your instructor. Every nursing instructor has their own interests, if they are a pediatric nurse and are teaching on respiratory, you can bet they will have questions on the test about pediatric resp. concerns. It is only natural for them to want you to know about their specialty. Hang in there!! You will do fine, just remember that this will pass and soon you will get the hang of it. They are looking to see who will rise above, just make sure you are one of them!!