g4jrn

You don't say what your "excessive absences" have been caused by...That seems to be the starting point for self-assessment, and, accordingly, resolution. If you are missing work due to genuine health issues, or external situations beyond your control, that's one thing, but if your absences are a product of your emotional health related to your nursing, then you have a more complex issue. If you can step back and honestly assess which exemplifies your history more, then I think you can begin steps toward becoming emotionally healthy. I would recommend finding someone trained in counseling specifically for healthcare professionals...it's a unique medium, and I've found that those outside the immediate nursing arena don't always relate to its complexity. (It's difficult to truly understand the pain of a kidney stone unless you've actually had one...) I pray you will find the resources you need to regain your joy!

I'm so sorry things are so scrambled for you right now!! It breaks my heart...I am a female recent grad, and hope you don't mind me interloping into your forum, but what you wrote struck a chord with me. Contrary to what most believe, nursing school is completely unlike the traditional college or trade school experience, and I think it is the rare person who is prepared for it, either emotionally, intellectually, or psychologically. Even as a much older, very experienced college grad, my confidence has been completely rattled, I have struggled to carry on a simple conversation, and (worst of all!) I have spent the last two years being forced to focus solely upon my own needs. It is an unexpected atmosphere that stresses to breaking point every part of who you are. The good news is that you begin to rediscover yourself, confidence reasserts its strength, joy starts to ooze into your existence, not too long before you graduate. I will pray for you daily, and like the others, ask you to just hang in there as each day brings you closer to an extraordinary profession where everything you have gone through will make a remarkable difference in the lives of your patients.