WOW. thank you so much for this. i just started in the ICU at the end of august...a little over a month later i find myself STILL trying to be perfect, despite finding at the end of every shift that i'm far from it. i'm not sure that it's actually that i want to be PERFECT, but moreso that i don't want to mess badly up and really hurt someone. some days i get really discouraged because i feel as if i haven't contributed anything to the unit, but that's just me having a pity party for myself. i think that i am still just trying to get a routine down for myself and i'm having a hard time actually applying any nursing skills or critical thinking to what i'm doing. i'm just hoping to see the big picture soon..event though my orientation is 6 months and i'm only one month into it. OKAY I'M DONE VENTING NOW THANKS FOR LISTENING