RN feeling discouraged, can't find niche

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How long does it take an RN to find her niche department? I got my BSN after no prior med exp. Went straight into NICU new grad position after finished Accelerated BSN. I loved teaching the parents, but I never could get over my fear of screwing up and it affecting a baby. Now in Psych. Liked it at first, but get tired of feeling like it's a revolving door and worrying about my safety in a takedown, etc. Feeling discouraged now as I have never felt very confident in my skills in the 2 years I've been an RN. It doesn't help that I wonder if I have ADD inattentive type b/c I occasionally make mistakes, have difficulty remembering what was said, time med given, etc. Am I just expecting too much of myself or is nursing just not for me? I like helping people and don't want to do harm.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Specializes in Ambulatory Care, Case Manager.

babblinbrook, I got tested for ADD after flunking my last semester in Nursing School. Just FYI, I was told that it is difficult to prove ADD in Adults. Also, from my previous experience working with an adult patient claiming to have ADD most providers are not willing to prescribe medications due to some people abusing them just to get high.

Keep us posted on your outcome.

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Specializes in Critical Care.

Are you honestly giving yourself enough time in any position to truly find out if it's a good fit? I'm not going to comment upon the ADD issue..it appears others have given you support regarding that topic.

I just noticed that you didn't give yourself a lot of time to get acclimated. You talked about coming into nursing when you were 40 and how you felt "dumb" not learning things as quickly as others. Let's be honest, they tell you in nursing school it takes AT LEAST a year to begin to be comfortable as a nurse. You didn't give yourself that year and then you jumped ship to try something new. This isn't a criticism, please don't take it that way. Getting confident in your basic nursing skills can take time. Add to that, you are trying to learn about a new patient population, new procedures, new docs, etc.....do you see where I'm going with this? You've put yourself under a tremendous amount of stress. Have you given yourself the time to adjust?

Couple of other thoughts. You spoke of others getting things quicker than you did. I'd have to wonder about that....does that mean you're not cut out for that branch of nursing or could it mean that you learn differently than others? That your educational experience or orientation wasn't as good as theirs? Maybe you need to reevaluate the entire process...make sure you got the support you need. I'm not trying to blame others, just trying to give you different ways to look at things.

You know, nursing is tough. I don't know of any branch of the profession that is easy. It takes time and plenty of work. But you also have to learn to forgive yourself. If something truly doesn't feel like a good fit..that's ok. There are plenty of other areas you can try. I'd just encourage you that you give yourself enough time to truly evaluate the area of nursing you are looking into.

Let me give you an example: I've been a critical care nurse for a long time. I took a job my current facility because they do ECMO, something I had been interested in for years. When I was finally able to sit for training and then orientation, I was pretty excited. As I went through the process, I evaluated the experiences. But I found out, for me, it wasn't a good fit. While I've always enjoyed the technical aspect of critical care, I found being an ECMO specialist at my facility just meant working a maching. Yes, I had to do assessments but I was responsible for patient response to the therapy. Things like direct patient care wouldn't be a part of my equation. And I found I missed that. So, for me, it wasn't a good fit. My point being, I made sure to give myself enough time before I walked away. I'm not ashamed or embarrased, it wasn't for me.

Hang in there, you will find your niche. And as others have said, no harm in getting evaluated for ADD or ADHD. Good luck to you, no matter what you decide.

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Thanks for the advice. My confidence isn't the best as my first job wad in NICU. I quit after 10 months b/c it looked as though I would get fired soon. They said I asked too many questions and was not catching on fast enough. I'm tempted to give NICU another shot now that I've learned more about nursing.

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Specializes in Pediatric Pulmonology and Allergy.
I'm in a similar boat. I say just change jobs every year until you find one you like. There are so many enrivonments. Try something like corrections or join the military (not good if you want to quit though). The book "What Color is your Parachute" is an excellent guide to career change. Once you know what you are looking for might make it easier to find. Keep going...
It doesn't look very good on a resume to show a different job every year. I say make an effort to stick it out in your current position while moonlighting in another job if possible (maybe going to per diem) so you can test out other areas.
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It doesn't look very good on a resume to show a different job every year. I say make an effort to stick it out in your current position while moonlighting in another job if possible (maybe going to per diem) so you can test out other areas.

I think that my be outdated. Due to the economy, many people are changing

jobs often. In this day and age, no employer will think twice about

cutting jobs no matter how much seniority you have often,out you will go.

I say take care of yourself and when you find a good job fit for you,

then settle in.

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