Struggling in First Nursing Job

messymissy · Jan 7, 2015

I'm sorry to hear that your new job is causing you so much stress and affecting your life outside of work. While the first year of nursing is an extremely stressful time. It should not be upsetting you outside of work. The way I see it, you have a few choices. You can A) speak with your manager, tell them of your concerns and request you have a little more time orientating or B) admit that your heart is not into ICU nursing and request that you be transferred to a lesser level of care.

Starting out as a new nurse in critical care is tough, but it is doable. You will need to be the one that ultimately decides where you want to work.

Good luck to you.

iPink, BSN, RN · Jan 7, 2015

Twelve weeks isn't enough time in ICU as a new grad. I did 12 and I was on a stepdown ICU floor and those in ICU next door to us got 6 months.

I agree with PP that critical care is tough but doable. In my first year, I was so stressed I wanted to quit nursing altogether. Even though I did well on the unit, I was done with that amount of stress in my life.

You do have options and its up to you to weigh them. Hopefully transferring to a lower level of care is still an option for you.

Sent via iPink's phone using allnurses

Gooselady, BSN, RN · Jan 7, 2015

My future on the unit is up in the air right now because my managers feel that, while I have made great progress throughout orientation, I still lack the amount of confidence with critical thinking to be on my own.

I would trust this, the managers have the best idea of your 'fit' in this unit. It's something you can 'see' with experience, and there is so many little aspects to it that you couldn't write it all down. If ICU isn't your passion, and you are struggling to be a good fit, why not ask the managers if they think you would do better on acute Peds. Get some real feedback. I bombed in my first job, my manager mentioned to me that watching me flounder was painful to her. We've all had jobs where we were a poor fit skill-wise.

The first year IS very hard, but I think your anxiety is interfering with your ADLs, which DO include self-care. It sounds like you spend most of your time beating yourself up or searching your memory for something to feel bad about. It's not conscious but it does mean it's impacting the quality of your life. That's worth getting some support for, even if it's just talking it out with someone supportive. Ask me how I know In my first year I NEVER dreamed I'd be an old battle ax. Self confidence was a MYSTERY. Try and get a 'grip' on the negative thinking before you impair yourself with it,

How good of a nurse would you be if you weren't constantly worried and full of dread? Seriously. Imagine working as a nurse without that LOAD of crap wearing you down. I'll bet you'd be FINE for your experience level. Not all new grads have the Midas Touch, but you'll get there if you take better care of yourself emotionally and stay realistic about what you can handle professionally.

KassieMO · Jan 8, 2015

Just commenting to say I have empathy for you! As a fellow new grad, I'm struggling with the same situation. I was hired on an Orthopedic trauma unit and just got off of my 8 weeks of orientation. My entire orientation was a huge struggle for me, and I just put in my two weeks notice to leave the floor, because I can't handle the stress. Not saying that to encourage you to quit, but if it does happen.. know that you are not alone. I graduated from top level university nursing program and did not learn 1/10th of the information I need to know to perform my job.

Nursing is already physically and mentally demanding. I do not need the stress of not feeling prepared to take care of 5 patients. If I am going to risk my license and safety to be on the front line of care, I need more than 8 weeks of training.

nneokill175 · Jan 9, 2015

Just commenting to say I have empathy for you! As a fellow new grad, I'm struggling with the same situation. I was hired on an Orthopedic trauma unit and just got off of my 8 weeks of orientation. My entire orientation was a huge struggle for me, and I just put in my two weeks notice to leave the floor, because I can't handle the stress. Not saying that to encourage you to quit, but if it does happen.. know that you are not alone. I graduated from top level university nursing program and did not learn 1/10th of the information I need to know to perform my job.
Nursing is already physically and mentally demanding. I do not need the stress of not feeling prepared to take care of 5 patients. If I am going to risk my license and safety to be on the front line of care, I need more than 8 weeks of training.

I only have 4 weeks. I want to get into nursing informatics so i was planning on sticking it out .But I also feel unsafe practicing nursing with such small amount of trainings offered to me. I will eventually get fired or accidently kill someone. SO, i just emailed the nursing informatics manager to set up an interview. Hopefully this is not a bad move on my part if the current manager finds out

ptrad · Dec 29, 2015

I empathize w/your situation. I am an older new grad w/a background in sports medicine & I found 12 weeks orientation to not be enough. Unfortunately, the unit in which I began did not agree & so the cycle began. I went to another hospital who thought that since I had 12 wks orientation @ one hospital, I should be set to go on their unit & they were very disappointed w/me when I did not shine after 4 weeks working 12 h overnight shifts in their hospital as a new grad. I had thought I would have more time to settle into nursing and a new area, but was sadly disappointed. After some contemplation and several promises that were not fulfilled by management, I left. I am now @ a SNF where I handle 12 patients as opposed to 5 & 4 at other places. It is extremely busy and I spend most of my time passing meds & processing paperwork. Admissions are stressful as the paperwork adds 2 hours easily to a shift per admit. Fortunately, we are not punished for staying late, but it is difficult leaving a 8 h shift 12 h later & makes for an exhausting recovery when repeated 4-5 days in a row. I find myself stressed a lot of the time. Even experienced nurses have a difficult time processing new admits while handling a 12 patient load which necessitates staying later to complete the paperwork. I know w/o admits, I handle the unit well and work to make good decisions. But admits take me back. We do not have a unit manager, and the supervisor assigned to our unit is not helpful I believe admin is aware, but turns their heads to this. We also lack CNA help & are required to serve meals to the residents! It is very frustrating. I would love to move on to acute care vs subacute, but need to put my time in.

I hope that you will stick it out & speak up for yourself. I have learned that some managers are better than others in listening. Unfortunately, it is a business and there are nurses waiting in line to fill your position. As much as I love my patients and caring for them, I hate the stress and blatant disrespect which stems from other staff members that comes w/nursing. It is unfortunate that we tend to stab each other rather than help each other grow. My daily goal is to aim for professionalism & completing tasks in timely fashion while giving good care to my patients. It is not easy as many distractions bar my way and it is easy to be overwhelmed - even w/a plan in place.

I send my best wishes to you - stick w/what you love and try to be the better person. All the best.