Tell me someone else has felt like this....

[NurseMegh]

I am a new graduate LPN. I am currently looking for a job with little luck. I have been freaking myself out lately because I feel like I don't know anything. Yes I feel like in nursing school I learned pretty much the basics and how to be safe. I am soooooooooooooooooo worried because when I do actually get hired say it be a nursing home and they put me out there on the floor I am going to be completly lost!!!!!!!!! All the what if this and what if that keep poping up in my head.....and how am I going to know this and that! AHHH!!! Please share your thoughts on this matter! I have little confidence! Did you feel like this coming out of school? How did you get over it?

[NocturneRN]

somehow, i have managed to last three decades in nursing without being eaten, encountering backstabbers (well ok, maybe one or two), bullies or more than the occasional bit€#. am i lucky, smart or incredibly dense? or maybe some of the rest of you are focusing more on the negatives than you need to.

i'd say you're lucky. i'm not big on unpleasant, behind-the-person's-back gossip, so i seldom indulge in it (at least at work!), but there's certainly been plenty of it on every unit i've worked on. i do notice that i see much more of it where the staff is highly stressed (as in understaffed, or poorly managed units, or units with too many inexperienced nurses, and not enough experienced ones to give them guidance).

[kiszi, RN]

I have always told new grad orientees that they will learn more in the first year out of school than while in school. and that's saying a lot! Thats one of the beauties of nursing is that there's always something to learn.

Agreed. It's going to take a lot, lot, lot of time. After a year, you'll probably feel like a competent nurse. But even then there will be times when feel like you don't know what the heck you're doing. And that's ok! Because you will never stop learning. Always ask questions, and don't be afraid that someone will look down on you. Seasoned nurses ask questions all the time, especially the good ones. Nursing is a complex science that's always changing, and there is always something that will be new to you.

As for those "what if" situations--you will have those, but if you're in LTC the really scary moments won't be all that frequent. Trust your training, and if there ever is a doubt, grab someone. The nurse you grab might be someone coming off two double shifts and crabby, but thicken your skin and get the info you need. You will learn quickly who can be good resources for you. They may not be the ones you're most friendly with, but the ones with the best practice and knowledge. Watch other nurses in their practice. You will learn things that can improve your own performance as well as tons of things NOT to do. Please know that you're not alone, and you WILL be ok.