“If it makes you feel any better…”

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Did you just start out as a brand-new nurse and [feel] totally overwhelmed? I was, too! There is hope; it does get easier. You’ll get through the tough period where you feel like you don’t know anything. If it makes you feel any better…

I had those mini panic attacks before work.
I freaked out every time I had to call a doctor.
I cried in the bathroom the first time a doctor yelled at me.
I cried after a terrible day in the car on the way home.
I called a patient’s wife his mother.
I took report on the wrong patient.
I had to admit a med error to an attending physician and four of her residents.
I accidentally discharged a patient too early and had to call them to go to a clinic to get a follow-up BMP drawn after potassium replacement because I misunderstood the physician’s order.
I stayed late because I hadn’t charted a word until 19:30.
I hid in an unconscious patient’s room just so I could chart in peace and watch Family Guy.
I was terrified when I floated the first time, but it wasn’t so bad.
I froze during my first code.
I farted when I was alone in an elevator and then a doctor got on at the next floor.
I wasted a lot of time doing patient care, getting behind on my charting, because I was too scared to delegate to the tech playing on her phone.
I sprayed tube feeding residual all over myself and my patient because I forgot to flip the stopcock.
I’m still not the best IV starter in the unit three years later, but there’s more to nursing than that.
I still ask questions every single day.
I still fart in elevators.

To read more, visit NurseEyeRoll.com.

Learning how to be a great nurse at the bedside while maintaining your sanity at home is no easy task. Becoming Nursey: From Code Blues to Code Browns, How to Take Care of Your Patients and Yourself talks about how to realistically live as a nurse, both at home and at the bedside…with a little humor and some shenanigans along the way. Get ready: It’s about to get real, real nursey. You can  get your own copy at at NurseEyeRoll.com (pdf), Amazon (paperback) or Goodreads (ebook).