Very soon I will be completing my first year as a registered nurse and I can tell you with complete confidence that nursing is a very rewarding and also very difficult profession. If you are like most individuals that I have spoken to, you will often question why you decided to become a nurse. You will consider what other paths you may have chosen. However, you will also find a great sense of accomplishment every time you save or life or hear that you have done your job well. Here are a few tips that may help you as you navigate your first year in nursing:
- Find a mentor – You will have a LOT of questions. Find someone to ask them to that genuinely enjoys teaching. Know that you will never know everything and no one else will either.
- Find ways to deal with stress – Learn healthy coping mechanisms with good books, good web sites, and maybe a good therapist. Understand yourself and learn how you best succeed in stressful circumstances.
- Find a support system – Talk to your fellow nurses and remain in contact with other new nurses. Your family and friends outside of nursing will never fully understand what you are going through. I am still looking for a good formal support group for nurses.
- Continue to learn – You don’t have to go back to school to learn. Grad school is really difficult (But more on that later). Complete mastery courses. Go to seminars. Join professional organizations.
- Show up early – Getting to work early makes a big difference in reducing anxiety and helping you to get organized before you receive report.
- Develop your own system of organization – Use notebooks, folders, checklists, or whatever you need in order to stay organized. Eventually you will find a rhythm that will keep you sane on the most trying days.
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