Comparison is killing me in school? How will I become a good nurse?!

I know comparison is not good but sometimes I really do feel like I won't be a competent enough nurse and that is my biggest fear. It's not that I do not know the material, it is because of my lack of confidence and social anxiety.

Imagine you meeting with a nurse and the nurse is timid, shy, and quiet. Would you trust that nurse? That is my point

My teacher today said she would randomly call on a student to role play the nurse and IMMEDIATELY my heart sank and started beating over 100 beats per minute and I was extremely nervous i'd have to explain things infront of everyone and look frightened, but why? If this is what i'll be doing in just a few months...

The worse part is.. we started off with about 40 student in the class but that slowly decreased during nursing school because many failed the exams, failed the lab assessments, or they dropped because it was too much stress and they didn't want to pursue it anymore. The difference is I absolute love nursing, I love helping people, I love learning, and assessing patients, I love the enviroment and the job duties. I haven't even failed one assessment because how much I study and understand a lot of the material and critically think during exams

The problem is... how could I even implement my knowledge if I freeze and lose my train of thought. I get nervous. I get insecure. This is eating me up.. Thank goodness they didn't call on me because I would have embarrassed myself in front of my entire class. Another girl in my class volunteered and did 100x better than I would have. No stuttering, calm, understanding, patient.. just perfect.

[DJB74]

Let me start with a short answer to one of your questions. You asked,, Who would want a shy, timid, inverted nurse? Me, someone just like youand many others. I also personally will state, you said you LOVE NURSING. Bingo. Use that love to strengthen your service and aid you in overcoming your insecurities. When its possible, let the people who are gifted soeak and you serve. You've already made it when many didn't. You are strong and that won't diminish. Anytime you need encouragement. Message. WE NEED NURSES LIKE YOU

[Hidden in reply to DJB74]

Your post has helped me more than you know and I will probably come back to this again. Thank you so much! I will try my best to strengthen my service and hopefully one day I’ll be confident in my abilities

[Hidden]

Definitely rather be the second one. I don’t want to drive myself crazy even though I might already be doing that. Haha. Thank you so much for your kind words and inspiration. I feel a bit better

[Hidden]

@luna_child thank you for responding I can’t even explain how much better I feel after reading this mostly because how much you can relate to me when you were in college and you having to do a lot of role play as well. I guess it’s common for our professions. It’s hard.. really hard to remind myself that this feeling is normal when I watch others seem so confident and well composed. I hope I get to that place, I’m sure I will it’s just unfortunate it hasn’t happened yet. I definitely will read that

[Dolphin14]

You will build your confidence when you get out on your own. You will hopefully have strong preceptors to train you.You love nursing, that means you have what it takes to fulfill your calling. I remember the first time I introduced myself to a patient. " Hi my name is ... I will be your nurse today" I was scared to death. What a responsibility. But as time went on my confidence grew and I could walk into any situation and feel like I was just where I wanted to be.

Best of luck with your career

[Hidden in reply to Dolphin14]

Thank you @dolphin14 do you mind if I message you sometime for questions? I’m really glad that I have met another nurse on here. Did you have a strong preceptor when you graduated and that helped you adjust?

[Dolphin14 in reply to Hidden]

Hi Sure message any time.

I did have strong support and worked my way through my career to become a preceptor. I spent a lot of time working with new staff.

I've been at it a long time

You will do fine. The first year is tough. Just take it one shift at a time and ask lots of questions. 🩺💉💊

[goldieoldie]

,learn to like yourself more and let the love of your work take over,anyone who isnt nervous to begin with would be lying ,its probably a moment of doubt regarding your capability, and once you learn to relax and enjoy what you love doing .you will be more than capable everyone loves a conscientious nurse....all the best!!

[Reading_Rando]

I used to have alot of social anxeity but now I have alot less. For me a combination of a good anxiety medication (which took the edge off) and just trying to practice being more outgoing in safe envrioments helped alot. The more you get out there and realize you know exactly what your doing and how to do it (especially when others don't) the better you will feel.

School can be a very safe envrioment because social conseqences tend to be minor and if you tell people that your just nervous about doing something new, I think most of your peers would tell you the same thing, even your professors probably didnt feel confident when they were still learning. They are both very likely to be sympathetic if you talk to them about it, they can also help you boost your confidence. Keep up the good work!