No One Ever Questioned It
A new nurse hearing others talk about her.
What happens when “slow” becomes a label instead of a conversation"?
Suzie was a new RN on the med-surg unit.
She moved differently than the others.
Where most nurses had learned to move quickly between rooms, she stayed a little longer.
At the med cart, she checked each medication… then checked it again.
She paused at the bedside to match names, to review, to make sure nothing was missed before she walked away.
To her, it was being careful.
To the rest of the team, it looked like she was falling behind.
By the middle of the week, it was already being noticed.
Assignments were adjusted. Extra duties were kept from her.
There was an unspoken understanding—someone else would have to pick up what she didn’t get to.
And by Friday… the patience was gone.
Let’s dive in!
She Didn’t Say Anything Back
She didn’t say anything back.
She just set the chart down, hands shaking slightly, and walked out before anyone could see her cry.
Behind her, the laughter didn’t stop.
No one followed her.
No one stopped it.
And in that silence, something shifted.
Inside the room, no one went after her.
The moment passed quickly—like it barely registered at all.
Blanche crossed her arms, already settling into the feeling.
“I had it harder than this”.
A voice broke the quiet.
“She’s always double-checking everything.”
Another one followed.
“Med cart, wristbands… over and over. Can’t she read?”
A few heads nodded.
It started as a comparison.
And just like that, it made sense to them.
A nurse wondering what she did wrong.
But no one stopped it.
And when it isn’t questioned, it doesn’t stay a thought for long.
It turns into permission.
Permission to dismiss.
Permission to harden.
And eventually… permission to repeat what once hurt you.
And while it was growing in that room—
Out in the hallway, Suzie was still trying to understand what she had done wrong.
She replayed it in her head.
Every step.
Every check.
Every pause.
Trying to find the moment where being careful, became being wrong.
No one had shown her how to do it differently.
Only that what she was doing…
wasn’t enough.
But she was the one trying to get it right too.
And no one slowed down for her either.
Nothing about that had ever really been questioned.
You CAN do this!
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