[chrissy6496]

I am not a nurse yet, but my sister-in-law is and she smokes. I smoke as well and would like to quit before even starting my classes. I heard that "you can't be a nurse unless you smoke". I feel like I am such a hypocryt for smoking and wanting to be a nurse at the same time, but I also know from reading all of the threads that nursing can be a very stressful job. I am sure that I am not the only one with this problem, but I do feel guilty. Does anyone else? Not judging in any way.

[Peeps Mcarthur]

Chrissy,
I was a respiratory therapist and I would take a break and go have a smoke. Try that for an internal conflict.

It is an addiction to the feeling that all the poisonus gasses given off by the burning of it give to your brain. It will tell you when your levels of those gasses in your system are low and it is time to feed the craving. Your brain doesn't care what your schedule is, it just wants the base craving to be satisfied.
It will control your life for as long as you allow it to. Guilt has been shown to be ineffective against its power. Accept the fact that your an addict and fight for your freedom, or go with it. Either way, guilt is something you will feel until you do.

I'm 6 years since I had a smoke and I still get cravings once in awhile.

So....................good luck with that.

[ShandyLynnRN]

I smoke, and get a lot of flack about it too!! Especially when I get sick, ppl tell me, "it's all that smoking, that's why you have bronchitis!", not to mention that everyone I work with who isn't a smoker has had it and came to work sick with it, exposing me! I feel bad at times, especially now that we are supposed to offer smoking cessation info and support to all patients who smoke. Then I get the patient that is offended by the smell of smoke on me, and then I feel really bad! I just try to wear a lab coat over my clothes when I smoke, and wash my hands really well. I guess at this point I dont feel bad enough to quit, but it is very tempting to quit when I have a shift where I have much breastfeeding assisting to do. I have quit before, and I know how offending it can be to smell smoke on someone. Alas, still a smoker, and not intending to stop anytime soon....

[mageean]

I am a smoker and have tried to give up many times.(once for 5years). our hospital has a no smoking policy so everyone takes a break in their car!! Because I work in psychiatry of old age this tends to be less of a problem as many patients smoke and we provide facilities for them to do so. We continue to preach about patient choice ,quite rightly but what about nurses choices despite smoking been seen as a bad habit.

[JMP]

Believe me, you CAN be a nurse and not smoke.

Everything in life is about choices, choose NOT to smoke.

I have seen many terrible deaths that are directly linked to smoking.

I will never smoke..... period.

[SmilingBluEyes]

No one can wash the stench of smoking away and those who are doing patient care should NOT smoke on the job...I don't care how many lab coats one wears or how much he/she washes their hands, the rest of us can smell it on a smoker, and it is nauseating to those of us who are sick. ( i have been patient in care of smokers and nothing smelled worse when I was sick). I just wish if one chooses to smoke (and it is a choice, like said above) that person would refrain while caring for the sick. To those trying to quit, I wish them luck. It can be done; I know firsthand.

[Tweety]

Disclaimer: This is not a smoker vs. nonsmoker post. I'm not flaming smokers because I know it's an addiction. But here is my rant....

I was in charge the other night. One of the LPNs patients had to be transferred to a higher level of care. I was moving the patient along with the CNA and passed the nurse whose patient it was going outside to smoke.

Don't you know I hit the ceiling. The nerve of him, smoking while I'm moving beds around....grrrr......

Sometimes I wished I smoke, then I would be more organized and be able to leave the unit.

[Peeps Mcarthur]

Hey,

I had many a trached patient while I was a respiratory therapist take a drag off thier cigarett by pushing it down to the inner cannula to create enough suction. They were so desensitized by thier addiction they really didn't notice thier wet, sticky, tapioca trach opening was soaking the filter, thus exposing them to a plethora of nasty bacteria, which they were inviting a free pass directly into thier tracheas without the benefit of upper respiratory immune response.


Oh well, it was good for business.

[researchrabbit]

You need not be a smoker to be a nurse. But you will need to find an alternate method of handling stress while you are in school and afterwards....otherwise you'll find it very hard to quit.

[Allison S.]

Only one of our nurses, and one of our therapists that I am aware of smoke. Most of us nurses at our place DO NOT SMOKE!

Interestingly enough, at a previous job, we had an emphysema patient, post lung transplant, burst into flames in her hospital bed. She insists it was spontaneous, and doesn't know whose cigaretts and lighter those were on her bed.

Good luck quitting. It ain't easy, but it's easier than dying the ugly ways smokers do.