I think I don't want to be a Nurse anymore.

Nurses General Nursing

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Hi everyone!

I am currently a Pre-Nursing student and I feel like I am going in circles as towards what I want to do with my life. I used to love medicine, the science behind it, etc. I thought I wanted to go to medical school and become a doctor. I always pictured myself working in a hospital, and was very excited to know I'd be starting a career in healthcare. However, I just am not sure if Nursing school is for me. This semester has taken a lot out of me. I am taking Psych, Chemistry, Anatomy, and English. In each class I have sustained a 100 average in that I worked my tail off to get (I studied A LOT, it did not always come easy for me believe me). This may sound stupid because I often hear that "pre-reqs are a breeze compared to Nursing school" but taking these pre-reqs for me have been nothing short of very difficult and I just know it's only going to get harder from here. Lots of times my frequent anatomy exams would cover nothing short of 100 pages from the textbook and I will literally be tested on it 2-3 classes later. Then at the same time as that anatomy exam I will have a psych exam, and then at the same time of those two exams I will have another weekly chem quiz and another weekly quiz for chem lab but because chem lab doesn't articulate with what we cover in lecture, it's like studying for another class...Then I have to count in Anatomy lab and complete the 80 weekly homework questions for chem. Then I have to read and stay on top of things for English and throughout most of this it's just been extremely hard! I have done that almost every week throughout this semester and I can't imagine it getting any worse. The dean of nursing at my college who advises my friend (the nursing school my college has is the toughest one around here) said she doesn't advise taking two sciences at once because both are actually heavily rigorous at our school...But we all know none of this compares to the rigors of Nursing school.

Did anyone else feel this stressed out while taking their pre-reqs and make them doubt about whether or not to actually pursue Nursing? Finals are coming up and I'm losing motivation. I am wondering if it's for me but although I am doing fine right now I am not sure if it's something I want to continue pursuing due to the significant amount of stress that comes along with it. I am looking for great advice from many of the knowledgeable people on this site.

Thanks everyone!

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Specializes in Med/Surg, LTACH, LTC, Home Health.

You should have listened when you heard that it was not recommended to take two sciences together. I received my ASN 6 years ago. During that pursuit, I always took a class that I viewed as a no-brainer in conjunction with one that was difficult for me so that I would not feel as you do now.

Finish out this semester and lighten your load next semester. What you're experiencing now has nothing whatsoever to do with nursing. You screwed over yourself by biting off more than you could chew.

Even nursing teaches us that in order to best care for the patients, we must know our limitations.

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Is that a new thing, to not take 2 science classes?

I got my BSN in 4.5 hrs total including pre reqs, I thought that was the norm, if you were a traditional student and could get the classes.

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Specializes in ICU.

Am I reading correctly though that you have a 100% in each class? I took 2 sciences at once and it wasn't a big deal. Nursing is a science major. Bachelor of SCIENCE in Nursing.

Yes, you work your butt off in nursing school. More so than the prereqs. But, truly right now, I'd give anything to be back in nursing school as that is nothing compared to the job itself.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, LTACH, LTC, Home Health.

If the sciences do not come easy for him, then it's in his best interests to not take two together. It's not a "new thing"; more like a common sense thing....to put it bluntly with no intent whatsoever to offend anyone. This is not saying that it can't be done because he did it....but at what cost? Stress? Rethinking his chosen career path? It's easier just to separate the two courses.

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Yeah, I have 100 in everything and I'm not lying. On every english exam and quiz I have scored a 100 on. For chemistry, I have gotten an A on every exam but because I did extra credit it brought my grade from a 98 to a 100. I also have an A for lab. For Psych, I have gotten an 100 on every exam but also have done extra credit that brought my grade to a 106%. For anatomy, I got an A on every exam and practical and haven't gotten a grade less than a 95 and have a 99.5 average in that class. Because now I have such a high grade for anatomy I luckily don't have to take the final.

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If the sciences do not come easy for him, then it's in his best interests to not take two together. It's not a "new thing"; more like a common sense thing....to put it bluntly with no intent whatsoever to offend anyone. This is not saying that it can't be done because he did it....but at what cost? Stress? Rethinking his chosen career path? It's easier just to separate the two courses.

I took both of them because I wanted to get the courses out of the way so I wouldn't be behind a year to apply to the program. I was willing to sacrifice 16 weeks of my time if it meant to apply a semester earlier but it hasn't necessarily been a walk in the park since the semester has began. I'm one of those annoying type-A perfectionist-type people, so it's in my nature.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, LTACH, LTC, Home Health.
I took both of them because I wanted to get the courses out of the way so I wouldn't be behind a year to apply to the program. I was willing to sacrifice 16 weeks of my time if it meant to apply a semester earlier but it hasn't necessarily been a walk in the park since the semester has began. I'm one of those annoying type-A perfectionist-type people, so it's in my nature.

I definitely can understand self-imposed deadlines. Word of caution: be careful what you ask for..;)

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I definitely can understand self-imposed deadlines. Word of caution: be careful what you ask for..;)

Yeah I've learned that haha. Lots of people at my school take one science course for fall and spring semester, then take the chem classes over the summer so they apply in the fall of their sophomore year. Sometimes I wish I did that to make things easier but what's done is done.

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If becoming a nurse is your goal, then you'll put in the time and effort to achieve your goal. If you want an easier time as a student, then you'll choose a major that doesn't challenge you in the same way and you'll have to rethink your career goals. What do you want to be when you grow up? You obviously have the mental capacity for success.

You also may want to rethink the pressures *you're putting on yourself*. I can empathize with your desire for academic success, as someone who always pushed for straight As. But you can still earn those straight As, that 4.0, without all the extra credit if your assignment and test scores earn you an A. Why does earning that A with 106% versus 98% make more sense to you when you're running yourself into the ground and burning yourself out?

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If becoming a nurse is your goal, then you'll put in the time and effort to achieve your goal. If you want an easier time as a student, then you'll choose a major that doesn't challenge you in the same way and you'll have to rethink your career goals. What do you want to be when you grow up? You obviously have the mental capacity for success.

You also may want to rethink the pressures *you're putting on yourself*. I can empathize with your desire for academic success, as someone who always pushed for straight As. But you can still earn those straight As, that 4.0, without all the extra credit if your assignment and test scores earn you an A. Why does earning that A with 106% versus 98% make more sense to you when you're running yourself into the ground and burning yourself out?

I did it because I realize I'm competing with those who have earned A's in their pre-requisite courses who spaced out their pre-reqs. It's not uncommon at my school where people space them out and take them over the summer and they all tell me they get A's that way, but I really just wanted to get the courses out of the way and not have to waste my summer studying chemistry. I think I also heard that it looks better on your transcript if you take them all in one semester but I am not sure how true that is.

Lastly, I did extra credit because it gives me hope for finals week lol. For Chem, I can get a 0 on the cumulative final and have a B average, all because I got A's on all the exams and did extra credit, factor in the lab grade as well, so it just makes things a little less stressful when finals come around

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I did extra credit because it gives me hope for finals week lol. For Chem, I can get a 0 on the cumulative final and have a B average, all because I got A's on all the exams and did extra credit, factor in the lab grade as well, so it just makes things a little less stressful when finals come around

Oh, OK, as long as you're less stressed. :facepalm:

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