Re: Multiple interests, hard to decide... help!
In response to the above...
I started out Med/Surg/Peds as a CNA, then LPN. Graduating as RN, went to corrections, quite honestly for the pay and the touch of mental/behavioral health, which is one aspect of nursing I was and still am interested in.
The facility I was at actually WAS a toxic environment, not because of the inmates but because of the leadership/management/staff issues. Not necessary to go in depth -- it was a good choice to leave gradually. From there, travelled in corrections. Returning, did PRN work in urgent cares, doctor's offices, chemical dependency/detox, outpatient endoscopy, and nursing home (basically to fill in a gap until finding FT job I desired).
While searching, was offered a travel contract in very nice behavioral health facility. LOVED that. Too far away, and not something I was interested in for long term.
After that, jumped feet first into ER and absolutely loved and still love it. Still worked PRN as all those above things, but FT ER. That lasted a year and went PRN there due to distance/travel/skyrocketing gas prices (140 miles round trip made it not worth working there, because at the end of the month a large portion of salary was going to gas, despite the fact that I loved my co-workers and the specialty in general).
Still PRN at that place, was offered a travel contract through referral thru a friend and co-worker locally, in home town. ER again, and also love it. There are some management/staff issues, and at this point I am enjoying ER very much but wanting to be on a day-ish shift where I can sleep at night. Night shift has been very harsh on me health-wise and after having "healed" while working days for the past 4 months, I feel SO good and don't want to go back to a mix of insomnia and sleeping for what seems like an entire day to recover.
So there are several options locally, and I think that I am going to accept a position that I was offered today.
I guess my issue is that I want to go back to school for a master's in an APN specialty and I have NO idea what direction I want to go yet. I don't want to "try on" different specialties at the cost of multiple employers, but at the same time "shadowing" for a day, or even a week, doesn't give the same insight as actually "doing it" does.
Does that give more info?
I'm not looking for criticism and negative feedback -- maybe I'm just looking to hear from some APN's or other "specialized" nurses who "were lost but now are found," or basically who were very undecided and somehow determined what their passion was. I seem to have a bazillion passions... I don't know how to focus in and find my "one."
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