does nursing seem boring?

rachelgeorgina · Oct 3, 2009

^ It's the right phrase.

I find the class work under-stimulating. I don't know whether it's because I'm a bit hyperactive and eager to learn but all the American students on these boards talk about how overwhelming nursing school is, how much work they have to do and so forth. I can't get enough. We get taught SO SLOWLY. I remember in the first lab we had this semester we spent around an hour learning how to spike a bag and prime a line. ITS NOT THAT HARD, seriously. We start our next half-subject in a week and I've already gone through the entire half-semester worth of work and done it - reading, research, questions and case studies. I go green with envy seeing students in the years ahead of me learning new things - like how to administer blood, catheterize, give injected medications and so forth.

As for clinical, I really relate to what's been said already. As a student, there's only so much you can do. & not having independent abilities makes it even worse. Some clinical drive me mad because so many things are happening that I want to learn and try and practice but I'm not allowed to because "we haven't done that in class yet" (even basic things like taking out staples!)

I also work as a NA in a long term care facility for disabled children, which I find can be very monotonous. I provide full care for my allocation of kids, usually 4-5 - feeding (tube/oral), hygiene, stimulation, passive exercises and so forth. It's not enough for my poor little brain...

I think I'm going to need a job in critical care or oncology or something of the sort....

nurseman78, BSN, RN, NP · Feb 13, 2010

Nice thing about nursing is that there are a lot of directions you can go. Sounds like you need to work in a busy ICU or ER unit. Have you considered getting a Master's and becoming an NP or maybe a CRNA? Seems like that might be a little more stimulating with the prescribing, looking at lab tests, etc.

That's the main reason I plan on going on to get a Master's. Floor nursing might be okay for awhile, but I think it would get a little old.

eyeball · Mar 26, 2011

I have to agree with you that a lot of nursing specialties bore the crap out of me. I also work on a Med/Surg and Tele floor as a Nurse Intern. I follow nurses and help out with what I can, and I can tell you it is damn monotonous. Assessment, med pass, chart, repeat. Even on the nights when it is busy it is still pretty intellectually boring. I have the same issues with clinicals. I am interested in learning new things, but once I have done it a million times I get a little bored with it. The only clinical I wasn't bored in was OB. I think that is how you can figure out what specialty to go into. If you want to be challenged and a setting doesn't challenge you, it is probably not for you. I think it is great to be introspective about what you enjoy and where you excel. It will make you a better nurse. Don't let on that you are bored, though. I try to act like every wet to dry dressing change or heparin shot are the most interesting things that I have ever done.

I find nursing to be a peculiar mix of boring, stressful, and draining. The day is composed of a thousand stupid stresses and duties. I've been overwhelmed being a new nurse but now that I'm getting the hang of how it works I'm disappointed to find out how boring I find the job.

dudette10, MSN, RN · Mar 26, 2011

I know I'm asking for it, but does it ever seem like from clinicals that nursing can be really boring?
I just finished my LPN program and start RN next week, but in all my different rotations it seemed like there were a lot of things that would bore me to tears (like rehab nursing, and so on) Do you think maybe it's just because as a student we can't do much, so I'm not really getting a feel for it? I will say when I got to OB/peds and got to do a day in ICU with my preceptor for leadership, it seemed way more interesting.... but a lot of jobs seem like you just pass meds and chart all day. Maybe I just made it more glamorous in my mind, but I'm starting to worry that I won't like nursing (and I've dreamed of being one since I was 7yrs old). Do you think maybe I just haven't found an area that interests me? I'm scared I may hate working as a nurse after all this hard work.

I know exactly where you are coming from because I too had to keep myself engaged during clinicals. I do believe it's because, as students, we aren't allowed to DO things as much as we would like. But, just be sure you listen and you practice putting what you learned in school to what other nurses are doing/thinking. You'll need it later on, believe me.

Although you see nurses passing meds and charting, they are doing a lot of thinking as they do those things. Unless they talk out loud all the time, you won't realize that. In clinicals, I would watch what they wrote and watch which patient they would pass by during report and which ones they would enter the room for and ask questions of the nurse reporting to them. They did that for a reason, and when they had time, I would ask them why they did that. Most nurses are more than happy to explain their thought processes. It really helped me.

dudette10, MSN, RN · Mar 26, 2011

As for the monotony of doing the same thing over and over again...

A funny story: I was removing the EKG leads from a patient the other day. Something I've done a lot and it's just another task, really. This one, however, had a hairy chest. He'd just been through surgery, and his pain was managed. But, when I pulled the first lead off, he looked like he wanted to crawl the walls. All of a sudden, the monotony of removing EKG leads became, well, interesting.

I said, "Have you ever seen that movie?" He answered, "You mean '40 year old virgin'? Yeah!" And he began laughing. His pain was lessened in removing the other four hair-covered leads because he was laughing as much as he possibly could being post-op. Maybe I'm weird, but that made the monotony of the task much less.

Sometimes, just connecting with your patients can make your whole day a little brighter. :)

ImThatGuy, BSN, RN · Mar 27, 2011

From a student perspective LTC and med-surg sure as heck seem boring.

OMOLURU COURAGE I · Mar 27, 2011

Nursing is fun just that the doctors here in Nigeria can be funny at times

AKA_Glamour_Pearl · Mar 27, 2011

It's really hard to say. The only person that really knows why clinicals are boring is you. It could be that you aren't being as proactive as you should, so you're missing a lot of learning opportunities. Sometimes as students we're afraid, so instead of venturing out there and asking to see or do more, we stick with the familiar. When an emergency is going on and a nurse needs help, are you the student going to take out the patient's trash or get a clean wash cloth or are you running down the hall "begging" to participate and delegating trash duty to the CNA?

Have you spoken to your instructors? They can offer valuable feedback as to what they feel you could be doing better or why you aren't feeling connected to what you're doing.

Honestly, every semester is different and every clinical instructor is different. I enjoyed my clinicals because I was able to connect the dots for what I've read and what I'm seeing. I enjoyed all of my experiences because I feel like I learned so much from them. Take inventory. We learn something new everday. If you aren't learning something new, then maybe you should work a little harder.

I'm glad that you do enjoy OB/Peds. I did really well in that class, but I didn't enjoy the clinicals because babies scare the heeby jeebies out of me. That was the one clinical that I dreaded more than anything and I was bored to death. I don't really care about a fundus, or Apgar score. I'm not interested in fetal positions and watching a woman push forever. Giving birth is great, but I'm not that fascinated because me and children don't agree. So, that's what I know about myself.

So, just take inventory and find out why you're not enjoying clinicals or getting the most out of them. I would say that if you find that you don't like any of them or your preceptorship, then it's a really, really bad sign.

joe007 · Jun 6, 2012

Go to the ER... you'll never be bored.