RN students/moms....give me an idea of what it's like...

luvmyguys · Mar 22, 2008

Hi! Its very doable-CRAZY BUSY-but doable. I have a 21 month old and 3 1/2 year old-boys. I got married and had 2 kids doing prereqs. And I think that you just adapt to what you know you needs done, whether you have kids or not, really. I think that I was just as busy when I worked 40 hours and went to school fulltime and DID NOT have kids. I think its just about priorities. We don't get out socially like we used to (financial sacrifice). And most nights I have a lot of homework and readings to do after the boys go to bed. The one thing I miss...............sleeping in:yawn:!! Some mornings I will get up before them fix a pot of coffee and read (and enjoy the silence:bow:) I have found that studying in the morning sinks in a lot more rather than after a long day with screaming, crying, and fussy (well you know what I mean:bugeyes:).

Some hints for when you get there:twocents::

I get up a lot earlier to get them ready for the sitters and get myself to clinical on time-KEY-be on time-I don't ever want to be that person that uses their kids as an excuse for being late to clinicals. I have seen this backfire-the clinical instructor had small babies and so polietly put that "she made it on time for us." The student turned bloodred, yikes:banghead:

Make sure everything that needs done is done the night before-everything packed from diapers to pencils to lunches-trust me on this one.

Make sure that you have a backup person for a sitter-just in case-some don't think to do this and God forbid its a snow day or the regular sitter gets sick-you MIGHT be able to miss a lecture-but not clinicals.

Most importantly (and you probably already know this one) if you are not grasping the information the way you feel you should be-you probably need to change your study habits. This is how I found out about studying in the mornings is better for me. My house gets CRAZY :bluecry1: :bugeyes: :uhoh3: !!!!

And last, but not least, write everything down that has to be done!!

Well, you probably know all this, so GOOD LUCK!!!!

studentmom2007 · Mar 22, 2008

That was very helpful! Thank you! I never thought about having a back up sitter! I have definitely learned to have everything packed the night before. I have gotten up early a few times, but mine get up so early that to get up before them is getting up in the middle of the night! They are up and ACTIVE by 6:30am! I have done most of my studying at night, too and it is hard after a long day of whining, crying, and fussing! Mine are boys, too...and they are BUSY!!!!

Nicky30, BSN, RN · Mar 22, 2008

I finished my degree in 06. When I started my kids were 11 months and 28 months (one of each).

I started my course part time but picked up courses along the way and eventually finished full-time.

My mum helped out so much at least in the beginning. My kids tended to go to bed at 7 and get up at 7. My son did not sleep through the night, and I still managed (not quite sure how).

The best time for me to study was at night - and still is.

Clinicals were a bit harder and involved a lot of juggling with hubby (shift worker) and my mum.

It couldn't have been too bad (I think???) I am studying for midwifery now and my kids are 6 and 7. Not sure what is worse (they go to bed later but also go to school). Now if I wasn't working as well it would be ideal. :lol2:

Best of luck.

Nicky.

nurz2be · Mar 22, 2008

Your best bet is to do this:

Have a sitter, have a back-up sitter (that will allow your child to be there with a cold).

Have at LEAST 3 contacts for your kids so that while you are at school or at clinicals you can turn your phone off (unless someone is seriously ill or injured).

The above has ended SEVERAL nursing school adventures. You can only miss so many hours of class and clinicals. The sniffles won't hurt the little ones. All kids are GOING to get sick, to what degree may vary. It is inevitable.

Leave home at home! I know this sounds horrid or impossible but trust me when you are listening to a 4 hour lecture on kidney functions or bowel elimination..... you need to focus.

Vice Versa, leave school at school. Find a classmate to drudge over the days mishaps. Enjoy your family when you are with them. Those hours can be few and far between and you don't want to spend the few hours you have with them talking about nursing school!

If you are not an organized person, get that way. Being able to organize lunches the night before, get clothes laid out the night before, get your bag prepared the night before, have dinners prepared on the weekend for the week. These things might seem little but they will save you TONS of time and frustration. There's nothing like running after your kid trying to put their shoes on, find their clothes, find your school stuff, running late, all before a MAJOR test (They are ALL major tests in school). You need to be able to be focused and calm prior to these things.

My most important advice is, don't sweat the small stuff. Don't worry if your kids socks don't match (no one every died cause their socks were different colors). Take each day for what it is and try TRY TRY to enjoy it. There WILL be days you say, What have I gotten myself into. There WILL BE LOTS of days when you see your patient smile when you enter the room, when you are the only "visitor" they have had for weeks. Times when you look back at what you didn't know and are REALLY impressed that the human mind can take in so much information. There will be days when you feel your future instead of dream about it.

GOOD LUCK TO YOU! Welcome to the family!

future L&Dnurse · Mar 23, 2008

I agree with the suggestion that you have backup plans for your backup plans, and then back up THOSE plans. You need to have a nice big group of people who can help with your kids, be available if you can't go pick up a feverish baby from day care because you have a final exam, etc. Student nurses who have kids are a lot more common than I would have thought, in my experience it seems like MANY new moms have their first "real" experience with nursing when they give birth and just want to be the ones providing that care, whether in women's health or anywhere else in the hospital. It's also a great career for a mom, the hours can be so fantastic for a parent (seriously, where else can you work 3 days a week and make a comfortable salary?) - so you'll probably meet other moms in your classes. I wasn't ever able to do this but I think it would be AWESOME to set up a nursing student playgroup, so the kids could run around and have fun together while the moms studied.

I am militant about my kids bedtimes, I have been since they were itty bitty, and that has helped me a lot. I KNOW that if they're in bed by 8pm, I have at least 2-3 hours of good, solid studying time that will be mostly uninterrupted. We also do "homework" together - I study and they draw or work on school work.

One other tip, if your instructors are really strict about cell phones and you (like me) are not willing to be unreachable in case of an emergency, I would let them know on day one that you need to keep your phone on vibrate in your pocket, just in case. I have set my phone to vibrate if my kids' schools call, but anything else is silent, so if I get a call I know it's about my kids. That has been helpful for me, too.

Good luck! It will go by so fast and your whole family will benefit from your new career.

JenniG48 · Mar 23, 2008

Oh, its totally doable (just not easy). When I started my pre-reqs, my children were 4, 2 and 8 months. 2 1/2 yrs later and I am finishing my ADN program.

1. A back up babysitter is a must (and a back up to that back up is highly recommended).

2. Get organized. Set night time and morning rituals and keep them. Have everything prepared the night before so that you don't have to worry about it in the morning.

3. Get a good calander (or in my case a PDA) and use it. Keep your school schedules (assignments, tests, classes, clinicals, etc) on it, put all appts for yourself and kids on it. I track everything from when my babysitter need days off to phone calls that I need to make on it. My calander is my brains most of the time.

4. Know how you study best and plan for it. I study best at night after the kids have gone to sleep. The rule in my house is after 9:00 pm I'm studying, my spouse takes care of any of the kids needs after 9 pm so that I'm not interrupted.

5. Know that there may be times that you will have to miss special events like school programs, be prepared for it. I have my spouse or friends video tape it for me when I have to be in clinicals and can't leave. I sit down with my daughter when I get back and we watch the tapes together.

6. Know that it is only for a few years and then it will be over and I will never have to tell my kids again "Not right now, Mommy's studying."

ccstudent · Mar 23, 2008

Along with all the other great ideas everyone suggested, I feel it was also important to understand the concept of balance. I was a 4.0 student in pre req with my kids, and felt that the balance was o.k ( school/kids) when I got in the program, I had to work alot harder for grades, and was not balanced. I decided that B's were fine if it meant that I could spend alot more time with my family. The work required to get A's were just to much for my heart to take. I am now a 3.3 student and I feel as balanced as a student can in the insanity of nursing school. I mean I feel that as long as I know the material and provide for my patients competently, then no employer will ever care what my GPA was. Good luck.