How do you cope with looking "too young" to be a nurse? - Page 2

Trust me eventually you will mature and the young looking nurse will have aged, hopefully gracefully!

I was a young looking nurse once and I just remained calm and professional, reassuring the concerned or worried that I knew what I was doing.
Some older patients love having the younger nurse look after them as they feel that they can coddle them.

I never had an issue after pt's and relatives realized I did know what i was doing.

Remember years ago it tended to be that very young students came into nursing a lot of them would graduate at 21 after a 3 yr training. So would be 18 when they started.

If you look younger than your years, I hate to say, you'll probably be dealing with this for a long time. I am in my early 40's and people tend to think I'm in my late 20's. I think its because I am very short. People have asked my age. I smile and say, well my oldest child is 20....and I wasn't a teen mom. They do the math and realize the youngest I can be is 40. I love the look of shock on their faces. I've never had anyone really have a problem with me or my work due to looking younger.

I know its hard (I've been dealing with it forever) but try not to let them get to you. Just prove to them you are 100% capable of doing your job and they tend to feel more at ease. You'll embrace the 'compliment' when you are older

It depends on who says it and how they say it. If its a 90 year old little old woman I smile and say thanks. If it's a co-worker or supervisor, I politely but firmly remind them that I am capable of doing my job, and that any implication otherwise is discrimination and I will not stand for it.

I get this all the time. I laugh it off and tell them my real age. I am 28 and people ask if I am 18. I then ask if they would want a teenager being a nurse. The best thing is to not take it personally and feel happy that you look young and not old.

I know exactly how others perceive you! Im 27 but look like a fresh from the schoolroom starry-eyed little girl! Sometimes I experience some people who would eye me warily when I come in weilding a syringe or a tube set. There are times when they would say straight to my face that they would like a more experienced (meaning older) nurse to give them the shot. But once I do my job, they look at me with new respect. Just do your job well and no one will dare question you!

People have always thought I'm way younger than I really am all my life. By the time I actually became a nurse, I was so used to it, I didn't really care what people said. Even though I look young, my coworkers can see how competent I am, and they all respect me for the job that I do. I do get patients quite a bit who ask me how long I've been doing my job, and even a few have wondered how old I really am because I don't look old enough to do my job, but I just answer their question and move on. It doesn't bother me one bit.

This only concerns me as far as GETTING a job

My brother taugt me a fun way to deal with this. When he was in residency, and a patient would say "you look too young to be a doctor!" My brother would look at them innocently and say "I don't think 19 is too young to be a doctor at all!" and pause to see the reaction. He was a man in his early 30's, and that line almost always got a laugh.

Personally, I grew a beard. That option may not work for the majority of nurses. I have never really had a problem......all the little old ladies love me

I just respond that I am old enough to know what I am doing!