discouragement from RNs...

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Hi there. I have wanted to go to nursing school for the past 10 years. I haven't enrolled yet do to family needs. I was a CNA in an LTC facility for 2 years. I loved the nursing/patient care aspects of the job but burnt out due to the chronic understaffing. So I went to college and avoided nursing. But have stayed in the health care field because I like it. Now, 10 years later,I want to go back to school for the second time to become an RN (and eventually an FNP).

I am now taking my first pre-reg and getting an A. I feel comfortable around patients. I have 2 years of experience with patient care as a CNA. And other experience with seriously ill family members. I have seen highs and lows. I want to be an RN. I also have enough experience to know that I do not want to be a floor nurse or in an LTC forever. I really want to have my own practice. And perhaps even teach a little. Not because I hate hospitals but because I want to be an FNP. There is a part of me that gets so excited when I think about what I could do someday.

Although there are a few nurses in my office who are encourage me most of my coworkers act as if I'm crazy. They tell me that 'I'll never make as a nurse'. that nurses are 'glorified b**t wipers' and that if I want to make money I shouldn't go into nursing. The pre-dominant message I hear is that nursing is stressful and that I don't have what it takes. I'm not going into nursing to get rich and I think I can make it. But their behavior is

starting to get to me.

I have heard the expression that "Nurses eat their young". Frankly, I think they are licking their lips!! Will I be devoured when I get through school? Do their comments make sense to you? Has nursing changed in the past decade to become as bad as all that?

Any comments(or encouragement:D ) would be appreciated.

Specializes in Hemodialysis, Home Health.

My only advice to you is to follow your own dream ! Your life, your satisfaction, your joy, your contentment and fulfillment will be what YOU make of it...others' opinions are just that.. opinions.

You are the captain of your own ship. Don't look at the storms and the waves all around you...you'll surely drown, and your dream with you.

I wish you the best in forging your own reality and materializing your dream. :)

CA-FNPtobe, don't let em bug you.....I did at first too and really started to doubt my decision to enter nursing school this fall, but I've started letting alot of the negative comments about nursing go in one ear and out the other. I'm going into nursing because I LOVE people and helping them as well. I'm sure I'm going to get flammed for this one too.....but I'd like to make more money, too. If none of us were worried about earning monetary compensation for our skills we wouldn't work, now would we?

No job is going to be fun all the time, if it was, it wouldn't be called work.

EVERY job has negative aspects to it. Do what you think you are supposed to do with your life. And good luck to you!

As a recent grad I have to agree with the statement that "nurses eat their young". Although I have found many nurses that love their jobs and have encouraged me in my career develpoment many more nurses have nothing but discouragment to offer anyone wising to enter their field of work.

My advice is to ignore the negative. No matter where you go you will always find someone who hates their job and wants nothing more than for you to hate it too-misery loves company. I feel sorry for them that they do not have the inner strength to take their destiny in their own hands and change the miserable course thier lives are on. If it is that bad get out.

Follow your dreams. Become a nurse. Make a lasting difference in this world.

Best of luck in your journey.

Specializes in Alzheimer's, Geriatrics, Chem. Dep..
Originally posted by CA-FNPtobe

Any comments(or encouragement:D ) would be appreciated.

Sorry to hear that you are getting that kind of feedback. A few years ago I would have said you were nuts! But I had kind of a spiritual awakening that changed the way I took care of patients, I had a lot more compassion and a greater sense of purpose (yes, it was a Jesus thing, LOL!) and now I get great joy out of my job.

If you are feeling called, then most likely it IS your calling; you might be miserable if you don't follow along. But there are ways to take care of yourself and still be an awesome nurse! Stay in touch with whatever spiritual guidance you may feel you have; set boundaries (ie, I will only work x number of hours, etc), have fun in your outside life AND at work. Have other interests that exericise the OTHER parts of your brain and your spirit. Get to know the PERSON that is your patient and you will find you enjoy them more; but know that you are NOT God, you are just a vehicle (that you need to keep refilling -- don't let this work take ALL your energy, you need friends and family and whomever your God is to fill you back up)!!

Most of all, be true to yourself. I have worked in almost every field of nursing that there is in an attempt to keep my interest going and my skills varied. For that I am very grateful, it has made me a better nurse!

Take care and go for the gold!

Thanks for all of the replies and encouragement. I feel that I will be a great nurse. But like most people sometimes I begin to doubt myself and my coworkers' attitudes fed that negative self-talk. I think that for the most part, the coworkers that are discouraging me are the ones that are disillusioned with nursing and are perhaps projecting their feelings onto me. I realized that there is one nurse who always is telling me that I won't ever make $ in nursing and that she right now is going through financial troubles.

And the women who do encourage me are the ones that also like nursing and are also in school themselves to further their nursing careers. So that is part of it.

What keeps me going is the feeling I get when I help someone. When I was a CNA I worked with a group of stroke survivors to help them relearn some ADLs. And after a month or so one of them was able to feed her self. Those few bites made my month. What a great feeling!

Zoeboboey is right. I have come to the realization that I want to do this but the years away from nursing have given me perspective. boundaries and self care skills are essential. You can't take care of others well if you don't take care of yourself first. Thanks everyone for the replies and encouragement!

Specializes in Alzheimer's, Geriatrics, Chem. Dep..
Originally posted by CA-FNPtobe

there is one nurse who always is telling me that I won't ever make $ in nursing and that she right now is going through financial troubles.

I think there is MUCH money; I have never understood people asking for more ... so we went to school, we have bills, etc. Who doesn't? It is a well known fact that if you spend money you don't have, guess what? YOU NEED MORE! That is a whole nother lesson I had to learn until my credit cards got taken away cuz I couldn't say no to myself. That woman has only herself to blame, NOT the wages.

B well

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GO FOR IT WE ALWAYS NEED GOOD NURSES AND YOU SOUND VERY DETERMINED WE ALL HAVE BAD DAYS AND GOOD DAYS IN NURSING AND IF YOU CAN IMPACT YOUR PT.DONT LISTEN TO NURSES WHO ARE NEGATIVE , believe me they are everywhere you will practice and you need to be able to block them out GOOD LUCK

Every job is what you make out of it.Do it for yourself.I use to hate my job I'm at now,but I got that Jesus thing like zoeboboey and found peace in what I do.I also found that I want to be a nurse,more then anything.I know its a hard job,but I like working with people and believe I will be good at it.You can do it,we all can do it.Do it for yourself!!!!

Sounds like to me you work with some people who are jealous of what you are able to do and where you are headed. More power to you, wish you all the luck and best wishes in the world. Ignore all the negative people as they will only bring you down.

I have been a nurse for ten years, and I want out. the working conditions, heavy work-loads and lack of respect have worn me down.

Not to mention that I am in constant pain from back injuries.

I'm sorry that other nurses have told you you won't make it as a nurse. That is very cruel of them.

But, nursing has really gone down-hill, and I fear it will continue to do so.

No one discouraged me from becoming a nurse, but I wish someone had warned me about what a rough field it is.

Specializes in Obstetrics, M/S, Psych.

Try not to take what these nurses say too personally. Nursing is a very hard profession and after years of being in it, they know it. It may be moreso that they don't want to see you put yourself through the same they have been through. They fully realize now that there are other career options and probably wish they had taken a different direction themselves. Be careful, because once you are in this, you have to do some soul searching to break out of it, because you'll want to maintain the level of income it can provide. Heed their warning, then follow your heart.

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