Hello, my name is Kathi and I need some

Nurses Career Support

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advice on nursing. I have gone back and forth on wanting to be a nurse or an elementary teacher. I am 35yrs old and would be starting college for the first time. I would have to take one class at a time till i get use to school again. So this is my dilema: I think I would make a good nurse because of my caretaker type of personality. My husband says that he doesn't think i would like it. He has spent alot of time around nurses with his job. He works for a prison and has to take inmates to the hospital for surgeries and such. He's been to a few different hospitals and he says that he's never seen a happy nurse and that they are always griping about how crappy their job is. He says the dr.'s are mean to them and i wouldn't handle that well. i'm a very sensitive person when it comes to emotions. we have been married for 17 yrs and he would know me best but i'm not sure that he is 100% correct. I need some input from nurses. I need a job that changes all of the time. I get bored doing the same thing all of the time. I get sick of working with the same people all of the time. I'm not sure what to do. I just registered at LSUA for a major in teaching. But i'm only taking one class this semester. I need to take my pre-req's so i guess i could change my major to nursing if i decided to go that route. Gosh, i wish there was a way that i could work as a nurse for a day to see if it's for me. i know i wouldn't be doing anything that the nurses really do but just to observe them.

Kathi

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Why not try being a nurse aide? You can get your certification in about 6-8 weeks depending on the program and then you can work in a hospital surrounded by nurses and doctors and see if it is something for you. I am 37 and will be in my first nursing class in 3 weeks and I am so excited. I am a CNA now and have been for awhile and I am learning a lot from the nurses I work with. I see lots of happy employees - there are ones that are not happy, but you would see that in schools too. I love what I am doing and am excited to become a nurse - just as long as I finish before I hit 40! :p

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Specializes in Med/Surg, LTC.

You mention you want something that changes all the time as you get bored easily and you want something where you are not working with the same people all of the time. Nursing can be doing the same thing over and over again - and it can be working with the same people over and over again. There are routines and protocols to follow for everything, but I have never gotten bored. I enjoy using critical thinking skills and even in an environment like long term care, you are constantly learning new things all the time. I enjoy the autonomy I have on my unit - I can make all the decisions that need to be made without feeling like I am swimming in a big ocean fighting for my life, so to speak, as there is always the support of the other nurses you work with (and allnurses.com!). If you have a compassionate heart, which it sounds like you do, it is a wonderful place to bring meaning into your life whilst building a career. I would say you could get an idea of what nursing is all about if you take the CNA route, although you will not begin to appreciate nursing in its true professional sense unless you actually take the dive. I would say GO FOR IT!

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Specializes in NICU.

Another thought, you may be able to "job shadow". Check with the Human Resource dept at your local hospital, or the Nursing dept at your college. They can arrange to have you spend some hours with a nurse, so you will have some idea about the work.

I signed up as a volunteer, spent a few hours every week on an Ob/Peds unit, answering call lights, the telephone, stocking supplies, pushing babies to mom's room and back. I always felt needed, and now I realize how much help a good volunteer can be. I even helped hold babies for IV starts, with the staffing in those days, there was no-one else. Those nurses encouraged me to go into nursing, and I continued to help out until I graduated from nursing school. Not all volunteer services do the same things, so you may have to look around to see what your groups do.

You do have some options, so start looking!

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WE NEED YOU!!!

I feel like now as never before the nursing field needs to encourage people more than ever to enter our field. I will not sugar coat it though it is tough work and you will work hard. You will also reap the benefits of seeing the effects you have on those you help. You will be able to alleviate fear and give hope you will be looked to for answers and sought out for assistance. I write articles for my local Nursing newspaper, I would love for you to read these articles and see if they give you any Idea about how I feel about my profession. I am a very happy person and I am always happy at work (not to be corny) I feel like God shines a light on me when I am working and I am helping others. I will not tell you it is all fun and games and I will not tell you some people (doctors, nurses, plebotomists, patients or families)will not be cruel, unpleasant jerks, but you run into a certain number of these anywhere you go even Walmart and sometimes even your own family. I think both of the choices you mention are admirable, I think you could probably do well in either if your heart is in it. Choose wisely and Good Luck!

http://www.okcnursingtimes.com/specials/category_show.asp?catid=88&active=0

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why not try being a nurse aide? you can get your certification in about 6-8 weeks depending on the program and then you can work in a hospital surrounded by nurses and doctors and see if it is something for you. i am 37 and will be in my first nursing class in 3 weeks and i am so excited. i am a cna now and have been for awhile and i am learning a lot from the nurses i work with. i see lots of happy employees - there are ones that are not happy, but you would see that in schools too. i love what i am doing and am excited to become a nurse - just as long as i finish before i hit 40!

sandy, you just made my night!! i am a 36 year old mom of 2 small children.....i am almost done with my pre-reqs for an associate degree in nursing... i hadn't thought about becoming a nurses aide to get experience and to learn more about my chosen field, its ingenious!!!! lladies and gents, we can make it thru!! le'ts keep working towards this goal and i pray, we can have the positive outlook that sandy has....she really "lifted" me up.

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Bump so 4mygirls can find it easier

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The awesome thing about nursing is you are constantly teaching. You don't just make a plan to care for your patient but you are always answering questions and teaching them how to care for themselves. For instance, I am a labor and delivery nurse. From the time my patient sits in the bed I am teaching them something. I teach them about pain control, about the fetal monitor and what the strip tells us, I teach them to breast or bottle feed and many many more things. If you are trying to pick between the two then know that you can be a teacher and make nothing or you can be a nurse which includes teaching and make a little more money. :p I know you will make the right decision for yourself, but I can guarantee you will always have a job in nursing and there are so many fields of nursing that you would never get bored. Blessings. Lori RN

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perhaps the OP has forgotten where we are LOL

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Nursing is a great field to get into if you like change, you can do so much with an RN. You don't have to work in a hospital, you can work in a clinic, you can be a community health nurse, you and work in an elementary school and be the school nurse. There are endless options for the nursing profession!

No matter what profession you choose, there will be someone who thinks they can treat you like dirt I have only been a nurse for a little over a year and I get a little stronger everyday when it comes to those types of people. You really can do anything that you put your mind too!

Good luck, I hope you join the wonderful world of nursing!:rolleyes:

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Hello... You have my blessings on which path you decide. Just remember that both are noble professions. It takes a special person to be a teacher or a nurse. I admire teachers for putting up with my kids for 7 hours a day:chuckle , while I am at work providing care to my patients. Plus you have my blessings because you are at LSU-Alexandria...say hey to my folks down there for me :)

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