What Else Can I Do For A Living?

Nurses Career Support

Published

Hi everyone:

I'm having a rough time with this field. I have been a nurse for 7+ years and have worked in many different settings. I just got another job that I thought I would like, but I absolutely HATE it (and it's not just because I'm new, the job/benefits were complete lies from what I was promised) anyway, The more I think about it, I hate every available job in nursing. I want to quit but I don't know what else I can do with my degree/history.

I'm finishing up a MSN in Leadership/Management which I hoped would open some more doors, but honestly I just don't want to do nursing at all or healthcare. Every job seems like a deadend and the pay is crappy and I'm already in one of the higher paid nursing positions out there.

Has anyone done something else with their nursing background? I don't think I can keep doing this, but at the same time I have to pay my bills... help!

Hey,

I'm not sure really what to advise because nursing is very specialized. However, I will make an attempt. Ok here goes: Teaching, work in plastic surgery/dermatology doing botox injections and such, medical device or pharmaceutical sales, insurance, contractor, blogger, writer, youtube, consultant and business. I would recommend starting your own business. You have a skills set obviously. Decide what you love and use your nursing experience and business savvy to make yourself marketable to the public. Nurses have so much knowledge but we can easily get caught up in only seeing where we fit traditionally. I would advise you to sit down and take stock of your skills, the life you want to live, how much money you feel you want and create a business around it. If you are not able to do that, then continue to work your job. When you are finally miserable enough, your creativity will kick in. Ignore the negative comments. Many nurses are miserable but just as many are afraid change their lives for the better, hence the overwhelming negativity. Nursing is a vocation and it deserves to be loved. If someone does not love it, there needs to be positive encouragement to leave. Good luck!

Hmmm. This is hard and I really do want to help. I have a MSN in something similar to yours and I work in quality management at a corporate level with hospitals nationwide. But again that's healthcare. I would suggest marketing but that field is pretty competitive already. Work with an insurance company in some capacity maybe? Check back in and let us know how things turned out. Best of luck to you!!!

Well I don't know how my my advice would help you since I am only starting nursing school next fall. However, my education and career path is a little nonconventional. I do not plan on being a nurse forever. Once I start working as a nurse I will go back to school and get my masters in biology and try and get a job teaching A&P at a community college. So possibly teaching nursing or biology classes at a CC would be more enjoyable for you? It will also be a bit easier for you to get a job teaching since you have actual real life experience working in the healthcare field. Other possible options could be a high school teacher, writer, police officer, firefighter, or whatever your other passions are. I love A&P and I want to be the best A&P professor I can be, so I'm diving straight into healthcare so I know what it will be like for my future students and so I can bring my experiences working in the hospital to the classroom. We all have things we're passionate about. If you haven't found that yet keep looking! It's out there.

I cant stand how the Nursing profession is. Furthermore the attitudes suck.

I've been a nurse for a little over 2 years now and am planning to quit within the next few months. I feel so disconnected from my job and absolutely DREAD going to work. Over the last 5 months I've gradually dropped my hours from 0.8 to per diem and have absolutely no shame in telling people that I'm trying to leave. I'm at a point right now that I'm actually hoping to get called off or trying to think of ways to get out of work, even with the pay cut I took dropping to per deim. I hate the stress and politics of the hospital, I feel unappreciated, and it's killed my creativity. On top of that, it's affected my health. I have gone through episodes of depression and have developed work related anxiety.

I'm absolutely terrified of quitting because it means I will have no income, but thinking about quitting gives me a sense of relief and bliss that I otherwise wouldn't have. I don't know if I'll ever work as a nurse again. No other nursing job appeals to me now. The only thing I look forward to is my last day at work.

As far as your situation, if you feel anything like me, I say quit your job! If you don't want to do something as bold, then firstly, try to drop your hours.

If you can't or if that doesn't help, then look for another nursing job. Possibly something completely different than what you're doing now. Case management, school nurse, clinics, hospice, home health, and ambulatory care, informatics, research, insurance, just to name a few.

If you are still feeling the way you are feeling after trying these things then maybe it's time for a career change. You can't keep feeling like that and at some point you have to start looking after your own health. Otherwise, it will eat you up inside.

What exactly do you do for an insurance company? Sounds interesting. I also have been holding on to my insurance license just in case I need it but then again I might not. My RN might be enough.

Specializes in neuro/ortho med surge 4.

What insurance company? I have been trying to find a job in insurance for a while now?

Bite the bullet and get out now! Don't wait like I did and be STUCK. Nursing is a joke. BSN degree is a joke and it's designed to make people feel better about themselves. Like a participation trophy! The words professional and nurse should never be used in the same sentence! !!GET OUT!! Don't waste your life!

I totally left Nursing with no shame and now doing Acupuncture. Be my own boss. My loan is big but I have good investment CD in terms of bitcoin (no packages) earning compound interest 1% daily, Get on the boat before it becomes main stream crytocurrency next year.

Nancy,congratulations on starting your business. :)

Acupuncture, massage, both sound great. After working in nursing a while you'd already be prepared [ATTACH=CONFIG]25395[/ATTACH]for the Roller Derby. Sorry y'all I couldn't resist this morning. I woke up spunky I guess. :cheeky:

Bite the bullet and get out now! Don't wait like I did and be STUCK. Nursing is a joke. BSN degree is a joke and it's designed to People makerfeel better about themselves. Like a participation trophy! The words professional and nurse should never be used in the same sentence! !!GET OUT!! Don't waste your life!

What? Serious question, are you drunk?

How in the world are you stuck? There are about a bazillion different jobs for nurses of every specialty and experience.

Hell, I work with NPs, new grads, MSNs, BSNs, diplomas, adult critical care, NICU, LTC, home infusion, clinical researchers, on and on.

All you have to do to move is pick up your foot.

+ Add a Comment