Another nursing school/newborn question...

Double-Helix, BSN, RN · May 21, 2012

Well, it really depends on what your priorities are. If your priority is having another baby, and it's important to you to have that baby within the next couple of years, then you're going to find a way to make it work no matter what.

If you're willing to wait awhile until you're done with school, then I think that's your best option. Here's my reasoning:

1. It's emotionally and physically demanding to be in nursing school. Your pregnancy might affect your performance in clinicals, as well as the types of patients you are allowed to take care of.

2. Nursing schools don't allow you maternity leave like workplaces. If you have a baby while in school, you won't be allowed to take 6 weeks off from classes and clinicals. If you miss that much class work, you'll fail.

3. There's the possibility that you'll have pregnancy complications that require you to be on bed rest. We'd all like to plan on having a perfectly healthy pregnancy and working right up until our due date, but that's not always the case. What would you do if you have to be on bed rest and can't go to clinicals? You'll end up having to withdraw from the program.

4. If you have a baby early in your nursing career, you won't be eligible for FMLA and you won't have a lot of PTO saved up, so you will have to return to work sooner than you might like and have to sacrifice financially during that time. But I'm not sure what your financial situation is like, so taking a month or more without pay might not be a problem for you.

That being said, I had a girl in my class who had a baby during her junior year of school and never missed a beat. She was fortunate enough to deliver over the winter break, so she had three weeks off from school before she had to go back. But I think that if she had delivered a during the school year (and if she had gone just a week earlier she would have missed all her finals)it would have been much more difficult for her. Not all babies are cooperative enough to come during school break.

Katie71275 · May 22, 2012

I agree with Ashley. I have 4 children and have baby fever BADDDD!!! I have PCOS and TMI but have had maybe 3 cycles in the last year and those are annovulatory at best. I would also require Clomid, and more than likely injectables. We have chosen to wait. Granted I have 4, and you have 1, but I can tell you this..going from 1 to 2 is hard! It seems like it shouldn't be, but it is.

I also have had complications during my last 3 pregnancies(pre with my 2nd, pree and low fluid with my 3rd, and Gest. Diabetes with my 4th)....

If you feel you can do it, have at it, but I'd strongly encourage waiting until you are done with school.

melizerd, ASN, RN · May 22, 2012

I have two friends who started nursing school with 3 and 4 months olds and they really really struggled even then. I honestly can't imagine being pregnant, giving birth and dealing with sleepless nights while in school.

You have to really decide what is your top priority. For me it is nursing school that means EVERYTHING else takes a back seat and thankfully my husband is wonderful and takes a lot of the slack up at home, we have a 5 year old son who can entertain himself if absolutely needed too. And I still feel guilty some weeks because I see him about 5 seconds a night

Stephalump · May 22, 2012

I think I'd choose either/or, not both. My reasoning? Why make things harder than they need to be? If having a baby is of utmost importance, giving 100% to nursing school while other people care for your new baby doesn't sound very fulfilling. You won't get maternity leave, you'll be miserably pregnant and still be required to do clinicals, and you'll have to study during your free time, even though you wrote awake every two hours with the new baby.

Of course, if you're desperate to do both, you could make it work with enough determination and support. It's really about how thin you want spread yourself!