Anyone else having doubts?

3rdgenRN2B · Apr 21, 2020

Really? I'm the only one, huh?

GoingtobeRN · Apr 21, 2020

11 hours ago, 3rdgenRN2B said:
Has this whole thing caused anyone else to second guess pursuing nursing? Maybe I'm just scared and watching the news too much. I'm in CT just over the boarder from NY so we are in a hotspot. I was taking chem before this all started which had to obviously switch to online only. That in itself has been a struggle. Now the school is unsure if it will be offering inperson classes come the fall, and maybe they will still have small group labs in person but that's it. I've heard a and p is a nightmare regularly and I can't imagine learning it online! This will be a career change for me and I don't know if it's worth the struggle now to possibly not even get in. What's gonna happen with the TEAS exam? Ugh. Am I over reacting? Anyone else having doubts and anxiety over pursuing this??
Thx.

Hi,

I don't think you are overreacting, there is a lot of uncertainty with everything that is going on and I think that it is okay to have doubts because this isn't your first career. Making the shift to pursue another career is scary enough, but add a pandemic situation on top of it, makes things even more complicated. This has been the motivator for me to go for it. I had been fiddling with the idea for about two years, I always talked myself out of it. This is a career change for me as well, I just started working in healthcare last week and start my pre-reqs in June. I am not a fan of online courses, but I am going to see what it is like. My first course is A&P I, I am excited more than anything to get going on course work and apply to some programs.

3rdgenRN2B · Apr 21, 2020

Thank you for not letting me feel alone! I wanted to pursue nursing for 15 years, but wasn't in a position to consider it. Now things have changed and I've started pursuing it and of course we get hit with a pandemic. Murphy's law much? I've put a lot of pressure on my career choice and given it so many years of thought that I'm scared of making a mistake. But I know this too shall pass.

GoingtobeRN · Apr 21, 2020

You are definitely not alone. The pandemic gave me the help I needed to go for it, but I know that I will have my doubts probably all along the way. Questioning, was this the right choice, can I do it, am I too old to make this switch, will I understand the material? You should be really proud of yourself for pursuing your dream, that takes a lot of courage. There will be challenges, but just keep believing in yourself and just remember why you decided to go for it. Best of luck to you!

nhayes1984 · Apr 21, 2020

Hi!

I am right there with you. I recently finished Chemistry online before this whole covid thing and I passed with a C. I KNOW I would have gotten a better grade in person. I am currently taking A&P 2 and am only 2 weeks in but I am STRUGGLING and making a C again....this is VERY concerning to me because I am worried about getting in to the clinical phase of my program as it focuses on the Science GPA. I wish I could say something more positive, but I am in the same boat as you and I don't want to waste all this time and not be able to get into clinicals and waste money, ruin my GPA.

Again, I wish I could be of more help! I guess I would say that if you know that being a nurse is your true calling, if you aren't paying 100k to get the degree you could keep pushing on....you could kinda see what happens in the next few months. I am seeing what other options I may have myself. Let's try to figure this out together!

secondtimer14 · Apr 22, 2020

I haven't had any new doubts about pursuing nursing in general, but I am very confused about whether to delay my plans, and by how much. I'm in prereq classes now and was on a schedule to apply this Summer to start an ABSN/direct-entry MSN in January. To stay on this schedule I would need to continue taking prereqs this Summer and fall, plus sending my applications in. Right now I don't think it's realistic that all will be back to normal in January, and I don't want to start nursing school if it's all online. These programs are already accelerated; I don't think I would be adequately prepared without in-person clinicals and labs. But at the same time I don't want to delay my plans if January is doable. Like you I'm a career changer. This is my dream field and I've been majorly itching to dive in for many years now. But there's no way to know what life will look like in January so I'll have to just make a choice on the information we have.

If relevant my career goal is certified nurse-midwife (and possibly working as an L&D nurse in between the BSN and masters), so not exactly the most "front line" of nursing fields w/r/t the pandemic

anxiousnurse22 · Apr 23, 2020

You are definitely not alone. I too considered deferring my start date till Fall 2021 but decided against it since it would push me back 8 months. I have to take A&P 1 online in an 8 week format which is very stress inducing because all I hear is the difficulties people have in the course.

Apart of me feels very guilty to think about quitting a full-time job with the extreme uncertainty we are facing.

whalestales, ASN, RN · May 18, 2020

I'm anxious because my school had us commit and place a deposit before this all started. As a whole the school didn't handle the transition to all online super gracefully... I don't know how they will handle nursing all online if needed

blueskiesandsunshine.prn · May 18, 2020

On 4/20/2020 at 10:31 AM, 3rdgenRN2B said:
Has this whole thing caused anyone else to second guess pursuing nursing? Maybe I'm just scared and watching the news too much. I'm in CT just over the boarder from NY so we are in a hotspot. I was taking chem before this all started which had to obviously switch to online only. That in itself has been a struggle. Now the school is unsure if it will be offering inperson classes come the fall, and maybe they will still have small group labs in person but that's it. I've heard a and p is a nightmare regularly and I can't imagine learning it online! This will be a career change for me and I don't know if it's worth the struggle now to possibly not even get in. What's gonna happen with the TEAS exam? Ugh. Am I over reacting? Anyone else having doubts and anxiety over pursuing this??
Thx.

Hey there,

You are certainly not alone. While I am no longer prenursing, it was during those semesters I had the most doubt about entering the nursing profession. I am sure the COVID pandemic has augmented fears for many prenursing students; even as an incoming junior with a semester of clinicals under my belt and knowing full-well nursing is my calling, it is still nerve wrecking to know that we are going into a profession that is constantly put in peril.

My best advice: KEEP PUSHING! When you wear those scrubs and don that stethoscope for the first time, every trial and adversity you faced getting there goes away. Nursing school is a match to be made, not a prize to be won--but getting there is a heck of an accomplishment. The pandemic is temporary, prereqs are temporary, but being a nurse is an accomplishment that will permeate your identity through much of your life.

Sending hugs and encouragement! Can't wait to welcome you to the ranks of sleep-deprived, caffeine-addicted, care-plan-writing-machine nursing students in a few short semesters! ?