Are there some areas of nursing that are more upbeat than others?

[bluemorningglory]

I don't know if upbeat is the right word, but right now I work as an LNA on a critical care unit and the RNs up there always seemed stressed or ******. Now I realize that CCU is a tough floor with extremely sick patients...are there other areas where RNs are a bit happier? L&D comes to mind but are there others?

[bunsterj]

I did school nursing for a few years, and overall it was upbeat. There were dismal situations you were exposed to (abuse, unfit parents, children with life-threatening illnesses) and sometimes difficult parents or students; overall it was good--much different than hospital nursing though.

[Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP]

I don't know that there is any one place that is always 'upbeat' - there are going to be bad/sad/pitiful situations no matter where you go.

I work in OB and most of the time it's good but when it's bad it's REALLY bad. A fetal demise, an unexpected loss, a 12-year-old's stepfather rapes her and she becomes pregnant...those things we deal with right alongside the happy healthy families.

That said, overall I think my floor is a happy place. :)

[brownbook]

Any job will be stressful. I enjoyed my critical care job, 5 years ICU/CCU. I know L&D can be extremely stressful at times like Elvish said. I love my current job, out patient surgery, no nights, no weekends, no holidays. But I have loved all of my nursing jobs (seventeen years in acute care.) There is something wrong with the staffing or management if the nurses are always stressed out!

[schack]

I love L&D! But sometimes happy and stressed go hand in hand!! And of course there are bad days....

[CathyLew]

Part of it is of course the area of nursing you work in. No one can expect Hospice nursing to be upbeat....there are good days, bad days, but you know the ultimate end.

You work in healthcare. Chances are you are going to meet sick people. And most of them ain't happy!

I think the upbeat part of the job comes from who you work with, and how your outlook is. Be the most positive you can be on the job, and try to surround yourself with other positive people. If everyone is ****** and crabby, just don't participate in it. It is easier to fall into someone's bad mood, than to drag them to your good mood. But keep working on it! Maybe you can turn them around as well.

[pumpkin455]

I'm still a relatively new nurse, but I work in ortho and love it. Some people think it is boring, but we get our fair share of excitement, too! Lots of post ops and such...We get to see those with total joints learn to walk all over again..I love my job!

[ghillbert, MSN, NP]

Any job is what you make of it. Go into the area that you're interested in, and be an upbeat person.

[Not_A_Hat_Person, RN]

I work in LTC. Some parts are great, some parts aren't so great. Sometimes it's a geriatric version of "Mean Girls."

[diane227, LPN, RN]

When I worked in a large county ER I thought it was upbeat. Fast paced and funny stuff was always happening. The OB nurses seem upbeat as do the nurses who work with the newborns.

[annaRNC]

This is a good question. I think that there some nurses are more upbeat than others (that is pretty much how I am) versus those that aren't. I think it's a matter of personality. Some people complain all day long whereas some of us (not nearly enough) roll with the punches. There are certainly a lot of sad moments on peds ie when a family finds out their child has a terminal illness, abuse cases, etc and it's totally normal to feel sad. There's plenty of times I've cried in the car or the med room or with a family if we've gotten close over an extended stay. I think it comes down to how one chooses to live their life. I have not-so-great parts of my life like a seriously ill mother and a difficult sister who doesn't help too much but I've made the choice to try to get the best out of every moment I'm lucky enough to have. After 4+ years my coworkers have accepted that is how I am and it seems to have rubbed off a little on some although some of them really don't get it. There are good and bad days but your outlook has a huge part in how well you manage things. I have a good support system too and know what helps me decompress. Wow, this is way too long a post!

[mmcdev]

I work in ortho and it is very upbeat compared to other floors in my hospital. 95% of our patients make a full recovery and very rarely do they suffer from complications. It is also very rewarding being able to see a patient not being able to move one day and then up and walking the next.