I want to be a CRNA because I am the breadwinner of my family and need to bring home some more bread AND because I want the kind of flexible scheduling I so often see written into CRNA job postings. Since it will never be the case that I can be at home with my children (I have to make money), I hope to be at home with them as often as possible. First...
Are these the wrong reasons to go into this difficult specialty?
Second,
Is it true that I have to kiss my family goodbye for the 2 + years that I am in school? I am a hard worker, and was always a good student, but the thought of having no time with my children for 2 years (that I can't ever get back) is heartbreaking to me. Is there just no way around it?
Obviously, you think only NA students know what hard times are like and what it is like to deal with difficult instructors. This is kind of an arrogant assumption.
Let's see....quit your job, get 50,000-100,000 a yr in loans to survive while in NA school, probably deal with some of the smartest professionals you will ever come in contact with, then be expected to know the entire Clinical Anesthesiology or Nurse anesthesia textbook cover to cover, be prepared to answer questions while intubating/starting A-line/central lines/while calculating drug doses/while dealing with SBPs in 40-50s or 200+ from said textbooks or some other obscure textbook the instructor decides to pull out of their butt (I mean bag...),and then we can compare difficult instructors..
You haven't got a clue what NA school is like!
What every SRNA on here is trying to tell you over and over again is that you have no background to compare NA school to. Nobody does that has not gone through NA school.
honestly, (and this is the truth) I get 8 hours of sleep a night. On clinical days I go to bed 8-9 though, get up at 430, in the OR at 545 - which is MUCH earlier than my classmates (they get there at 630). We get a total of 27 clinical days off for vacation (if we want, although none of us take them all -i'll probably only take 8-10 this year). The academics are much easier than most people say, as long as you sit your butt down and actually study. I have a terrible work ethic when it comes to studying and I have a 4.0 (I had a 2.7 in undergrad).
I also have a 10 month old daughter, and I have as much time as I want to spend with her. She sees me every day, its not like i'm away from my family locked in a room studying 24/7.
A lot of CRNA school is hype and mystique, I think. Don't get me wrong, it's insanely stressful, difficult, and will be the most challenging thing you've ever done, but I think sometimes people over exaggerate.
I am very confused. Being a new person on this board, I thought people were interested in how to get in an anesthesia program, what it is like to be a SRNA and a CRNA. When someone answers those questions realistically, especially an SRNA or CRNA, then a group of people who have NO idea start posting either hostile or touchy feely responses.
There is an old adage the goes, "if you can't handle the answer, don't ask the question". Every married woman who asks her husband if she looks fat in a certain outfit, knows what I mean.
It seems to me that the answers that the CRNAs and SRNAs are given are well thought out and reality based. Anesthesia is not a profession for everyone and there is nothing wrong with that. It takes a certain personality type and critical thinking skills that are put together in technique, with a high level of knowledge.
It seems like this board is over moderated, yet posts calling people stupid are allowed in.
Let's see....quit your job, get 50,000-100,000 a yr in loans to survive while in NA school, probably deal with some of the smartest professionals you will ever come in contact with, then be expected to know the entire Clinical Anesthesiology or Nurse anesthesia textbook cover to cover, be prepared to answer questions while intubating/starting A-line/central lines/while calculating drug doses/while dealing with SBPs in 40-50s or 200+ from said textbooks or some other obscure textbook the instructor decides to pull out of their butt (I mean bag...),and then we can compare difficult instructors..
You haven't got a clue what NA school is like!
What every SRNA on here is trying to tell you over and over again is that you have no background to compare NA school to. Nobody does that has not gone through NA school.
It doesn't sound like you have a clue what NP school is like, yet most people who are studying to be NAs are sure it's a cakewalk. That's what I get from here: we've arrived and we have it harder than anyone else. Well, if that's what you chose to do then I don't guess there should be any complaining.
Everyone thinks they've come farther, they've worked harder, they're smarter, and they have it worse than anyone else. Way worse.
The average person thinks they are better than the average person. But that is the way it always goes. There's nothing new under the sun.
Everyone thinks they have it worse than everyone else. I want the NPs and NP students to tell us how easy it is to do what they do.
we promote the idea of lively debate. this means you are free to disagree with anyone on any type of subject matter as long as your criticism is constructive and polite
the only sin that we never forgive in each other is a difference in opinion.
It doesn't sound like you have a clue what NP school is like, yet most people who are studying to be NAs are sure it's a cakewalk. That's what I get from here: we've arrived and we have it harder than anyone else. Well, if that's what you chose to do then I don't guess there should be any complaining.
Everyone thinks they've come farther, they've worked harder, they're smarter, and they have it worse than anyone else. Way worse.
The average person thinks they are better than the average person. But that is the way it always goes. There's nothing new under the sun.
Everyone thinks they have it worse than everyone else. I want the NPs and NP students to tell us how easy it is to do what they do.
Let's see since I have 20 semester credit hours and over 300 clinical hours as an civilian FNP student I think I have a decent understanding of what NP school is like, and from my opinion there is no comparison. Also, by the way our didactic portion is with NPs and CNSs students which everyone of them would tell you, at least in my class year, that NA school is harder at least at USUHS. NA students are required to take more classes in a shorter period of time and we will probably average 2-3x the clinical hours as the NP students at my school.
Becoming a CRNA is doable, a lot of it is about motivation, but again there isn't comparable school that I know of to NA school that would give you or anyone a clear understanding of what NA school is like. NA school is full time undertaking where some NA schools are front loaded, some schools are intergrated (clinicals and didatic), some require call while others don't. I can spend 90+hrs at the hospital some weeks d/t call while on out rotations I might spend less than 40-50hrs.
Also, let's set the record straight you are posting on a pre-crna website ( which I assuming that your overall goal posting here is to get advice on going to NA school/becoming a CRNA, but everytime someone tells you something you don't like they are being arrogant or underinformed), I am an average B to B+ NA student, my IQ is only slightly above average, and my goals to become a CRNA didn't include making the most money possible by working the least amount possible otherwise I wouldn't be doing this through the military.
Also, let's set the record straight you are posting on a pre-crna website ( which I assuming that your overall goal posting here is to get advice on going to NA school/becoming a CRNA, but everytime someone tells you something you don't like they are being arrogant or underinformed), I am an average B to B+ NA student, my IQ is only slightly above average, and my goals to become a CRNA didn't include making the most money possible by working the least amount possible otherwise I wouldn't be doing this through the military.
It's not the information I don't like, it's the way the information is presented.
I like how NA students assume everyone interested in becoming a NA is doing so because they think it will let them make the most amount of money working the least hours (though that would be nice, wouldn't it?)
As far as IQs go, I took one of those IQ tests once (a real IQ test, not one of those internet IQ tests, this test was way back before those became popular) and scored 120. Not genius but I was told that was actually good. IQ certainly isn't everything, because my mother graduated class valedictorian and has an IQ of 153 and I have pulled the wool over her eyes a time or two...BUT I was talking to a "real" NA student over on the NP forum who told me any NA student only sleeping 3-4 hours a night needs to chill out and go to bed earlier because he/she sleeps about 8 hours a night. And a lot of the coursework for the ACNP is very similar to NA coursework...there are several NPs becoming NAs. The work is more "intense" and in some aspects the pace is faster, but I think I can see that little man behind the curtain working that machine.
honestly, (and this is the truth) I get 8 hours of sleep a night. On clinical days I go to bed 8-9 though, get up at 430, in the OR at 545 - which is MUCH earlier than my classmates (they get there at 630). We get a total of 27 clinical days off for vacation (if we want, although none of us take them all -i'll probably only take 8-10 this year). The academics are much easier than most people say, as long as you sit your butt down and actually study. I have a terrible work ethic when it comes to studying and I have a 4.0 (I had a 2.7 in undergrad).
I also have a 10 month old daughter, and I have as much time as I want to spend with her. She sees me every day, its not like i'm away from my family locked in a room studying 24/7.
A lot of CRNA school is hype and mystique, I think. Don't get me wrong, it's insanely stressful, difficult, and will be the most challenging thing you've ever done, but I think sometimes people over exaggerate.
I am SOOOO GLAD to hear you say this! Before I started nursing school, I can't tell you how many nurses and nursing students tried to scare me about it and tell me it's the hardest thing and NOBODY gets A's, etc. and I got really nervous about it but thought to myself, is it really that bad? And now that I am in nursing school, the answer is NO it's not that bad haha. Sure I study and I go to class and clinical but that's what school is all about. I don't think it's really very hard. So when I hear all the horror stories about being a SRNA, I am getting scared again...it has been my dream for years to become a CRNA, and I would tolerate just about anything and stick it out to become one, but I have been getting nervous from hearing about how terrible it is. I have NO DOUBTS it will be much harder than my Accelerated BSN, but it should be!
I can spend every waking moment studying, but I can NOT survive on 4 hours of sleep a night, which is what most CRNAs/SRNAs on here make it seem like the norm is during school. I am really glad to hear you get 8 hours of sleep a night, I am a much happier and more productive person with that much sleep. Aren't we all? :)
BTW, may I ask where you go to school? Haha :chuckle I want to go where you go!
A lot of CRNA school is hype and mystique, I think. Don't get me wrong, it's insanely stressful, difficult, and will be the most challenging thing you've ever done, but I think sometimes people over exaggerate.
That's what I'm taling about!!!
To me, it's not hard to tell when someone is embellishing and turning up the drama and that really gets on my nerves.
Specializes in Trauma,ER,CCU/OHU/Nsg Ed/Nsg Research.
Here's my philosophy, FWIW: I applaud anyone (and especially nurses) who strive to achieve as much as they can in this world. As nurses, we sometimes have a hard time acknowledging others' aspirations and accomplishments.
NPs, CRNAs, DNPs, PhDs, etc. have all chosen to go beyond the undergrad arena, and to specialize in something dynamic and very competitive. It's quite possible that it may be our very competitiveness that gets in the way of our giving recognition and respect to each other.
We're supposed to be the leaders in the profession. How can we be that if we're not showing some kind of solidarity?
I want my CRNA's program to be rigorous, and I want my NP's program to be rigorous. It's a no-brainer that they're going to be rigorous in different ways.
As we have been told in our own programs, when we got chosen for admission: we are supposed to be the cream of the crop- the ones who beat out all the others who applied.
We don't have to cyber-hug each other, but dang- can't we give respect where respect is due? Don't we get enough flack from medicine, etc.?
Sorry- off my soapbox now, and I hope I'm not coming off as wagging my finger. It just bugs me sometimes, when I see 'floor dynamics' carry on into post-grad arena, where we're supposed to have outgrown that in some measure.
I'm an APN who is not the brightest tool in the shed by any stretch - never even taken one of the internet IQ tests.
However, I made it thru grad school w/o too many problems.
I am very active in my states APN society. I lobbied at my state capital last year when our nurse practice act was sundowning. The one concept I have taken away from all this is that we as nurses, must solidify our own goals. Our in-fighting is getting us nowhere.
I live in IL and the AMA is headquartered in Chicago so you can bet they lobby in the capital too!
I am incredibly fortunate to work with some absolutely above-board, honest and open CRNAs and in real life, there is none of this in-fighting! No problem with lively debate (as NrsKaren stated) but let's not get personal. In order to further ALL nursing goals, we must work together.
wtbcrna, MSN, DNP, CRNA
5,128 Posts
Let's see....quit your job, get 50,000-100,000 a yr in loans to survive while in NA school, probably deal with some of the smartest professionals you will ever come in contact with, then be expected to know the entire Clinical Anesthesiology or Nurse anesthesia textbook cover to cover, be prepared to answer questions while intubating/starting A-line/central lines/while calculating drug doses/while dealing with SBPs in 40-50s or 200+ from said textbooks or some other obscure textbook the instructor decides to pull out of their butt (I mean bag...),and then we can compare difficult instructors..
You haven't got a clue what NA school is like!
What every SRNA on here is trying to tell you over and over again is that you have no background to compare NA school to. Nobody does that has not gone through NA school.