Being a mother, student and wife

nrice28 · Oct 5, 2010

Hi Katie, I am currently a nursing student and a wife and mother too. I don't think its selfish of you at all! But you know your situation better than anyone and if you think its not best for your family..you already know. But my husband has had to sacrifice what he wants to do to get me through and I wont lie, its been kinda hard on our marriage. I mean, we have a 3 yr old daughter and I don't work. But nursing school is time consuming and I don't feel like I juggle everything the most gracefully. But you know, in a yr and a half when I am making money and my husband can do what he wants he wont remember the dust on all of the shelves or clothes on the floor. He will just be thankful he gutted it out with me. It sounds like your fiance is being supportive. Thats really all that matters. I will add though, that accelerated program is really hard and its so much faster. I don't know if I would be able to do it. But if you already have ur masters I think you will be fine. Just go with your gut. I think you already know the right answer. GL!

RNASHLEY · Oct 5, 2010

although I am single and not married I can relate in the department of having a young child. I started nursing school when my daugher was 8 mo old and graduated when she was almost 3 ( 4 months ago) im not gonna tell u its not hard b/c it is but looking back now it is SOOOO rewarding to A. know that I am giving my daughter the life she deserves and B that I am doing what I love! It is best to do it when they are young so they can get used to the schedule than when they are older and have a harder time adjusting to mommies schedule! GOOD LUCK and I know you will do great! I know it seems overwhelming at times but just remember that you can do it and it will be bworth it in the end I PROMISE!!!!

grasshopper7780 · Oct 5, 2010

I agree with the above. I am not married and have no kids but I can tell you that from experience that both my parents worked alot, my mom loved her job, Dad hated his. He quit when I was in high school and chose NOT to go back to school for the debt, time, and cause he had a "family to take care of". I was young then but I will tell you I wish he had gone back, he would have been so much happier and and even better Dad doing a career he liked. I think in the end, you will be a better wife and husband cause you will be HAPPY in a career you care about. I think you are doing the right thing, you only live once and life is too short. Years from now, your kids will admire that their mom had the courage to go after a better life and that will inspire them.

On a different note, I just finished my MPH and am looking into accelerated BSN programs. I have been gathering research, talking to nurses, etc. I will have to do the science pre reqs too. I HATE my desk job and am just trying to decide if I can really do this and become a nurse. You, as a wife and mom, inspire me even more. What prereqs do you have to take? What order are you taking them?

kjj007 · Oct 5, 2010

Thanks so much for the responses. It really helps a lot. I'm just overwhelmed right now, but am so excited about the career change. I think I would love nursing, but am not excited about the night shift that is the big drawback for me. I can barely stay up past 10 (once my son is asleep that's when I'm ready to crash). I love science so I'm excited about the classes I will get to take.

grasshopper,

I need to take Anatomy, microbiology, chemistry, physiology, abnormal psychology, human nutrition, sociology and a couple of other general education classes. In total it is about 27 credits. The acclerated program I am entering does require quite a bit of prerequisites and is on the expensive side, which I'm nervous about the student loan debt, but I will be able to get in and out in 16 months after finishing my prerequisites. I'm lucky that I will be able to go to school full-time, but it will be tight budget wise as we plan on keeping our son in daycare (its an in-home daycare and we absolutely love the caretaker). Unfortunately when deciding what to do for my masters I probably didn't make the best choice of going for a masters in public affairs. I was single at the time and wasn't thinking of a family. I think I will enjoy nursing as I am not a desk job person and I like a fast-paced environment. It's good to know there are other people out there doing the same thing. Hopefully the job market will be a little brighter once we graduate!

grasshopper7780 · Oct 5, 2010

Kjj - I hear ya. Its been a weird road to get here. I worked at a health related NGO for 3 years before my MPH and I liked it but I didnt find it rewarding and I really dont like the desk job life at all. I went to get my MPH and probably should have thought more about how hand on I wanted to be in health a little more. I started to work at a med school and just loved the environment of being around the doctors, students, nurses, etc and I envied the med students and the fact that they worked with patients hands on. I started to think about nursing much more then but wanted to finish my MPH. I applied for a medical mission to Haiti to get the hands on experience but due to the quake it was cancelled, I was bummed.

I have been out of my MPH six months and I work at a huge development firm in DC and I am stuck in a cube, doing health from a computer all day and I am miserable. Its really draining. I know I want no desk, less computer, more people, people interaction, rewarding, on my feet, active and challenges every day. That fits nursing to a T. I have to take A&P, Chem, Micro, nutrition, abnormal psy and growth/devel through the lifespan. The only one I am scared of is chem. I agree it is nice to know others are doing the same. The time and $ are scary but I once thought I wanted a PhD and this would be the same time and $. For me, the best course of action is to quit my day job and go back to waiting tables (I work part time at Mortons the steak house), take classes during the day and volunteer at my local hospital. For the ABSN, I will take out whatever loans I can and apply for every nursing scholarship known to man. I did well in both degrees so that should help.

What lead you to nursing?

kjj007 · Oct 5, 2010

I thought about nursing before starting my MPA. I love working with people and I thought it would be something I would excel at, but instead pursued the MPA at the time. It was easier for me as I was single and could go part-time at night and therefore keep my job. When I became pregnant with my son I started to become more fascinated with the idea of being a nurse. I adored my nurse practicioner and loved learning so much of what was going on with my body. I loved being in the hospital and the interaction with the nurses. I didn't want to leave. haha! I also loved the whole labor experience. Really going through pregnancy really appreciate how amazing the human body is. Ok, so anyway sorry for my rambling...as I said I get excited talking about it... So a few months ago my fiancee found an open house for this private nursing school that has teamed up with a large hospital in our area and said that I should go check it out that this would be something I would be good at and a job that would benefit our family. So I checked it out and have talked with numerous nurses and pre-nursing students. I'm planning on starting the program Fall 2011. When are you planning on going? Have you picked a program?

kjj007 · Oct 5, 2010

RNAshley,

Do you currently work in a hospital? I couldn't imagine going through school as a single mother. That is so commendable!

grasshopper7780 · Oct 5, 2010

Kjj - we have alot in common it seems in our path to nursing, well except the pregnancy part. Your story is amazing. I love to work with people too and this desk job is draining my will to live.

Is the program you are doing combining the prereqs and the BSN? I think if I start the prereqs in the Spring then I could bang them out Spring/Summer and Fall and apply for Spring 2011 or Fall 2012. What program are you looking at? I live in DC but am not attached to staying here, bf is applying to phD programs so who knows. I really like GW, UMD (CNL program), UMass Amherst and JHU (although insanely $$$) but I am still looking at programs and talking to people.

kjj007 · Oct 5, 2010

Hi Grasshopper!

Wow sounds like we are on the same kind of path! I am looking at the program at Marian University in Indianapolis. It is pretty expensive. Roughly $48,000 for the whole program! Ouch! The program does not combine the prerequisites so the next couple of semesters I'm working on that. I'm planning on being completely done with everything December 2012. The great thing about this program is that the classes are online except for the clinicals they are at the hospital and also at their nursing facility. I have talked to a few people in the program and they love the setup because they can work on the class part on their terms (somewhat) which helps with family obligations. Many of them set up study groups which I am all for. What area of nursing do you think you will be interested in pursuing? I am think of L & D, pediatrics (I'm not sure if I'm tough enough for this area) and maybe NICU. That's great that your bf is on the same schooling type track right now. At least you both will understand how much each other needs to study.

grasshopper7780 · Oct 5, 2010

Wow, that program sounds great, especially for someone with kids. I am not quite sure but I am also interested in L&D, ICU and peds. I really enjoyed working in womens health in the past and the students I became closest to at the Med School I worked at were all OB students. One of my fav docs that I still keep in contact with there is also an OB, he has been great. Alot the nurses I have talked to did ICU and they love it. I dont know though. I am trying to get a shadowing shift at GW Med (thats where I worked and went for my MPH) with nurse or nurses to get a better feel. If I get into the UMass program, I would prob move back in with my folks so I wouldnt have to worry about rent, I am lucky they have offered and 16 months will fly by!

Let me ask you, did you get flack from people when you mentioned you wanted to be a nurse? Most of my friends, family and bf have been incredibly supportive but there have been a few who treat me like I am nuts, only bring up the bad parts of nursing, act like I am above it (do not understand that) and say things like, you are confused, you just dont like you current job, etc. Ignoring that I havent been fulfilled in ANY job that I have had, even in health. Have you had any reactions like that?

kjj007 · Oct 5, 2010

Yeah, I think there are always people that question people's decisions when they want to go back to school. I've had a couple that are a little taken aback. I think a lot of times it tends to be some of the older generation where more schooling wasn't necessary and as long as you had a job then there was no reason for school. Most of the people have been supportive overall. I am getting so excited to start my prerequisites. I absolutely love school and could probably be a full-time student for life. There is so much to learn. That's another reason why nursing intrigues me, so much to learn! It sounds like you have a great start into the nursing field with lots of great connections. I'm sure that will be so useful in your future.