Burnt out or time for change?

I have been working as a nurse for the past six years. This entire time I've been searching for my "niche". I've tried ortho, public health, oncology/hematology & telemetry. I've tried days, nights and evenings. I've tried the hospital and the health department. I've been employed as an agency nurse, travel nurse, and regular hospital staff.

My current employer offers full tuition reimbursement and many nurses I work with are back in school. I am ready to go back to school but can't justify continuing in nursing at this point. I feel like I've given nursing a fair chance.

Has anyone else completely changed careers and later regretted their decision? I feel like that is what I need to do.

I must've had 20 jobs the first 7 years of nursing. I couldn't find any I could tolerate for more than 2 years. Well, I got a job in the jail and loved it, but hated the company that ran the jail. I got a job in the state prison and have been here going on 5 years. I plan on moving next month to Michigan and will hopefully get another job working for the state prison system. I can just say don't give up. There are so many things you can do with that nursing degree. You just have to find your niche.

oh yeah, I also worked in the jail when I was working for the public health dept... :)

my longest period at one job is 15 months. I've had other nurses comment that they don't even know why anyone would hire me with the amount of job changing I have done...

If 6-7 years isn't enough, how long do I suffer before I can honorably move on??

You sound like I did. I worked a little of everything, killed myself trying, butted heads with management for better treatment for the patients, like, more time to do a GOOD JOB??? The nurse patient ratio just burned me out. I've semi quit nursing, two years now, and haven't found motivation to return. I'm a wonderful nurse, but I don't thing wonderful nurses are appreciated anymore... are they?

Life is too short to be unhappy with your chosen career. I think at 6 years you've given it a good shot and spent a reasonable amount of time trying out the career. I left education after 12 years as a teacher. At 6 years I knew it wasn't for me, but I was too 'chicken' to move on. 6 years after that my blood pressure was up, my weight was up, and I was REALLY unhappy. That's when I got motivated to change careers. I don't regret it. I just regret that I didn't do it sooner. There's no shame in changing careers.

Six years sounds like a decent try to find your niche. However, suggest you look at the problems at each job. Were there any jobs that you would have liked if management, staffing, coworkers, etc. were different? Can you think of any area of nursing that you haven't tried that might be a better fit?