Can I handle nursing?

Nurses General Nursing

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hello,

i hope some of you nurses out there can help me out? i am a single mother of a five year old and his father passed away so i need to make a good living. i currently am a dental assistan and wanted to go to dental hygiene school but they are few and far between. they also are very expensive and offer very little class schedule flexilbility. so, i thought of nursing. but i wonder if i can handle the blood, poop, and vomit. i can handle blood in the mouth and extrations of teeth but i'm not sure about the rest of the body. i'm just worried because i don't want to invest time and money and end up not able to handle my job. i have an associate's in science geared toward nursing and dental hygiene pre-req's. i just know dental hygiene school is not in the cards for me right now and i need a good career now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

any suggestions-thanks!:confused:

hello,

i hope some of you nurses out there can help me out? i am a single mother of a five year old and his father passed away so i need to make a good living. i currently am a dental assistan and wanted to go to dental hygiene school but they are few and far between. they also are very expensive and offer very little class schedule flexilbility. so, i thought of nursing. but i wonder if i can handle the blood, poop, and vomit. i can handle blood in the mouth and extrations of teeth but i'm not sure about the rest of the body. i'm just worried because i don't want to invest time and money and end up not able to handle my job. i have an associate's in science geared toward nursing and dental hygiene pre-req's. i just know dental hygiene school is not in the cards for me right now and i need a good career now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

any suggestions-thanks!:confused:

hi,

first off i would like to commend you on wanting to do better for yourself and your son's future. i am sorry about your son's father and i understand death can be a painful experience.

i was like you at one point in my life. i desired to be a nurse, but was too scared to pursue it, due to the blood and guts or what not. i think i can handle poop and vomit (i think). if you feel in your heart that nursing is for you, you can pursue it.

i know you are a working mother, but would it be possible for you to volunteer at a hospital to try it out and see if this is something you really want to do? it would save you the time and the money.

i think you can do it if you really want to! i'm chicken, my biggest fear is seeing the insides of a person! ahhhhh yikes! but, it something i would have to overcome because its my desire to become a nurse.

i think most would agree that, over time you will get used to the blood, vomit, and poop. i say follow your heart!

good luck in whatever you choose to do!

At my school, we were required to have our CNA certificate before starting nursing school. I think that's a good thing because 1) you need to know the basic skills before clinicals and 2) you may find out that it's not for you before spending all that time/money becoming a nurse. I realize that they are 2 different jobs, but I found it helpful to get an idea of what patient care was like. I saw plenty of bodily fluids just in my CNA clinicals. lol Maybe you could become a CNA, see what you think and go from there. It's alot cheaper than nursing school!:chuckle

Specializes in Med/Surg, Dialysis.

The bodily fluids aren't too bad once you get used to them, when I first started nursing school, I used to have my friend collect stool specimens for me, she was a CNA before nsg school. I survived clinicals the first year, and then I became a nurse extern and a nursing assistant, so I was knee deep in poop!! haha! not really! But I got used to it, it's just part of the deal, you get so used to it, you don't even smell anything anymore. I actually prefer poop to UTI urine! Good luck! Don't let bodily fluids hold you back if this is something you feel drawn to....

Specializes in being a Credible Source.

Well, you've got a five-year-old so you've done your share of poop.

Blood is blood.

I would think nasty, rotted teeth would be as bad as anything else.

Don't sweat it... you'll get used to it.

Specializes in ICU, PACU, Cath Lab.
i just know dental hygiene school is not in the cards for me right now and i need a good career now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

any suggestions-thanks!:confused:

like any career nusring is not an instant degree. many schools have a waiting list that range from one semester to a few years, not to mention how competitive some programs are. then you have the 2+ years it will take you to finish the program. i mean this will not happen overnight. it will take years to complete. i am definately not trying to discourage you, just making sure you know how much time is dedicated to this. i would encourage you to call your local hospital and see if you can shadow a nurse for a shift..not just like 30 minutes like most of a real shift so you can see what it is really like!

i am sorry for you and your son's loss. i am so happy to hear you want to take the steps to make sure his life is a good one! good luck to you!!

Specializes in Med/Surg.

You had asked the same question in another post, but I just wanted to say that I agree with what the other posters have said.

A nursing degree takes quite some time to obtain. It also takes focus, dedication and can be very stressful.

As I said in the other post, you could always try to go for LPN first if you can't wait 3, 4, 5 or more years to begin working. (Yes, it really does take that long and sometimes longer for RN)

LPN programs are usually 9 to 15 months in length and sometimes don't require any prereqs to enter. Something to consider...maybe?

Good luck with this. And I am sorry about your son's father. :crying2:

Do you want to get into nursing because you have a passion to do it or just because you want a "quick career?" I don't think it's fair to your eventual patients if you are just doing it for a "quick" career.

Do you want to get into nursing because you have a passion to do it or just because you want a "quick career?" I don't think it's fair to your eventual patients if you are just doing it for a "quick" career.

really? I mean REALLY? How can it be unfair to patients because someone is not Florence Nightingale? Without knowing how she will treat her patients (assuming she has a good bedside manner since she's already a dental assistant and chosing to continue in the general 'health' arena). I mean truly, in the end, does it REALLY matter why someone is becoming if they can show compassion and care and skill in their field and smile in earnest at patients as they walk in the door?

I love this site, and the knowledge I find here is invaluable, but the martyr mentality really puts me off at times. If anyone says they want to be a nurse for any reason other than "its my calling since birth" someone just HAS to flame them for it. Its not like this woman said "I hate dealing with people but want the moolah!" or anything.

Specializes in Med/Surg.
really? I mean REALLY? How can it be unfair to patients because someone is not Florence Nightingale? Without knowing how she will treat her patients (assuming she has a good bedside manner since she's already a dental assistant and chosing to continue in the general 'health' arena). I mean truly, in the end, does it REALLY matter why someone is becoming if they can show compassion and care and skill in their field and smile in earnest at patients as they walk in the door?

I love this site, and the knowledge I find here is invaluable, but the martyr mentality really puts me off at times. If anyone says they want to be a nurse for any reason other than "its my calling since birth" someone just HAS to flame them for it. Its not like this woman said "I hate dealing with people but want the moolah!" or anything.

I see where you're coming from. I think the other poster was just implying that people should enter this profession for the right reasons (a combination of things) and not just to get a job. On the other hand, though, nursing school is tough and tends to weed out people who are not serious.

Good luck OP. If nursing is where you want to be, then go for it.

:up: thank-you so much for your kind words. i'm glad you see where i am coming from. i do love working in the health field. otherwise, i would not be in the dental office working on patients. i'm just not sure about the rest of the body:p i truely am compassionate about my patients.
I mean truly, in the end, does it REALLY matter why someone is becoming if they can show compassion and care and skill in their field and smile in earnest at patients as they walk in the door?

You say if they show compassion. I asked the original poster are you there for passion or a quick career? If she is there for passion (of people, I'm saying), then she will be able to show the compassion needed. If she is there only for a career (and not because she cares to take care of people), then chances are she will not be able to show the compassion needed to her patients.

But, said poster has just said that she loves dealing with her patients. So I would say go for it if you have a general love for human beings no matter how crazy they can drive you at times!

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