Can nurses really “do anything??”

203bravo, MSN, APRN · Sep 1, 2019

Will you have your choice of jobs as a RN? No

while there are non clinical jobs for RNs most require experience. You already have a degree that you find unuseful and now working on a degree that you are not wanting to do the majority of tasks that is primary to nursing.

It’s time to pause and really reflect and figure out exactly what you’d like to be doing and work towards that. A collection of degrees will not get you much and I only hope you aren’t racking up student loan debt during these degrees.

Best of luck.

alexia8 · Sep 1, 2019

I don't really have any advice for you so I'm sorry. But, I just wanted to let you know you're not alone. I'm feeling the same way. I just got into an LVN to RN program and am really considering if I want this. I keep telling myself I'll like the end goal but it's hard, if I could go back I would've never majored in nursing either. I'm a very anxious person and generally don't enjoy clinicals or doing procedures. I'm still young but wonder if I've already wasted too much time pursuing this. Sorry I don't really have an advice for you! But I do think if your hearts not in it you can always go back and do something else. Life is so short, don't get stuck doing something that you dread everyday. Best of luck to you!

Sour Lemon · Sep 1, 2019

3 hours ago, Piper98 said:
I am in my 2nd semester of an ADN program. Last semester, I did really well and made the deans list, but I hated every moment of it. I hated clinicals, but had a wonderful clinical instructor, so that helped. I am not excited about nursing. I think I am caring and therapeutic, but DO NOT want to do any procedures, injections, etc. I am terrified of doing anything! Part of it is anxiety, but part of it is my personality.
So, here we are 2nd semester, and I feel like the nightmare has resumed. I am considering just quitting. I just don’t think nursing is for me. I don’t really want to be a nurse, and think I did this for all the wrong reasons (money, etc.). I know if I could go back in time, I would have never enrolled into nursing school. That says something, right??
My hesitation is that I did do very well my first semester. Everyone keeps telling me to “stick with it; nurses can do anything! You don’t have to be a hospital nurse!” But is this really true? Especially for an ADN nurse? Will I really have my choice of jobs? It seems like any of the non-hospital jobs require experience. I do already have a bachelors degree, but cannot do a lot with it. I just don’t want to regret my decision, but my heart really isn’t in this. I’m tired, anxious, and miserable. I just would feel so ashamed quitting, especially if I really could stick with it and in the end “do anything.” Thanks for reading.

From this alone, I'd say cut your losses and move on. Three paragraphs aren't really enough to make a life-changing decision for someone else, though.

As far as "doing anything", I think that's an exaggeration. And as a new graduate- probably a HUGE one.

Piper98, ASN, BSN, RN · Sep 1, 2019

2 hours ago, alexia8 said:
I don't really have any advice for you so I'm sorry. But, I just wanted to let you know you're not alone. I'm feeling the same way. I just got into an LVN to RN program and am really considering if I want this. I keep telling myself I'll like the end goal but it's hard, if I could go back I would've never majored in nursing either. I'm a very anxious person and generally don't enjoy clinicals or doing procedures. I'm still young but wonder if I've already wasted too much time pursuing this. Sorry I don't really have an advice for you! But I do think if your hearts not in it you can always go back and do something else. Life is so short, don't get stuck doing something that you dread everyday. Best of luck to you!

You are young...don’t feel trapped this early in life. If there is something else you are passionate about, go for it!! I am in my mid-40s, so I kinda feel stuck either way.

Rionoir, ADN, RN · Sep 1, 2019

It's not for everyone, and it's one of the hardest undergrad degrees there is so if it isn't your passion just find something else. It's not a big deal really and it's better to realize it now than 10 years from now.

Just for a point of reference though - I have felt every moment of school that I am doing the right thing. If you don't feel that way to some extent, you probably aren't. If you like healthcare though, there are tons of other things to do besides nursing.

alexia8 · Sep 1, 2019

56 minutes ago, Piper98 said:
You are young...don’t feel trapped this early in life. If there is something else you are passionate about, go for it!! I am in my mid-40s, so I kinda feel stuck either way.

Thank you so much for the encouragement! I'm going to give it a few weeks and still see if I feel this way, then I'll try to decide what I'm going to do. I believe that you could definitely do something else though if you wanted, nursing is hard and it's even harder if your heart's not in it anymore!

Oldmahubbard · Sep 4, 2019

My heart was never in hospital nursing, but I figured I could serve my sentence there, and with good behavior, get out after a year, and do something else.

At times it's been a rocky road, but I've always been able to make a living, which I could never do with my previous degree.

Golden_RN, MSN · Sep 4, 2019

Have you had psych rotation yet? It has a different feel from med/surg types of floors. There are a lot of opportunities in nursing outside of a typical hospital. You have already put in years of pre-reqs - don't quit now. You may be able to do ambulatory care, psych, assisting living and school nursing (depending on where you live) as a newer nurse.

Jkloo · Sep 5, 2019

I think you need to genuinely ask yourself what you'd rather be doing with your life - career wise. A lot of folks are running off getting various degrees with absolutely no market for them. Today, you really cannot afford to be goofing around getting degrees with no clear financial rewards at the end. The lack of a serious livable wage during those formative years coupled with the debt school generally requires now is simply too much to go through without a clear plan in mind.

Do you have something in mind that you'd prefer to be doing?

Horseshoe, BSN, RN · Sep 9, 2019

On 9/4/2019 at 8:34 PM, Jkloo said:
I think you need to genuinely ask yourself what you'd rather be doing with your life - career wise. A lot of folks are running off getting various degrees with absolutely no market for them. Today, you really cannot afford to be goofing around getting degrees with no clear financial rewards at the end. The lack of a serious livable wage during those formative years coupled with the debt school generally requires now is simply too much to go through without a clear plan in mind.
Do you have something in mind that you'd prefer to be doing?

Totally agree. OP, You've already gone around the block once to no result other than getting the diploma. Don't start anything else until you truly know what you want to do and what your personal characteristics would match to. Make sure you actually understand what will be involved, not some romanticized notion of what would be involved. Are you good with numbers? Accounting, actuarial work could be very stable and fairly lucrative. Are you very creative? How about PR or advertising or marketing?Are you great with people and willing to work on commission only? Real estate may be a good match.

Whatever you do, don't just slide into something else without knowing for sure it's a good fit.