Can't Find My Calling

[Genesis_BSN_RN, BSN, RN]

Hi, I've been a med surg nurse for the past year. I was at a hospital for nine months then went to a different hospital and I have been here for the past four months. I really do not like med surg. I am exhausted and overwhelmed after each shift. I find myself crying throughout the shift because I do not enjoy what I do. But I don't seem to know what area of nursing is for me. I don't have the passion I see my friends have and knew exactly what specialty they wanted to be in. I just want suggestions. I am a simple person. I do not mind a routine and doing the same things over and over. I prefer the predictable and that is not med surg. I just want to work with the same type of patients all the time.  Open to suggestions. 

[nt8788]

Hi. I started out in a pediatric step down unit and it wasn't for me, so I did covid testing for about 8 months. I'm now starting orientation for an Adult Med Surg floor. I'm leaning towards forensic nursing so I'm thinking of going back to school for that since I don't feel my calling is bedside. Perhaps you could explore primary care, or research different types of nurses there are like wound care or palliative. I hope you feel a bit more comfortable in your position soon.

[Piper98, ASN, BSN, RN]

What is your favorite aspect of nursing? Would you be interested in doing something in a clinic? What about dialysis or home care?

[NewGradRecruit]

Hello. I think you could consider some options such as cardiac cath lab or endoscopy or even outpatient options like infusion nursing, wound care, or a clinic setting. These all have different hours that aren’t typical 12 hour shifts but have similar procedures/skills/activities that you would do on a day to day basis. Hope you find something that works for you! 

[No Stars In My Eyes]

Personally, I think the intent in talking about having a "dream job" in nursing is not at all helpful. When I went into nursing it was because I wanted to be a nurse.

Applied at the biggest hospital I knew of, for my first job. All I knew was I did not want to work on the burns floor, nor in pediatrics. Other than that I took what they gave me, which turned out to be on the floor for 'fresh' spinal cord injuries, where they invented and refined the halo-frame. I learned a lot, which transferred well to other services. I was a med nurse on several med/surg floors, in various hospitals and through a temp-agency, over the years. 

The only thing I hated in nursing was at my very last job as a nurse...a nursing home that was like a factory line of caregiving, where the patient as a PERSON got lost in the process. Awful.

[kayisatay]

Hi! I'm sorry to hear you're having a tough time with finding your passion in nursing. Fortunately, you can do so much with nursing! You can work in an outpatient clinic, aesthetics (high rate of satisfaction), oncology, research, etc. I had no idea what I wanted to do until I randomly decided to try ER and was obsessed! It took a year and a half to get there but it was all worth it ?

[scribblz, BSN, CNA, LPN]

You sound like you may be a good fit for an area that does procedures such as cath lab or Endo or Infusion nursing. All generally 9-5 or similar hours Mon through Friday. You perform similar tasks/ assist with procedures in a structured environment. It's nothing like the chaos of the ED or med Surg. Some people would be bored out of their minds and some will be content with having a routine work flow. There's so many ways to be a good nurse and enjoy your nursing career.

Unless someone is very similar to you; it's often unhelpful to look at what worked for them and think that is also your solution. A better place to start is to assess what aspects of nursing you like and what you don't. Then research different nursing positions and apply for what fits your strengths. There's forums here for a lot of specialties, and there's many more of them out there. Good luck to you!

[LaZarca, BSN, RN]

I've been in this for almost 4 years and I thought I had found my calling but then it didn't turn out to be so. 

For now, I've abandoned the prospect of a "dream job" and just decided to explore and see what makes me happy. I love my current job and it's not at all where I expected to be. Is it my end all? I don't know, but I'm discovering possibilities I never knew existed. 

Find something that you can tolerate and let yourself grow there as you figure out the things you like and things you dislike. Then move more in whatever direction fits those preferences.