career change anyone?

dorimar, BSN, RN · Jul 5, 2006

different field, because even though I know i have made a difference, it was and continues to be, at my expense.

slp2rn · Jul 5, 2006

different field, because even though I know i have made a difference, it was and continues to be, at my expense.

Yikes.

chadash · Jul 5, 2006

My goodness! Someone answer this post! Poster is looking for information.

Sorry I can't help you much, I am an aide, but I wish you well.

I do know that if this is a good match for you, it can be an incredibly interesting career.

santhony44, MSN, RN, NP · Jul 6, 2006

Although I occasionally wish I had gone into something easier or with less responsibility (Would you like fries with that??) I would do it again because it's what I'm supposed to do.

As for advice I wish I'd had, well, I've been doing this too long to remember!!

You need to think about what your reasons are for making the change. If you don't really want to do it, then don't. If you start a program and hate it, then don't finish it. Maybe look into other areas as well- lab tech, x-ray, respiratory therapy, etc. What do you really, really want to do??

cursenurse · Jul 6, 2006

Hi! I am in need of some advice. I am a Speech Language Pathologist contemplating a change to nursing. Tell me the best and worst aspects to nursing and advice you wish you had before you started your career. I am very confused!
Also- if you could do it all over, would you be in a different field?
Thanks!

could you list your reasons for wanting to change? i find it interesting that you would go through all that schooling and then want to change. i bet nursing is much more demanding emotionally and physically, and i doubt if it pays more than what you are doing now. and yes, if i had had the financial support to do whatever i wanted, i would have been an attorney or an anchorwoman.

pogo · Jul 6, 2006

Hi! I am in need of some advice. I am a Speech Language Pathologist contemplating a change to nursing. Tell me the best and worst aspects to nursing and advice you wish you had before you started your career. I am very confused!
Also- if you could do it all over, would you be in a different field?
Thanks!

i've been thinking about getting out of nursing and it occuried to me the other day- that the essence of my gripe is that when dealing with the sick, one must be in a relatively healthy state (mind, body, spiritual), be willing/able to give without getting (most of the time) , while putting up with extrarraneous stuff that has nothing to do with the 1:1 interaction with the patient (ie, egos/politics, budget, understaffing)....this if of course in the context of potentially having someone's life in your hands.

when i started out 5 years ago, i had the all those necessary resources to do my job well. but, now i'm just tired--it's so draining. i wish someone would have stressed to me to ALWAYS take care of yourself 1st, no matter what!!!

soooo, to you i'd say if you can muster up endurance to deal with these things--go for it, just be warned that it's alot of responsibility that you hold. and obviously, you must have a CARING heart (this will keep you focused and guide you through alot of the B*** S****).

The best thing about nursing is that after something you've said or done has gotten through (and not in a control freak way), you get to witness the end result... and you know that patient's life will never be the same again. just beautiful.

Oh, the other best thing is that if you don't like the speciality you're in, you can change it. or if you don't like the hours, change 'em....lots of potential horizonal, vertical, diagonal :chuckle moves to be made.

hope you find your way.

rach_nc_03 · Jul 6, 2006

Best aspect? There are countless specialties to explore. If you don't like hospital nursing (I didn't), there's education, clinic nursing, research, pharma companies....

Worst aspect? If you end up (or start out) with health problems, you're screwed, if you're working in bedside nursing. I had to quit one job because a medical condition made it unsafe for me to perform my job, and was fired from another because I had to have back surgery (this was a non-bedside job, by the way).

Nursing is my third career. Right now I'm doing contract work in a phase I clinical research facility, and it's the perfect job for me at this point- low stress, good pay, very sedentary. (It'd be pretty boring if i had to do it full-time for the rest of my life.)

I considered going into education or forensic research after I left the tech industry, and overall, I'm glad I chose nursing. That being said, I've only been able to work for about 6 of the last 12 months because of health issues, and it would've been more like 11 of 12 if I had an office job.

On the other hand, it gives one incredible flexibility. My husband is interviewing for jobs all over the country right now, and I know I can find work pretty much anywhere we go- even though I can't go back to bedside nursing in the forseeable future.

One piece of advice I wish I'd had was to investigate non-hospital jobs more than you get to in nursing school. Be honest with yourself about your strengths and weaknesses, and your interests. I love strategic planning and research, and nothing satisfies me more than learning the 'why' behind what's going on. Bedside nursing in a hospital setting requires you to spend an inordinate amount of time juggling tasks and trying to cram everything into your shift- some people are really adept at that sort of thing, but it made me extremely frustrated and unhappy. It's also extremely physically demanding, especially if you have spine/hip/knee issues.

Would I do it again? I try to live without regrets, so this is a tough question to answer. I think I would.