My article is about how much I want to be an RN. However, now because I am married with a little one, I don't know if I can go to nursing school. My husband is the only one working but his job in the oil field has cut back hours & we don't have the funds or family support for me to go back to school. I also touch on how it has been living & working with epilepsy.
I can't pin point what exactly drew me to nursing. I never had a moment where I said "This is it!". It was more my parents telling me nursing is a good, stable career. So I went along with what they said. I first went to school at a 4 year university, I didn't do well there & eventually moved to a different city.
Before I moved I wasn't sure if nursing was for me. So I looked up different majors at the 4 year university & community college in that town. Eventually I settled on going to the community college & becoming an LVN. I took the TEAS test, got into the program in 2008 & a year later in 2009 I was an LVN.
After the program I went straight to finish my pre-reqs, I wanted to be the first in my class to get my RN. I was so determined to become an RN. But then after I passed my NCLEX in 2010 I started working & just put off nursing school. I figured I would go to school in a year or two, that school would always be there. I was single, what would happen?
Well when I started applying in 2012 it wasn't as easy as I thought to get in. I applied but didn't get in on my first round of applications. I was upset but I was determined. So I kept applying.
Then I met my husband & in 2014 I got pregnant. It was very unexpected but exciting. Of course in the last trimester & last month of my pregnancy I was admitted to a great nursing program. I accepted it but then had to turn it down. I didn't want to but my health wasn't great during my pregnancy & was put on bed rest in the end of my pregnancy. Now my son is 1 year old & I see all these posts about people taking pre-reqs or getting accepted into nursing school. I wish I could do it. But because of my situation I have realized that becoming an RN will only be a dream.
My husband works in the oil field, his hours have been cut drastically & he is gone for 2 weeks & home for 1 week. I have no back up babysitter for my son. Any other family lives an hour away & they all work. We live with my mom but she works & is insanely busy even when she doesn't work. We can't afford a baby sitter or daycare. He went from making $3-4,000 to $1,000 a month. My husband loves what he does, he doesn't do it to be away from us. He misses us every day. He works in very dangerous conditions; in the heat, rain, hail. You name it he is working in it.
I think it also hurts because I have two ex-friends who I don't believe deserve to be RNs, now RNs. It hurts when people you know don't deserve something get something you want so bad. Plus three out of four of my sciences are already expired. I don't have the motivation to retake them. I just want to be in nursing school or have my RN.
I have to add, I was diagnosed with epilepsy as a freshman in high school. I had always tried to fit in and be "normal" despite that. I can't count how many times I ended up in the ER because I drank myself to a seizure when I was in college. Well fast forward to me working as an LVN. I'm working at a county jail PRN, every shift, any shift; 8 hour & 12 hour shifts. This particular night I was working 12 hour shifts & I was suppose to stay over 4 hours in the morning. I feel something is just "off". As an epileptic when you feel something is off, you know something is going to happen. You don't know when or where, but it will happen. So I called my boss & told him I wouldn't be able to work the extra 4 hours in the morning. He begged me, he pleaded with me. I told him I would see how I felt. Well a few hours later I was with my coworker in the nurses station after we passed our meds, the next thing I knew I woke up in the back of an ambulance. So it makes things really difficult looking for jobs knowing I can't apply for certain jobs because I can't work at night.
I want to support my family but I also don't want to leave my son. I want to watch him grow up. It's a very tough decision. Especially when my husband is home only one week a month. It's hard decision to make, going back to school or work. I love my family. I'm not embarrassed living with my mother, I love her & she helps out immensely. I don't know what I would do without her. I do have a great support system but just not the kind I can go to school with right now. I hope one day I can go back to school when my son is older, possibly in school. If not, then maybe I can go back to work. Whatever happens I want to put my family first.
Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
I don't know about you, but as a married woman, living with my mom would be a nightmare. Don't have any more children until you're financially stable. Being able to support your family is most important. How does your husband expect to support a family with only a high school diploma and decreasing pay in the oil industry?
You should definitely sit down with him and come up with a 5 year plan for your family. He could go to college and have a new, better paying career in 2 years. If you can't find LVN employment in your town, save up and move to a larger city. In the meantime, if he's only making $1K a month, there are subsidized childcare programs available that would give you the opportunity to work or go back to school.
Think outside the box.
Living with my my isn't a nightmare for me, she is my best friend. She has always been there for me. I mean, am I proud to be 26 & living at home? No. But it beats living paycheck to paycheck in a crappy apartment. We get to save a lot more money & she doesn't ask much from us & she takes amazing care of my son. We don't plan on having our next kid until our current is 3, at the YOUNGEST!
My husband tried going to college 3 times at 3 different colleges, I think it's safe to say college isn't for him. I know it's not. Lol. He has told me it's not & doesn't want to go back, so why force it?
Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
Being a stay at home mom doesn't sound like a luxury that you can currently afford. Let's be realistic.
Well if I can't get a job, then what else am I suppose to do? My husband is working & our bills are met every month. I *want* a job but if I commute too far then at that point there will be so much of a cost, I will have to start to ask, is it worth it.
Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
Why not find an online LVN-RN bridge program and do it one class at a time?
There really aren't too many options in Texas. I looked into EC but I don't like the clinical test at the end & I don't know if Indiana State is accepted here or if I could even get a clinical preceptor.
Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
I applied to a dialysis job that was over an hour away. I got an interview but it didn't sound promising since I live so far from the job. I even considering applying for a job an hour & a half away. But at some point I just have to wonder. Would it be occurring more of a cost to drive that far?
I applied to a dialysis job that was over an hour away. I got an interview but it didn't sound promising since I live so far from the job. I even considering applying for a job an hour & a half away. But at some point I just have to wonder. Would it be occurring more of a cost to drive that far?
Even if you don't work as an LVN, you can still get a job. Local YMCA's and day cares often hire people with healthcare experience.
Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
Even if you don't work as an LVN, you can still get a job. Local YMCA's and day cares often hire people with healthcare experience.
There are only 2 daycares in town, 1 is family run. We don't have a Y. I wish I was kidding. Yes, the town is THAT small. We do have a Walmart & a movie theater (with outdated movies). But to go to a mall or a real city it's a little over an hour drive.
Don't get me wrong, I appreciate all the advice. But I live in a small country town. Any opportunities are far & few between. If I want a job I either have to move or wait. It doesn't make sense, financially, to move right now. So since we can pay our bills every month, I'll just wait. I know it's the end of May & a bunch of new LVNs just graduated/moved. Give it some time & I know some jobs will open up.
I see this as a bump in the road for you. I was in school for my prereqs when I got married. My ex did not want to pay for me to go to school so I ended up dropping out. I worked in many different fields for a long time. Then I got pregnant with my son and I decided to stay home with him. Which I absolutely loved doing. My health was bad for years though while I was home with him and my marriage went downhill for many different reasons. When my son started kindergarten, I started bringing up wanting to go back to school to finish my degree and become a RN. My answer was a resounding no. I didn't need a job and he wasn't paying for it. We were much better off financially than we were when we first started out. We had nothing back then. We had everything at that point.
Once my son was in school all day, I hated being here by myself expected to cook and clean all day long. It just wasn't me. I think when my son started second grade is when I decided to go to school and get a divorce. I started just by taking classes while he was in school so not too much of his routine was changing. Kids love routine. Now that I'm further in the program and he is older, I have stuff arranged where other people can pick him up and run him to things. He has a better understanding of why mommy is in school. But you still have to get that support system in place. I'm not from around where I live and I have no family out here at all to help. When my son started preschool and doing activities, I met a lot of people and made some good friends. Before I had always worked so I never really had time to meet people.
It's been a long process for me. With lots of bumps in the road. You are 26. You will get there. Just make sure you and your husband can figure it out together and do what is best for your family.
Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
I see this as a bump in the road for you. I was in school for my prereqs when I got married. My ex did not want to pay for me to go to school so I ended up dropping out. I worked in many different fields for a long time. Then I got pregnant with my son and I decided to stay home with him. Which I absolutely loved doing. My health was bad for years though while I was home with him and my marriage went downhill for many different reasons. When my son started kindergarten, I started bringing up wanting to go back to school to finish my degree and become a RN. My answer was a resounding no. I didn't need a job and he wasn't paying for it. We were much better off financially than we were when we first started out. We had nothing back then. We had everything at that point.
Once my son was in school all day, I hated being here by myself expected to cook and clean all day long. It just wasn't me. I think when my son started second grade is when I decided to go to school and get a divorce. I started just by taking classes while he was in school so not too much of his routine was changing. Kids love routine. Now that I'm further in the program and he is older, I have stuff arranged where other people can pick him up and run him to things. He has a better understanding of why mommy is in school. But you still have to get that support system in place. I'm not from around where I live and I have no family out here at all to help. When my son started preschool and doing activities, I met a lot of people and made some good friends. Before I had always worked so I never really had time to meet people.
It's been a long process for me. With lots of bumps in the road. You are 26. You will get there. Just make sure you and your husband can figure it out together and do what is best for your family.
I'm starting to think I will go back after our kids (I say kids because whatever want one more) are in school because I really don't have any support right now. All our family is still working. Even my husband's mother who is almost 70 is still working. I'm hoping by the time my kids are in school I'll have more family support so I can go back to school.
Living with my my isn't a nightmare for me, she is my best friend. She has always been there for me. I mean, am I proud to be 26 & living at home? No. But it beats living paycheck to paycheck in a crappy apartment. We get to save a lot more money & she doesn't ask much from us & she takes amazing care of my son. We don't plan on having our next kid until our current is 3, at the YOUNGEST!
My husband tried going to college 3 times at 3 different colleges, I think it's safe to say college isn't for him. I know it's not. Lol. He has told me it's not & doesn't want to go back, so why force it?
Your husband can't go to a trade school? Plumbers are making $70-80K a year. Or has he resigned himself to a life of poverty? Our parents won't be around to bail us out forever. At some point we have to sink or swim on our own.
Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
Your husband can't go to a trade school? Plumbers are making $70-80K a year. Or has he resigned himself to a life of poverty? Our parents won't be around to bail us out forever. At some point we have to sink or swim on our own.
We pay our own bills, we just live with my mom. His parents don't pay for anything of his. I don't think forcing him to go to school so he can be a plumber or something he hates would be a wise choice. He works very hard as a roustabout, he's only been at the company a year & already a crew leader. Considering the state of the oil field he's lucky to HAVE a job. He's come a LONG way from when I met him at his dead end job. No raises, no health insurance, nothing.
He feels bad that he isn't making money like he use to. But it's the state of the oil field now. It booms & busts. We're in a bust right now. We are not living in poverty & never will.
There are only 2 daycares in town, 1 is family run. We don't have a Y. I wish I was kidding. Yes, the town is THAT small. We do have a Walmart & a movie theater (with outdated movies). But to go to a mall or a real city it's a little over an hour drive.
Don't get me wrong, I appreciate all the advice. But I live in a small country town. Any opportunities are far & few between. If I want a job I either have to move or wait. It doesn't make sense, financially, to move right now. So since we can pay our bills every month, I'll just wait. I know it's the end of May & a bunch of new LVNs just graduated/moved. Give it some time & I know some jobs will open up.
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Ahhhhh...moving would probably be a good idea. You're only 26, but you'll be 30 in the blink of an eye. Trust me it goes fast, especially when you have kids. Having a solid 5 year plan would help, rather than just going through life on a hope and prayer.
Specializes in M/S, LTC, Corrections, PDN & drug rehab.
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Ahhhhh...moving would probably be a good idea. You're only 26, but you'll be 30 in the blink of an eye. Trust me it goes fast, especially when you have kids. Having a solid 5 year plan would help, rather than just going through life on a hope and prayer.
I'm not living on a hope & a prayer. And what money would you say I move with? Are you going to fund this move? At least staying with my mom I don't pay any rent, if I move I'll have rent, utilities & other bills which right now we can't afford. Even though there are other jobs out there, it's not guaranteed I'd get one. So if we move, how do we pay the bills while I wait to get a job?
OrganizedChaos, LVN
1 Article; 6,883 Posts
Living with my my isn't a nightmare for me, she is my best friend. She has always been there for me. I mean, am I proud to be 26 & living at home? No. But it beats living paycheck to paycheck in a crappy apartment. We get to save a lot more money & she doesn't ask much from us & she takes amazing care of my son. We don't plan on having our next kid until our current is 3, at the YOUNGEST!
My husband tried going to college 3 times at 3 different colleges, I think it's safe to say college isn't for him. I know it's not. Lol. He has told me it's not & doesn't want to go back, so why force it?