Defining Moment

[heylfire]

I have proposed this question to several of my coworkers, and I know that it is often discussed "why did you want to be a nurse, or how did you know" but my favorite question (and it is in all aspects of my life) is "when?" When was that defining moment when you knew that you wanted to be a nurse? I think this concept transends the notion of "well i always wanted to be a nurse" or the like, to realy answer this question you have to look deply, "When did that defining moment occur?" What was the environment, contributing factors, the emmotions, the raw essecne of the experience...

[gonzo1, ASN, RN]

I realized I wanted to be a nurse about 3 weeks into the nursing program the day "they" blew up the twin towers.

I realized I was learning something that could be really helpful to mankind.

Before that I was just going to nursing school for job security and the money.

Fortunately I have been blessed with all 3 since then.

[heylfire]

Thank YOU! That is exactly what I am talking about, that is THE moment I think it is those times that truly define us...

[icyounurse, BSN, RN]

Wow if thats the moment that truly defines us, I am in trouble

I was 18 and an art major and really frustrated at how I hated my major and wanted to do something where the classes were not so subjective and where I could find a job when I got out, and know exactly what I would be doing at said job. I wasnt sure what my new major should be though.

I was in my dorm room eating doritos and smoking cheap cigarettes (habits I have since quit) and reading a horror novel by Christopher Pike. One of the characters in the book had a son and a trajic life but pulled it all together and became a nurse (before she was tragically murdered at the end). I just thought, hey I could do that. And I called my mom, who is a respiratory therapist, and told her I was thinking of nursing, and she was like "oh honey, you know those classes are hard, right??"

I didnt have the best academic record prior to this and there was little hope I would succeed in Nursing school. But I did, surprising everyone and most of all myself. And its truly what has defined me, so I cant imagine if I hadnt read that book what my life would have turned out like. :)

[chinky]

Halfway through Nursing school:wink2:

spent the first years being stubborn since it wasn't the degree that I wanted, but since it was my parent's life long dream to have a nurse, I complied... I dragged on during those first years, didn't study, didn't socialize with classmates/teachers..didn't attend attend school functions and nursing activities..the result was I almost got a failing grade in one major nursing subject...So as sort of punishment/rehab, a group of clinical instructors took us (there were 10 of us) under their wings and had a Summer workshop where we try to assess if indeed this was the path for us, while doing volunteer works at a local hospital catering to needs of long term ill patients who were either too poor to pay their bills (that's why they can't be discharged) or were left alone by family members to rot in the hospital..they were a sad bunch of people, and it was really life altering when you see appreciation in the eyes of these people whom I believed we have touched during our month stint caring,feeding and just being there for them..sometimes we have to pool our own money or arrange fund raisers just to continue their medications...while most of my classmates had vacations going to beaches,visiting other places and relaxing; we where there giving sponge baths, doing v/s, and sometimes organizing song and dance numbers to entertain them..It was worthwhile and I realized the nobleness of our profession....

After that there were many defining moments in my life where I can say I was destined to be a nurse, but I could never forget that one summer where my outlook and my life has changed and made me where I am today...an RN:nurse:

[metfan]

Seeing a nurse sing Christmas songs to my Dad who was dying. She was so caring. She went about her work but sang with my Dad while doing it. Then she took a few extra minutes just singing with him and hold his hand. She didn't even know I was watching. She didn't do it to impress anyone. I don't think anyone else knew it. I realized there is such a need for nurses like that and I could do it. I just wish I could tell her what an impact that tiny moment meant to me and my Dad. He died Christmas Eve. Colleen

[heylfire]

That is an amazing story. I have a cousin with a similar story (other than she was the parent with the child in the opposite spot) Becasue of the love and compasion that the nurses showed to her daughter she now studies to become an RN in memory of her daughter and the nurses that cared for her. Your story truly is a "defining Moment"

[Roy Fokker, BSN, RN]

I think I've posted this before...

cheers,

[MIA-RN]

I always knew in my heart it would be what I had to do....it was part of me. I ignored it for a long time, did other things, but kept coming back to it. I knew for absolute sure it was the right choice the first day of nursing school. That's when I realized I hadn't been listening to my heart over the years. It felt like the last piece of a huge puzzle when I realized it.