how did you KNOW you were meant to be a nurse...having a conflict!

nurse4theplanet, RN · May 2, 2005

I also think that teaching adults in a nursing school is a lot different than teaching children.
Kris

I KNOW that I do not want to teach small children or even high school age...not for me....the college setting interests me most, and I think I will start talking more to my instructors like many of you have said.

thanks so much for everyone's responses. You have really helped to reinforce and encourage my decisions. :)

lpnadmin · May 2, 2005

There are plenty of opportunities as a nurse to teach others.

Since I became a nurse, I've had more opportunities to sit down with patients and their families and explain what was going on and what to expect. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

I just want to make sure I can fuse both passions (teaching and nursing) into something I really enjoy doing and not have any regrets and end up hating nursing.

A nurse who is willing to sit down with patients and family and teach them about their tx/dx is worth more than their weight in gold. Teaching is not merely restricted to a classroom setting!

magenta · May 7, 2005

I knew i wanted to be a nurse,after i had aterriable thing happen in my life and i hated the way i amd the other patients were treated, :crying2: . Its was like the patient was in their way and it was a crime to ask for help. For an example, i had a bullet lodged in my head and before i has brain surgery, i was in bed and had wet the bed, well my mother walked in and they has moved me out of the bed (which i was'nt to be moved) and mad because they had to change my bed.

Now that was in 81 and alot has changed but the attitude some of them have is a digrace to the profession, but you will know. You have to learn before you can teach. Good luck :balloons:

anichols · May 7, 2005

My mom's a nurse and I never wanted to be one. My husband pointed out to me that I kept getting jobs taking care of others...nanny, group homes...and maybe I should look into nursing just as a pay thing. I was in the midst of 2 other degrees at the time. Took the entrance test just to see what was involved and next thing I knew there was a letter saying I'd been accepted. Didn't even know I'd applied! So on to clinicals, swore I'd never do LTC, hated the way patients were treated. Now a nurse in LTC and loving it. Still finishing up those other degrees, but only for fun. I'm a nurse, after all!

plsunnybee · May 7, 2005

Dear friend,

I can relate to your question very well; for as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to be a nurse AND to teach! It took a while, as my self confidence was greatly lacking; I was 27 and the mother of a 3 year old before I had the courage to pursue my first dream, but graduated from nursing school at age 30. I found that my strengths all lie in psych/mental health nursing, and have spent most of my 22-year nursing career in that specialty, but still did not feel I had much to offer students until a few years ago. I finally completed my MSN last year, at age 51, and am now submitting my Curriculum Vitae to different nursing schools, hoping that my experience-not my age-will be the focus of attention. I truly hope that you will consider teaching nursing, as there are many potential nursing students unable to enter programs, due to the nursing faculty shortage-at least according to the stats I have seen. I also hope that it will not take you as long as it did me, to gain the self-confidence to teach. Whatever you decide, dear friend, I wish the best for you in your future!

Peg

Hello all, I am currently in nursing school and doing quite well. But somehow, it just doesn't feel right yet and I have been wondering lately if nursing is really for me. I thoroughly ENJOY studying the material, do well on the tests, and do fine in clinicals. But I enjoy teaching MORE. I am a tutor for some of my fellow classmates and they tell me I missed my calling- that I should have been a teacher. It makes me wonder. To make matters worse, I had changed my major three times and waited to get into this RN program for two years, now I am at the top of the class. I have thought about being a nursing instructor...but that usually takes alot of time/experience.
I guess my question is How did you KNOW it was the right feild for you? And what are my options to incorporate teaching and nursing?

Curious1alwys, BSN, RN · May 7, 2005

llg........

Thank you for your informative replies on this thread. I share some of the same issues as the OP and your words really help and make lots of sense. So, you helped more than one person today!!

Good Luck to you OP. Just know that there are others that are struggling just like you. Good thing is, once you have it (the RN) you have it. So keep on pluggin'. Nursing education sounds right up your alley??

vickster · May 7, 2005

Hi there!
I am still a student myself... but even I have found that teaching is huge in nursing. At every bend, you are the one that needs to impart your knowledge.
I spent my last semester doing a rotation on the spinal unit of an orthopedic hospital, and we were forever doing patient education... on everything from proper ergonomics, to pain meds. Also, before any patient is discharged, you will need to ensure you go over any final dr instructions to clarify and ensure patient understanding.
Although I haven't had any experience with it, I would imagine that home health care would require a great deal of teaching as well... After all there isn't someone available 24hrs, & you need to ensure that a patient understands what is & isnt normal for their condition. (Also how to comply & why it's important to comply!)
Only you know whether or not this is the right field for you to be in, but if teaching is where your heart is, try focusing on teaching while you are going through your clinicals! See if that helps with your perspective before you drop out of a program you've invested so much into! If nothing else, your patients will thank you for it! :)

You are sooooooo right! Health teaching is a huge part of nursing in any field.

(And not everyone is good at it. Nix the lingo ect.)

NurseLeeLee · May 8, 2005

You seem like you would be such a great nursing teacher since you are already playing that role, sort of, with your fellow classmates. As many of the others have mentioned, if you stuck with nursing, you probably couldn't go wrong seeing as there are so many ways in which one can play out their nursing career. And, I would definitly keep in mind that there is such a shortage of good, qualified nursing educators, so to eventually head down that road is always an option for you, you know? I know you said it would take a lot more education, and you didn't seem to like that idea;however, with the way our economy is going, it seems, soon everyone will need some kind of extra education beyond the general. One thing you could do is log onto discovernursing.com and look up all the vast array of jobs an RN can do. This may help you out.

As for how I knew.......I'd switched my major and profession a million times. I was even a hair colorist for a while-and I reached a point when I realized that everyday I was waking up to live my life only to benefit myself. I wanted my life to mean more-I wanted to somehow help out other people besides myself. After much research, prayer, and looking into how I would like to spend my working days, and life-I came across nursing. As a nurse-we are blessed (Actually-I will be-I'm still working towards my BSN-HEE!) We are blessed with opportunities to make a difference in other people's lives. Because of our careers, we can touch lives in ways that other professions don't provide for. We can show love for people when they really need it most; and we can show love to people even when they are being really mean and don't deserve it too-this will make us better people. Think about it-everyone can show love to people who show them love first, but the real challenge is can we show love to people when they are being evil, and undeserving? So anyway, sorry for going off on a tangent.....good luck, I hope my rambling didn't confuse you. You seem bright, motivated, and if you are a caring, compassionate person, who loves people-you are definitly going to be successful in nursing. I pray that you can discern a path in which you will flourish, and become a woman of strength and purpose. IJNIPTP

Good luck!!!

wam79 · May 8, 2005

I have made a niche for myself as a nurse and I can teach.

I took over the patient education for my work area. I have been able to start nurse led groups for patients. We have begun to emphasise a stop with the nurse educator for the patients before they leave.

MistyDawnRN06, BSN, RN · May 8, 2005

I say finish your degree. There are many options that you might possibly find fulfilling. Not only can you eventually become a teacher at a nursing school, you can become a nurse educator - do inservices, teach new knowledge and technology, etc.

There are also many teaching specialties within the nursing field - ostomy specialists, cardiac rehab specialists, lactation specialists, diabetes educators, etc., etc.

You just need to find what you like to teach within nursing, and I'm sure you can make it happen. Also, being a bedside nurse involves teaching on a daily basis. You teach families, patients, students, staff, etc.

alisunshine9 · May 8, 2005

I decided to go to nursing school because I knew I wanted to work in medicine but I didn't want to be a doctor. :icon_roll I was not sure it was my calling until I realized something. I absolutely hate getting up at 5am. I absolutely hate driving for 30 minutes to get to work. But no matter how much I feel like I just don't want to get out of bed, when I step foot on the hospital floor I light up. My whole demeanor changes when I'm in the hospital. Time flies, I bond with my patients, I love the staff I work with, and I come home wanting to tell everyone about how great my day was (HIPAA has taken that ability away :uhoh21: ). I believe everyone has a different meaning of life, but the meaning I have discovered to mine is to get to know as many people as I can and help them in whatever way I am able. There are days when I come home and a little black cloud hangs over my head :chair: , but there are days when I come home and I'm smiling brighter than the sun. Give it time and you may notice one day that you really love being a nurse. :nurse:

love_being_a_nurse · May 8, 2005

i have known since i was very young that i wanted to be a nurse!! for the longest time, i have suffered from adhd which made it a great challenge to do so. i have thought so many times about what i wanted in life, but, my most often choice was to do something with my life that i could benefit as well as others. i graduated high school with my cna, from a tech school in june of 97 and began working as a cna in a nursing home. i then started nursing school in august and worked every weekend as a cna. i was to graduate the following year in september 98. i had only 28 days of school left, and i quit. my instructors were very adament that i should never have even persued a nursing career because people with adhd don't belong in nursing fields. i had a very hard time even getting a d in my grades. however, i re-enrolled in the next class, with a new instructor who spent time with me and i passed with a b average!!! but then it came time to take my boards and all i could think about was the other instructors telling me "you can't do it, you will never be a nurse" and so it took me until august 4, 1998 to take my boards. i was so nervous that i actually fell asleep on the computer twice, i was up all nite worrying about what they told me. my computer shut off at 85 questions and i knew i was doomed. . . until 3 days later i called and there was a license in my name!!! i had passed and i had done what they said i couldn't do!!! i was so proud of myself that i went and bought my super instructor a dozen of red roses, walked into that school and started crying - until i seen her, then i reached up and hugged her so tight. i told her that i had passed my boards because of her. we both cried. but the moral of the story is, even if you don't feel like it is the right job for you now, wait till you get out there and work with the people, it is such a rewarding career. and, yes, even if you think that you may not like actually working the field, you should persue a teaching career in nursing. i think you may just make it worth your while if you do tutoring now and enjoy it now, go for it!!!!! get that teaching degree!!! reach for the stars!!! you can do it!!!!!!! never let anyone tell you you can't, simply because, the word "can't" does not exist in nursing. good luck in all you do!!! :nurse:

hello all, i am currently in nursing school and doing quite well. but somehow, it just doesn't feel right yet and i have been wondering lately if nursing is really for me. i thoroughly enjoy studying the material, do well on the tests, and do fine in clinicals. but i enjoy teaching more. i am a tutor for some of my fellow classmates and they tell me i missed my calling- that i should have been a teacher. it makes me wonder. to make matters worse, i had changed my major three times and waited to get into this rn program for two years, now i am at the top of the class. i have thought about being a nursing instructor...but that usually takes alot of time/experience.
i guess my question is how did you know it was the right feild for you? and what are my options to incorporate teaching and nursing?