Too many Negative remarks regarding Nursing School here!! Stop the discouragement!!

Nurses General Nursing

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I can already imagine what responses I'll get....But anyway...I and im sure, alot of other people who are pursuing a degree in Nursing are tired of some of the remarks that are made on this site regarding Nursing school! It's already stressful for many of us who are trying to get into a program and to hear such things like " when will this end," "15 people dropped out of my Nursing class last semester!!,"etc makes it even more stressful for us! Nursing school is not easy , but Im sure it's not "Hell." I have known many people who applied and got accepted into Nursing school with a 2.7.Uhmmmm, thats "pretty average Joe" to me and hey, they're pretty good Nurses now.

Specializes in Cardiac.
. I will not let myself get down because others refuse to let themselves enjoy it.

We'll see when you become a nurse! :idea:

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Specializes in 5 yrs OR, ASU Pre-Op 2 yr. ER.
We'll see when you become a nurse! :idea:

I have to say that when several people said this to me (over and over and over), aside from the idea that it is assumptive, the first thing i thought of was 'who's to say my experience will be the same as yours.'

And my experience hasn't been what others predicted. It's actually been very close to what i thought it was going to be, and somewhat exceeded my expectations.Perhaps because i felt i had a 'sneek peek' by working at the same place as a CNA, who knows.

Which is why i never use the phrase 'just wait until you become a nurse." Someone else becoming a nurse doesn't mean that they'll automatically see things the way i do. Nor does it mean they feel the same way about it that they did 2 years ago as a student.

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We'll see when you become a nurse! :idea:

Let's face it, if there isn't a little sXit in it, it isn't a job. No job is perfect, and everybody needs to vent. That said, thank God there are people willing to help other people, no matter what the difficulties.

Diahni

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Specializes in Cardiac.

Marie, you've had tons of healthcare experience prior to becoming a nurse.

My response is because that poster said that people who say that nursing sometimes sucks are in the wrong field. Which I beg to differ.

That kind of comment is straight from the mouth of a pre-nursing student. Which I have seen plenty of on allnurses. Lots of pre-nursing students telling nurses that they are in the wrong field because we dont' portray nursing as cream and roses, walking with a candle down the hall kind of thing.

To be in complete denial about how difficult nursing is, and then to tell us that we are wrong because we are giving opinions about it (based in experiences) is naive at best.

I posted in this thread in the beginning. I said, let people vent, and we will help. The OP was saying, "I'm tired of hearing stories about how hard nursing is".

This other poster agreed with that. I don't.

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Specializes in 5 yrs OR, ASU Pre-Op 2 yr. ER.
Marie, you've had tons of healthcare experience prior to becoming a nurse.

My response is because that poster said that people who say that nursing sometimes sucks are in the wrong field. Which I beg to differ.

That kind of comment is straight from the mouth of a pre-nursing student. Which I have seen plenty of on allnurses. Lots of pre-nursing students telling nurses that they are in the wrong field because we dont' portray nursing as cream and roses, walking with a candle down the hall kind of thing.

To be in complete denial about how difficult nursing is, and then to tell us that we are wrong because we are giving opinions about it (based in experiences) is naive at best.

I posted in this thread in the beginning. I said, let people vent, and we will help. The OP was saying, "I'm tired of hearing stories about how hard nursing is".

This other poster agreed with that. I don't.

The poster suggested that the particular person they were responding to was "perhaps" in the wrong profession. And maybe they are, maybe they aren't.

Whether i've had 2 days or 20 years prior exp. doesn't make me anymore qualified to have a certain mindset and/or attitude walking into another job than somoene who has zero experience. Nor does is give me the knowledge or the right to say that someone else doesn't know what they are getting themselves into, and i know that is a fact because the simple fact that being different people will at least mean that each others' nursing experiences will not be the same. The last sentence was the point i was making.

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Specializes in ICU;CCU;Telemetry;L&D;Hospice;ER/Trauma;.

So...you (RNSoon) only want Positive feedback??? Well, isn't that a bit delusional, unrealistic, unfair to myopic and misguided fledglings, naiive, fearful students? Even when David met Goliath, he knew EXACTLY who/what his opponent was....

The difference is this: negativity has it's place....and serves a great purpose....it provides balance between two polarities, and without it, one might believe that all nursing schools are just happy happy places full of shiny fresh faces....that seems to be more damaging to a person's psyche, ya know?

Wouldn't you rather hear the truth as opposed to whitewashed watered down truth?

We, as strong nurses, are much more equipped to deal with truth an reality than we are with nebulous nonsense....truly.

I am happy people here, including myself, have a chance to speak their minds, however painfully truthful it is.....

crni

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Specializes in ICU;CCU;Telemetry;L&D;Hospice;ER/Trauma;.

Something else occured to me when writing a response to this post....

The OP stated further on that the stress being felt originated in the fact that a B average had to be maintained, or else there was this intense fear of being dropped from the program.....

Does anyone find this focus of concern troubling?

I think it is sooooo sad that nursing schools, ie administration/professors place such a FOCUS on GPA so as to cause such fear driven performance.....how can ANYONE learn, or retain ANYTHING if the only driving force of their learning is based on "making the grade?" I would think this would lead to all manner of negative competition...ie, tendency to plagarize, cheat, or look for ways to

"look better" to the professor....which has nothing to do with being a competent nurse at the bedside...

Maybe schools should look into ways of implementing supportive achievement checks...ie,"two months into nursing school, you should know the following and be able to perform this, this, and this....etc. etc." RATHER THAN: "get a B, or you're out!"

If people have positive goal setting before them, they are more likely to reach for it, and achieve it, because it isn't so arbitrary and unacheivable, as opposed to making/maintaining a letter grade that is really not all that objective....

I went to school with a person who gained her entrance into the nursing program at that time.....there were 44 applicants for 14 positions....so the competition was completely nuts! The way this person managed to get in over people who had already had LPN experience in medical/surgical areas of hospitals was to take ONE CLASS AT A TIME, AND GET A PERFECT SCORE, IE 4.0 GPA....(these were the pre-reqs....) Well, this was highly unfair to people who were working as an LPN, going to school, and maintaining a family life as well....and many were 3.0's and above.....but, the nursing professors accepted her application over many who were in my opinion, more qualified for RN completion programs....in two years, the proof was in the pudding....she was non-functional at the bedside....while she had great grades, she had no common sense or critical thinking skills....she eventually went into administrative nursing....management....

I still shake my head at this one!!

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.
Tweety, et al.

Yes, to be sure, the kinds of experiences that nurses have give life meaning and joy. As for nightmare stories of nursing school, one has to make a distinction - it isn't nursing school that sXcks, it's the instructors. My understanding is that this isn't true everywhere, but it is a whole lot easier to switch jobs than schools. I have had a life with more diverse experiences than most people, so I know from whence I speak. Why this is so is a mystery to me. Yet the fact remains I have never encountered such petty, mean-spirited and unconscious creatures as I did as a nursing student. There is no value in the abuse of other people, including nursing students. Amen!

Diahni

I in no way wanted to invalidate your experience in nursing school.

Anymore than my experiences can be invalidated with a blanket statement that nursing instructors are ego-driven maniacs only out to the abuse their students and the when you get to be a nurse for real nurses will eat their young and you will then become a catty backbiting, gossiping old battleaxe and your nursing career will be pure hell.

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Marie, you've had tons of healthcare experience prior to becoming a nurse.

My response is because that poster said that people who say that nursing sometimes sucks are in the wrong field. Which I beg to differ.

That kind of comment is straight from the mouth of a pre-nursing student. Which I have seen plenty of on allnurses. Lots of pre-nursing students telling nurses that they are in the wrong field because we dont' portray nursing as cream and roses, walking with a candle down the hall kind of thing.

To be in complete denial about how difficult nursing is, and then to tell us that we are wrong because we are giving opinions about it (based in experiences) is naive at best.

I posted in this thread in the beginning. I said, let people vent, and we will help. The OP was saying, "I'm tired of hearing stories about how hard nursing is".

This other poster agreed with that. I don't.

Then you misunderstood what I was trying to say. I know that nursing is going to suck sometimes. I'm sure that once in a while I'll want to quit, both school and the career. But what some posters seem to be saying is that nursing ALWAYS sucks, that it's a crappy job with not enough pay, and that most days are horrible. To those people (who are hopefully in the minority) I say are in the wrong profession. If you don't overall love your profession and feel you are making a valid contribution, especially as a nurse, then you're probably in the wrong profession.

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Ahhh, spoken like someone who has no idea of what nursing is really like.

Talk to us your first week off of orientation.

Until then, if you don't like the negative comments about nursing, then simple don't read them. Seems like an easy solution.

This is exactly what I mean...I said "I believe nursing will be a rewarding career" and I'm told that I have no idea what nursing is REALLY like, implying that my ideals are far-fetched. I do believe nursing will be a rewarding career and that I will love what I do, and be able to look back on my life with fond memories and many smiles. Any person in nursing who can not believe this about themselves, in my opinion, is in the wrong profession and should find one that makes them happy.

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Then you misunderstood what I was trying to say. I know that nursing is going to suck sometimes. I'm sure that once in a while I'll want to quit, both school and the career. But what some posters seem to be saying is that nursing ALWAYS sucks, that it's a crappy job with not enough pay, and that most days are horrible. To those people (who are hopefully in the minority) I say are in the wrong profession. If you don't overall love your profession and feel you are making a valid contribution, especially as a nurse, then you're probably in the wrong profession.

honestly, i haven't read through entire thread, so i don't know if above post is referencing nsg school or nsg profession.

sadly, there are too many nurses who work in deplorable conditions.

it would be natural to think, "is that all there is?" and "wow, this sucks".

it doesn't mean they hate nursing.

it means they need to find a job w/better working conditions.

it is devastating to hear about all the new nurses leaving this profession.

this crap happens and it indeed sucks.

everywhere?

no.

as you can see from this board, there are many who LOVE what they do.

sometimes it's a matter of going from job to job, until you find your niche.

and that takes confidence, perseverence and determination.

nsg school is a different story.

i found it probably the most stressful time in my life.

in spite of the many tears and hair-pulling, my passion remained.

that is what got me through and that is what keeps me in nsg today.

one cannot unequivocally state that nsg school WILL be the worst time in your life.

i think we all share its nuances, as i've never heard of 1 person saying it's easy.

but i am very confident when i say that yrs down the road, most, if not all of you, will look back and be thankful you received the nsg education that you did.

best of everything, to the best of our future nurses.

leslie

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Then you misunderstood what I was trying to say. I know that nursing is going to suck sometimes. I'm sure that once in a while I'll want to quit, both school and the career. But what some posters seem to be saying is that nursing ALWAYS sucks, that it's a crappy job with not enough pay, and that most days are horrible. To those people (who are hopefully in the minority) I say are in the wrong profession. If you don't overall love your profession and feel you are making a valid contribution, especially as a nurse, then you're probably in the wrong profession.

Unfortunately, many people discover this too little too late. Maybe they are in the wrong profession but it's a little too late to expect someone with bills and a family to go on an adventure of self-actualization.

Say they are in the wrong profession.

What now? Go backpack across Europe and find themselves? It isn't even a viable option to go back to school for a lot of people, much less change careers.

You know, I'm sure I am not the only nurse who would do something else in a heartbeat if circumstances allowed. Does this make me a bad nurse? No, it doesn't. It's hard to explain for me, but while I love my patients I do not like my job.

Perhaps by reading about all the negatives and difficulties some people have with nursing some young person who still has a future and is considering nursing might save themselves a lot of trouble by recognizing the real possibility nursing does not suit them and they will not make the same mistakes the rest of us made.

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