Trying to Figure Out if I Would Be a Good Nurse

[amaliavelasquez]

Hi!

This is another one of those threads.... but I really need some input. I know its something only I can decide but I am just stuck.

A little background on me: I was a teacher in an inner city school for 14 years. I loved the kids, but the education system slowly but surely took my career away from me. The best way I can describe it is like this: Imagine that someone took over as your boss, told you what you were doing right was wrong, and then mandated you do it the wrong way, and you patients were negatively effected. I was the teacher voted most inspiring, the teacher who spent hundreds of dollars a year on the classroom, who students confided in. But those things were being taken from me. Meanwhile, my husband had gotten a new job in Chicago, so it seemed serendipitous to take a break from teaching.

While we were settling into Chicago I thought over my options. I had always been interested in medicine, diseases, and of course, loved helping people, but was always scared off by the math and science needed to get a degree in the medical field. I also had no idea if I would actually like working with patients in hospital, so I got a job as a unit clerk/sitter at a local hospital. I really enjoyed working at the hospital, especially when I got to sit with patients. I decided to get my PCT license, and I like that the most out of the three roles I have at the hospital. When I got my review they said I was performing at the highest standard, and are really pleased with my performance, etc. etc.

I was still heartbroken about teaching, and had even applied for some openings, but got no response. Part of me felt my heart just wasn't in it. When I was looking for my first teaching job, there was a hiring freeze, yet I made it happen. It was ALL I wanted. I don't feel that way anymore. But I still miss it. Its a very weird combination.

Meanwhile I started taking Pre-Reqs for nursing school. I have A's in A&P and Chem, but I find I HATE chemistry. The material in both classes in challenging for me, very challenging. I have to spend many three hours a day studying, at least. I want to do well, and I want to understand it, so i spend the time, but to say that these subject click for me, they don't. The material I studied for my Literature degree clicked, for my Masters in Education, clicked. This is just crazy hard for me.

The feeling of dislike for chemistry and difficultly I have getting good grades makes me think... will I make through nursing school? does it mean I'm not going to make a good nurse?

What I can bring to the table as a nurse would be: compassion, hard work, ability to multi-task, and intuition.

What I can't: being "strong" in math and science.

Do you think I have what it takes? If I can make a difference in someone's life, basically be allowed to do my job, I am happy.

[LoisLaneRN]

I do not think you need to be strong in Chemistry to be a good nurse. You may be surprised that some programs no longer require chemistry. It is much more important that you understand anatomy and physiology well. As a high school student, I was under the impression nurses had to be strong in math and science. The reality is quite different. Nursing school is difficult, but in an entirely different way than a chemistry course is. I would not use chemistry to gauge your aptitude for nursing.

[Nola009]

Beware- what happened to you with education could happen again with nursing. Especially hospital nursing.

[Farawyn]

I suck at both Chemistry and Math, and I am an awesome nurse.

What was your teaching specialty?

[amaliavelasquez]

I was a middle school Language Arts teacher. Over the years I taught all grades at the middle school level, 6th, 7th, and 8th. My favorite grade level was 7th -- which people thought was crazy. Nola009 -- A lot of people at the hospital I work at have told me that... that's why I am planning on working nights. Seriously though, it does seem nursing gives you options. Teaching is kind of a one trick pony if you will.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

Excelling at (or enjoying) chemistry doesn't seem to be a pre-requisite to being a good nurse. Anatomy and physiology are probably more of a predictor. Math, however, IS important. I tend to disbelieve anyone who says they're an awesomely GOOD nurse while sucking at math. You need basic math to add up intake and output, figure out medication doses, monitor IV rates, figure out how much tubefeeding to order, etc. It is possible for one to be an "awesome" nurse without a basic math competency, but usually those are awesomely BAD nurses.

Nursing gives you a lot of options, a flexible schedule and an interesting and challenging career in which you use your brain constantly. I don't think you have to enjoy math, but you need to be competent in math. As far as science -- anatomy and physiology are important. Chemistry gives you a basis for understanding some of the courses that follow, but I never excelled in chemistry itself. I understood the concepts; just couldn't make my labs come out correct. (Although if I had the answer, I could work backward and figure out what I did wrong . . . . small consolation in a lab exam!)

[RNperdiem, RN]

If you had a student who told you that trouble with math was holding them back from their dreams, what would you tell them? If something really has to be learned, it is possible. There are resources, even unconventional ones if you know where to look. As a teacher, perhaps you might have knowledge and access to the help you need to succeed.