Urgent Question!

jemommyRN · Dec 8, 2006

Are you able to apply for Spring 08? That may be a good option. Otherwise, I would just wait until Fall 08. Think about it.....you will be 8 or 9 months pregnant in the SUMMER. You should be taking this time to relax and prepare for the baby. You don't want to put yourself in a situation where you jeopardize your grades (from fatigue, going into labor early, etc.) If possible, I would just wait it out. One thing at a time.

RNin'08 · Dec 8, 2006

That's a tough question to answer. Nursing school is very demanding, kids are very demanding (especially newborns) and to put them both together is enough to push anyone to insanity...however, it can be done. I have a little one and am doing well with school. I did take a sememster off and delayed starting nursing school because of having my daughter and for me it's been easier to handle as she's old enough now to occupy herself for 30 minutes here or 20 minutes there and I can get in extra studying.

You really need to sit down and think/talk about your support system. I have a very helpful husband (though he wasn't a lot of help in the beginning because he was too nervous to stay home by himself with the baby until she was a few months old) and my family has been there to help out many, many times. Are you able to have a family member watch the baby while you go to school or will you need daycare? Will you be working while you attend school? Have you checked the cost of daycare, can you afford that and school and the rest of your bills? Is DH willing/able to take care of baby in the evenings so you can study? Can mom/sister/brother/etc. watch baby for a few hours here and few hours there so you can study? Clinicals can be at some strange times of day, what happens if daycare isn't open when you need to be at the hospital?

These (and many, many more) are questions that I posed to myself before making a final decision about when to tackle nursing school. I wish you the best of luck with your school and your expanding family!

RNin'08

~my reality check bounced~

BSNtobe2009 · Dec 8, 2006

I fully agree. Think about everything that can happen that you cannot predict...you don't know what kind of pregnancy or delivery you will have, and if you have a c-section, you are looking at a minimum of 8 week recovery.

I wouldn't chance it...I know not everyone's pregnancy is like mine, but I am the very first female in my entire family to have a c-section and pre-clampsia, and prior to that, my pregnancy couldn't have gone better

So that goes to show you, you never know what will happen and something can change with the healthiest mother.

star.crush · Dec 8, 2006

yeah sign up for the summer session

WDWpixieRN, RN · Dec 8, 2006

I think you will find it very difficult emotionally to leave your new baby so soon....I know several women who have taken classes and one in my current first semester class who have had babies during the school year, but it's a bit risky...

And if you have the opportunity to just stay home and love that baby and relish the experience, at your age, I'd grab it....NS isn't going anywhere and you're still very young...you can't get that time back with your child...

Best wishes with your decision!

nurseangel47 · Dec 9, 2006

Hi, Krankenschwester 2! What a mouthful your screen name is! Curious if you are German or Dutch? Wow! Anyway...you're so young, I'd do what is right for you and the little one since you are so young. I tried to do the nursing school thing back when my now grown daughters were an infant and a 3 yr old. Wouldn't recommend it to my worst enemy! I wish I'd not missed those three years that it took me to get prereqs. and the 2 yr program out of the way...but you know, hindsight and all that. I wish you well and would definitely vote for waiting as long as you can due to the loss of those fun and important, very poignant memories no matter what the age of the child when you start.

Enjoy your time with the new baby! For as long as possible!

Krankenschwester_2 · Dec 9, 2006

Krankenschwester is German, although I'm ethnically German, I just used the name because I'm fluent in the language.

Anywho,

I am afraid some of you might've misunderstood me. During the summer session, I will be yes 7,8 months pregnant which may be tough, but I don't think impossible. As for if I have any complications, I should be done with summer school by the time the baby is delivered. After that I would just wait until January to sign up for Nursing II, that way I'd be home recovering from late August until January.

I absolutely need to be in school starting in January 08 anyways, because I will have officially received my bachelors and will need to start paying the loans back. I must get them deferred until I have a degree that I can actually find a job with, and teaching isn't possible because I didn't persue the teaching track in college--social studies is much more complicated than other subjects (it would take me two years more to get the licensure for that subject). There is no Spring 08 option at my school.

I think I'm going to contact the Nursing coordinator and ask to switch my application to Summer 07, skip the fall, and resume in the Spring. I have a good husband whose always home in the evenings and live next door to my mother in law, who'll gladly help me out through the whole process.

Thanks for all of your input!

Krankenschwester

WDWpixieRN, RN · Dec 9, 2006

Sounds like you've got a good plan....if they allow you to skip a semester, that'd be a good thing and give you the time you'll most probably want with the baby...a good thing about finishing NS while the child is young is that this career offers so many options for moms that will allow you to spend tons of time with your child while s/he is growing....the flexibility will be wonderful for you to have!!

Best wishes!