Getting preggo in nursing school???

[Morgan0429]

hey everyone! so i have been wanting to have a baby for a while now. i was going to start trying with my husband until i found out that i got into nursing school. i am about to go into my second semester in august. i am just getting really depressed because i know that i should have tried to have a baby before i even applied to the program and now i feel that i should probably wait until i am done in a year and a half. i don't wanna!! lol :) i will also be in a 3 year work commitment to a hospital when i graduate in jan 2012. so my real questions are...do you know people who have had a baby in the middle of nursing school?...any personal stories or suggestions??

[K nurse-one-day]

I really think it would be worth the wait if you waited until you graduate. You'll have your whole life to have kids. Your new baby will require a lot of time and attention, that you may not have to give while you are in nursing school. I personally don't know anyone who's was prego while in NS, but it has definitely happened plenty of times. I'll be starting in January, and my husband and I had 2 babies, and he had a vasectomy, just to make sure we don't get pregnant again until I graduate. Just talk it over with your hubby, I'm sure you guys will make the best decision for you. Good luck w/ everything!

[JeanettePNP, MSN, RN, NP]

It wouldn't be my first choice, but I had a baby last November, right in middle of my second semester in nursing school. When I found out I was pregnant I was going to drop out, but my academic advisor encouraged me to stay in the program and the school would work with me.

What I did was make up the clinical hours during the weeks before I gave birth. I came in 2 weeks after i gave birth to take tests and give a presentation. Then we had a 3-week break and I resumed school for the spring semester.

I had plenty of time at home to study, and I learn better from reading the text than I do from lecture anyway. But everyone is different, everyone's family dynamic is different, and every program is different in terms of what they will tolerate as far as absences, etc.

Fortunately for me it all worked out and I will be finishing the program in August '10 (with a 9-month old baby, thank G-d!).

[ginmarada]

I am about to start nursing school and I just had a baby. I was in school and planned having him before going it to the program. It has been hard but totally worth it. Knowing myself I knew that once I graduate I will be very focused on starting my career and may not have the drive/desire to take time off to have a little one. My son is the best thing in the whole world. If you want to have a baby, do it....my only advice is you have a good support system. You can do it!!

[My3Sons407]

A good friend of mine was pregnant while applying to PA school. A little different but just as demanding (classes, clinical rotations, etc). Her baby was a few months old and breastfed, while she commuted to school 1.5 hrs away from home everyday. Hers was not a planned pregnancy and she ended up being a single mom who lived with her parents until she graduated PA school and got a job. I don't know HOW on God's green earth she did it. she told me this was what she wanted to do, she knew it would help her take care of her daughter as a single parent, and failure was NOT an option. You, however are considering planning to have a baby while in school.

Life is what you make it. If you want both badly enough and can find a way by all means, live your dreams. Only you and your hubby can make this decision.

Good luck!

[labrador4122, RN]

I had a baby in the middle of nursing school!!! It was very difficult but I had a lot of help from my mom. She would stay with the baby at night so I could sleep & study for school.

It is a difficult situation, and stressfull as well. I couldn't have done it without the support system I had. I did not have time to do things like breastfeeding because that takes lots of time.

It is difficult but doable with a strong support system.