Help? I regret this career choice?

SWM2009 · Feb 9, 2015

Have you worked as a nurse?

katie6126 · Feb 9, 2015

Have you worked as a nurse?

No, I can't even find a job. It doesn't matter I heard plenty of horror stories around the internet and real life to get a feel of the brutal hours nurses get to go through. No time to pee, eat, no time for yourself. Nurses sound the like most stressed out, unhappy, unhealthy people. I guess the hospital corporations like that sense of irony within their workforce. Again, sorry to sound selfish but I value my me time, my holidays, and my weekends. I do want to help others in need but not to my own personal cost.

classicdame, MSN, EdD · Feb 9, 2015

consider pharmacy or medical technology. Some of your previous education will be credited towards those degrees. I find technology in the lab fascinating.

**NickiLaughs, ADN, BSN, RN** · Feb 9, 2015

So you finished school and are job hunting and having panic attacks about it?

Working 3 12s allows for a pretty decent social life. I promise, even on nights.

I would worry less about schedules and just focus on finding a job. You never know where you will end up.

At least try a job or two before wasting an entire degree.

I mean, making it through nursing school is hard, try giving yourself some credit. I know the job market sucks but if you don't even try you will never know if you are missing out and may regret it later in life.

**NickiLaughs, ADN, BSN, RN** · Feb 9, 2015

You realize you wouldn't work every weekend and every holiday?

Its usually every other weekend, and maybe half the holidays.

I really find it unfortunate you didn't make this decision sooner. Most helping professions require some sacrifice regarding your hours. Health science i dont believe has a lot of job opportunities. Social services, while more normal hours can require some weekend requirements.

I find it very convenient to have weekdays off and not have long lines for groceries, etc. But to each their own.

katie6126 · Feb 9, 2015

You realize you wouldn't work every weekend and every holiday?
Its usually every other weekend, and maybe half the holidays.
I really find it unfortunate you didn't make this decision sooner. Most helping professions require some sacrifice regarding your hours. Health science i dont believe has a lot of job opportunities. Social services, while more normal hours can require some weekend requirements.
I find it very convenient to have weekdays off and not have long lines for groceries, etc. But to each their own.

I find it unfortunate too, but it is what it is. And, you are very right - to each their own, I don't enjoy working when everyone has their 2 days off and being off when everyone else is busy, I mean I really don't care if the grocery store will be less crowded or not - every other person I know is going to have the complete opposite schedule as mine. Some weekends are better then every other. And while other fields may not pay as well, or have as many opportunities right now, the point is I'd probably be way more satisfied.

vanilla bean · Feb 9, 2015

I'm sorry you've decided nursing isn't for you based on other peoples' experiences. Why don't you give it a try and then decide for yourself? If you're basing your assessment based solely on the "horror stories" you've read on the internet, maybe you'll be willing to consider some positive aspects as well.

I was a career changer when I started hospital work, and working *some* weekends and *some* holidays did take some getting used to, but I did not find it to be particularly prohibitive to having the social life or quality of life I wanted. Sure, I sometimes had to join the friends or family a few hours later than I normally would have (after work) for events that were happening on my weekend or holiday, but it wasn't a big deal. In all honesty, it has occasionally saved me from having to attend an event I didn't want to, and otherwise would have felt compelled to, attend (oh, I'd love to attend the 15th anniversary of your child's first successful BM in the potty, but I'm sorry, I have to work).

I found working 3 days a week instead of 5 days a week was a bonus and led to more free time to spend with friends and family. Not to mention that it is much easier to plan longer breaks in between scheduled shifts to allow for more short (sometimes long) vacations and traveling. Keep in mind, too, that for many people that are open to developing friendships with their coworkers, you may very well soon have friends that will have similar schedules to yours.

To answer one of your questions, yes, there are other things you can do with your BSN besides bedside nursing, including jobs that fit the Monday to Friday 9 to 5 schedule (there are MANY threads here on AN that have discussed this topic - use the search function to check them out if you're so inclined).

FWIW, in my many years of hospital jobs, there have been many more highs than lows, and despite the lows that inevitably come along with any job, I have never felt like a "martyr."

Good luck in whatever path you choose.

desertstar6 · Feb 9, 2015

I'm going to be honest here. I hear the stories ppl told and still decided to do it cuz I work too damn hard. Is the Nightmares true? Yes. But it's my first year of nursing so I knew it was going to suck.

My advise is to try it and see what happens.

katie6126 · Feb 9, 2015

I'm going to be honest here. I hear the stories ppl told and still decided to do it cuz I work too damn hard. Is the Nightmares true? Yes. But it's my first year of nursing so I knew it was going to suck.
My advise is to try it and see what happens.

I'm gonna have to decline after the horror story validation. It doesn't mean it's because it's your first year that it sucked, it means that its just a sucky profession. I hope there are things I can apply for once I've obtained my BSN, it's probably going to be next to impossible w/o the bedside care, but I'm going to try.

missmollie, ADN, BSN, RN · Feb 9, 2015

So you've stated that you "Can't find a job" and then also stated that "I hope there are things I can apply for once I've obtained my BSN." Answers will vary depending on whether you are a student or not. So, have you passed the NCLEX? Answer that first.

Secondly, if you haven't and you've already decided that you're going to hate nursing, and you're only seeing the negative side of things, then change your major. Why bother with the stress of nursing school if you have already decided that you're going to hate it?

vanilla bean · Feb 9, 2015

I'm gonna have to decline after the horror story validation. It doesn't mean it's because it's your first year that it sucked, it means that its just a sucky profession.

Wow. OK. Please disregard my previous post, which I wrote in response to someone I thought just needed a pep-talk and some encouragement. I see that I missed the mark on that one. My revised advice is run, don't walk, away from that BSN program. This "sucky profession" does not want, or need, another rotten apple (an apple that has started to rot before it even fell from the tree, no less).