High divorce rate among nurses? Why?

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My husband heard something on the radio about the top 10 jobs for divorce. Of course the obvious ones like entertainment industry folks were on the list, but nurses, especially psychiatric nurses were like number 8 of 10. Can this be true? Why? And if so, why psych more so than other fields?

Specializes in Pediatrics, Emergency, Trauma.

Not trying to be a downer...Is it because a percentage of those nurses decided to kick the partners to the curb who thought if them as a "free ride????"...I have worked with nurses where they did EVERYTHING...one married a dude with FIVE kids and was YEARS behind child support...and she married him, and was on her way to burnout...just awful.

Now back to the more insightful posts, lol! :)

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Specializes in Forensic Psych.
Not trying to be a downer...Is it because a percentage of those nurses decided to kick the partners to the curb who thought if them as a "free ride????"...I have worked with nurses where they did EVERYTHING...one married a dude with FIVE kids and was YEARS behind child support...and she married him, and was on her way to burnout...just awful.

Now back to the more insightful posts, lol! :)

Hey I know nurses who used their significant others as a "free ride" to get through school and then kicked them to the curb when they were gainfully employed. Works both ways.

I don't think it's a nursing thing. It's a working woman thing.

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Hey I know nurses who used their significant others as a "free ride" to get through school and then kicked them to the curb when they were gainfully employed. Works both ways.

I don't think it's a nursing thing. It's a working woman thing.

Yep. Women ate my old job told me themselves they've done this. Lol

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Specializes in RN.

I would be interested in whether this study was gender specific. Was the study female nurses? Male? Modus Operandi may be different.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Emergency, CEN.
Never seen an episode, does Grey's Anatomy count :p My husband is under the impression this is what goes on.:rolleyes:

Oh no. Tell him the truth: that those shows are soap operas. Ask him if Law and Order is the way they really do things every day. If he says yes, then cut him off from TV shows. Ha ha!

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A DIRECT quote from my man (who works in non-medical sales) when I was complaining about work:

Him: Are nurses really THAT busy?

Me: Well, not ALWAYS, but yeah, most of the time.

Him: Because they just don't seem that busy to me. They're always talking or going out for breaks.

Me: And exactly which nursing units have you been hanging out in lately?

Him: Well, that's how it is in Mediaos. And on Scrubs.

I couldn't even be mad, just laughed :D

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Specializes in M/S, Tele, Sub (stepdown), Hospice.

I doubt the nurses in Media are talking or taking breaks....well, I guess they probably are taking breaks...but I doubt there's too much talking! LOL

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Specializes in Med/Surg & Hospice & Dialysis.

My husband used to say he had to stay late at work "for an emergency" (sales). He now understands the difference in an emergency at the hospital vs his office. I explained to him that a medical emergency means 1.) someone tried to die 2.) someone succeeded in dying.

I work weekend night program (fri, sat,sun, sat,sun) each pay period. I am able to revert to day shift since I am off for a few days in a row. It also works out for childcare.

My hubby is super fantastic about helping around the house. If I mention to him that I slept or watched tv and accomplished nothing that day, he says "that must have been what you needed"

He also learned quickly not to call me during my sleeping time unless there is a true emergency. I have only had to call him at 3am once to get the point across. :)

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Specializes in Cardio-Pulmonary; Med-Surg; Private Duty.

Nurses tend to be "control freaks" in some way, shape, or form. Codependent, adult children of alcoholics, manipulative/controlling parents, etc. People who come from a dysfunctional family of origin tend to bring a lot of their dysfunctional traits with them. People with dysfunctional traits tend to get divorced at a higher rate than those without those issues.

Personally, my parents rarely drank, and NEVER to excess. Yet when I took an "Al-Anon" quiz about ten years ago, I answered "yes" to roughly 18 of 25 questions. Then I got to the bottom of the page and it said, "If you answered "yes" to one or more questions, Al-Anon can help."

Until then, I had never considered that my mother's controlling ways were just as damaging, emotionally-speaking, as if I'd been raised in an alcoholic home. Reading up on codependence was a big eye-opener for me, particularly the need to "lie low" to prevent blow-ups and the constant worry about putting on a happy face for outsiders, etc.

Control freak tendencies are a good trait for nurses, in many ways. People can die if we don't take responsibility for the tiniest of details, etc. Getting paid to be a control freak ... hey, at least SOME good comes out of a crappy childhood, right?

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Emergency, CEN.

LOL husbands wants me to add:

Maybe it's because you don't care about us when we're sick! :yawn::cheeky:

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@ Otessa..I heard long ago that divorced nurses and divorced cops make the best "remarriage" couples!!

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@ Otessa..I heard long ago that divorced nurses and divorced cops make the best "remarriage" couples!!

That really surprises me! I guess it's just personal bias- but most of the cops I know have control issues much tighter and deeper than my own- and I know I can't deal with that. My sister is married to a cop, and he keeps her and his household on such a tight leash- I'd strangle! (Or end up strangling him...) seriously- I can barely be in the same room as him sometimes, he's such an jerk about so many things.

My husband is pretty much the opposite of a control freak- I mean, he likes to keep his garage in order and he does well at work- I don't mean that he doesn't care about anything- but when it comes to our roles with each other, around the house, social obligations- he's very flexible and rarely gives me grief if I'm too tired or drained to do the dishes or have dinner with his family.

Maybe because we've been married since before I was even in nursing school, so he's evolved and adapted to the nursing lifestyle with me? But going on 9 (mostly) happy years so far- and we've been through 2 bouts of unemployment, nursing school wait lists, nursing school, nightshift, chronic health stuff, and some infertility issues together- and still going strong!

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