How did you guys make the choice to become nurses?

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Hey guys, potential future nurse here :p This might be a long one so feel free to skip the ramble and answer the question if you want, I don't mind.

Anyway, I'm really considering going to nursing school, but at the same time, I'm having a lot of reservations. See I'm in my gap year right now, and while I was in high school, I'd always planned on majoring in social sciences in university. In my senior year, I started to question my life and my future and decided that social sciences were too wishy washy and that if I was going to dedicate the next four years and thousands of dollars into post secondary school, it was going to be for something I could actually make a career out of.

A few months back I had this sort of epiphany that I would become a nurse, and ever since then I've been researching the profession and I've gotten really excited about the whole prospect. I recently applied to college to take a pre-health course next year (I'm Canadian and we sometimes do these before nursing school), but now I'm having a lot of doubts.

I always saw myself, perhaps naively, as doing something wild and adventurous, or artistic even, which makes me question if I'm making the right choice. There are days when I'm totally inspired to be a nurse and excited about the challenge, and then other days when I wonder if it's what I really want, if I'll be good at it, if I can get into nursing school, whether or not I can actually handle the turmoil of nursing school if I get in, if I can handle the duties of nursing, and if I would be better off getting a bachelor of arts like I'd originally planned.

I guess I'm just terrified of making the wrong decision. Did anyone else experience this? What make you decide once and for all that becoming a nurse was what you really wanted and that it was right for you?

Thanks for any insight you can offer :)

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Specializes in Mental Health, Gerontology, Palliative.

I did a bachelors of social policy finished in 2007. To work in policy I would have had to done masters at minimum and decided I didnt like it enough to make a career out of it.

I then started looking at either masters in applied social work or nursing. Decided I didnt like social work and nursing would be be much more versatile.

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Thanks for the response :) It's interesting, I've spoken to quite a few nurses who return to school after competing an unrelated degree. I hope you've found nursing to be to your liking.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

Here's my story. Nursing wasn't a childhood dream or a 'calling' for me. I was not inspired to become a nurse. Rather, it is a career pathway that I stumbled upon as a young adult because opportunity was knocking.

I had been accepted to three regional state universities during my senior year of high school, but instead entered the low paying entry-level workforce after graduation because my parents steered me away from college. At that time I was an only child with a poorly developed sense of self, so I was heavily influenced by what my parents wanted me to do with my life. I wanted to be a teacher, but they were convinced I could find a well-paying entry-level job with no education beyond a high school diploma.

Thus, I worked a string of dead-end entry level jobs in fast food, downscale retail, temp agencies and factories for approximately five years prior to entering a trade school VN (vocational nursing) program at 23 years of age. At the time I enrolled in the VN program, I had been working at a paper products factory for three years. I was living on my own with a mortgage and other expenses, and could only be out of work for a year at the most. The 12-month VN program met my needs at that time.

I had maintained full-time employment as an LVN (licensed vocational nurse) for three years while slowly completing prerequisite coursework at a local community college. I enrolled in a trade school LPN-to-ASN transition program at age 28 and received RN licensure that next year. Currently I am enrolled in an online RN-to-BSN degree completion program with 7 more credits to go before I receive the BSN degree.

I'm in the nursing profession because I viewed it as a ticket to flexibility, advancement, career mobility, and the middle-class lifestyle that was absent from the lives of my family of origin during my childhood and adolescence.

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If I can go back in time, I would not do this.

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Specializes in ICU/PACU.

I was sitting at the kitchen table filling out college applications my junior year of high school. I never really gave a career much thought. I had to choose something as a major on the application and nursing just popped out at me for some reason. I did have a relative who was a NP, so maybe that influenced me a bit. But other than that I had no life experience other than working as a hostess at a restaurant. My mom thought if I wanted to go the healthcare route occupational therapy was a good career, so at one point I did change my major to that, but ended up going back to nursing.

It led me into travel nursing and moving across the country,exposing myself to people and places I never would have known without nursing. So in that sense I'm glad I did it. I graduated and landed a job easily, before everyone had trouble finding work. So I feel very lucky.

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Specializes in Cardiac, Home Health, Primary Care.

I'm not really sure what inspired me to be a nurse. I didn't have a "clouds opening and angels singing" moment. I always loved science class...especially biology and A&P. I thought about marine biologist (there are some cool things in the ocean), forensic science (I still think it would have been fun), and the medical field. I never knew NP's existed until I went to see one when I was around middle school age. I thought it was cool to "play doctor" but get to be a nurse.

As I got older and through high school somehow I decided on nursing (and ultimately NP). I didn't want to deal with med school and NP's seemed to listen and care more. Also during high school my grandpa had lots of health issues come up so I had to help with his care so that may have pushed me a bit too.

Got my BSN in 2010 and worked cardiac step down and now home health. I have enjoyed my time as a RN but an looking forward to starting my time as a NP (27 days to graduation!!!) and helping people on a new level.

I also considered CRNA but wanted more of a relationship with my patients. And the thought of poking people on the spine made me nervous.....

Good luck in your decision!! Maybe you can ask about shadowing a nurse to see how it feels? Or try being a nursing assistant to get a feel?

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Specializes in Cardiac, Home Health, Primary Care.

Oh and before anyone says anything I know NPs don't "play doctor." That's just what my mind thought at 10 years old....

And I also know forensic nursing exists. I'm still considering it lol.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Postpartum.

Short story...

Nursing is my second career and realized it renders many opportunities. Since getting some experience under my belt, I get plenty of emails and phone calls from recruiters. I never once received an email let alone a phone call from a potential employer offering me an opportunity in my previous career.

I enjoy what I do and wouldn't work in another profession. Nursing is the right fit for me.

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Specializes in psych, addictions, hospice, education.

I was an elementary school teacher. I quit when my sons were born, and when I went back to it, there were no jobs. My husband's family tends to die young. I wanted a career where I could support my family if I needed to, and back then there were oodles of nursing jobs all over the place. I had 1/3 of the courses required for a BSN done already, and I love science and math. There was a nursing school nearby with a good reputation. It seemed the logical thing to do, whether I liked the work or not. Survival comes before self-fulfillment, ya know?

As it turned out, I love nursing, and it has provided all sorts of opportunities for me that I never imagined.

My husband is still alive too!

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I'm not really sure what inspired me to be a nurse. I didn't have a "clouds opening and angels singing" moment. I always loved science class...especially biology and A&P. I thought about marine biologist (there are some cool things in the ocean), forensic science (I still think it would have been fun), and the medical field. I never knew NP's existed until I went to see one when I was around middle school age. I thought it was cool to "play doctor" but get to be a nurse.

As I got older and through high school somehow I decided on nursing (and ultimately NP). I didn't want to deal with med school and NP's seemed to listen and care more. Also during high school my grandpa had lots of health issues come up so I had to help with his care so that may have pushed me a bit too.

Got my BSN in 2010 and worked cardiac step down and now home health. I have enjoyed my time as a RN but an looking forward to starting my time as a NP (27 days to graduation!!!) and helping people on a new level.

I also considered CRNA but wanted more of a relationship with my patients. And the thought of poking people on the spine made me nervous.....

Good luck in your decision!! Maybe you can ask about shadowing a nurse to see how it feels? Or try being a nursing assistant to get a feel?

wow congrats! I definitely plan to obtain NP (actually already applied for this summer's FNP program). I wonder if the life is any better than bedside nurse; I know RN can do other stuff than bedside, but I admire the broad spectrum of practice NPs can do compared to RN. I live in TX which is pretty restricted state in NP practice. Let me know how your new career goes :)

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Specializes in ED, Telemetry,Hospice, ICU, Supervisor.

only way to become a CRNA

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