How hard is being an RN?

Sour Lemon · Mar 29, 2017

Hello! I was wondering how difficult it is to be an RN. And I do not mean hours, wages, dealing with superiors, etc. I mean the generally difficulty of the job itself, memeorizing symptoms, procedures, etc. I really want to be a nurse, but I'm afraid I won't grasp the idea and know what I'm doing. Thanks!

How "hard" it is to do anything depends on the ability of the doer. I don't know your level of capability or how hard nursing would be for you.

localgirl85 · Mar 29, 2017

Don't let someone tell you you can't be a nurse! If that's what you want to be I think you can do it! I had a Chemistry teacher in HS tell me I couldn't be a nurse unless I got an A in his class....and guess what!? I'm a nurse! (and I didn't get an A in his class )

But to answer your question - nursing school is difficult and so is being a nurse. Passing the nclex is hard, but it's doable. Think of all the nurses out there that have passed! You just study your butt off! You also learn a ton on the job. Your first job is usually the hardest because you are so nervous and don't know really how things work...but it gets easier the more experience you have. You will never know everything, luckily you can look things up. You can always ask questions to co-workers and doctors too. It's the type of job with never ending learning! But it's wonderful. It's hard work physically and emotionally, but worth it. You can make a difference in people's lives; it's so rewarding. And, it can be fun sometimes - especially once you find your niche/specialty :)

Good luck in your decision - just make sure you don't let other's opinions get in the way! "If you think you can you're right; if you think you can't your right." :) Good luck!

NotMyProblem MSN, ASN, BSN, MSN, LPN, RN · Mar 29, 2017

Once you learn tasks, procedures, etc., nursing itself is not hard work in my opinion. It's actually very easy if you can understand simple instruction and how it ties in with the disease process. The difficulty lies in having to do an overwhelming amount of easy tasks while having your presence requested in several places, all at once, being very careful not to hurt anyone physically or emotionally. Master that feat and you're well on your way to being a competent nurse.

Keep in mind that all things nursing won't all be covered in nursing school. Nor will you learn all there is to know within the first few months on the job. The reality is that you may actually have quite a few nursing jobs under your belt before you obtain a substantial nursing knowledge base...especially if your first nursing job(s) is/are primarily in a stable environment(s).

I will never forget my first job working in a hospital setting as an LPN. I had this cute little RN from the Phillipines as a preceptor. She was so smart and swift...she knew her stuff. They assigned her to a trach patient and when it came time to do the trach care, she wanted to get the Code Team there while it was done (she had never done this before). My background had been with home health vent patients. I told her that the Code Team was not necessary; the patient simply had a trach and was not on a vent, but was only receiving humidified oxygen via trach collar. Basically, I showed her that it was ok to do the care and that the patient would continue to breathe while off the oxygen during the procedure.

My point is, we are all fearful of what we don't know. Once we learn (not just memorize), it takes a lot to intimidate or impress us. If you become a nurse and is one who doesn't run and hide from the 'scary' stuff, you will see (learn) that the scary stuff is actually rather boring....exciting at first, but then turns into a 'not-that-again' or a 'been-there-done-that' perspective.