How much time training on L&D?

It totally depends on the school. At my BSN program, we spent about 72 hours actually on the floor, plus additional clinical hours doing paperwork, journal article presentations, etc. At another BSN program in my same city, there is no L&D rotation at all - the students just have one simulation day with a sim "patient" (i.e., one of the dummies). I would suggest calling the program coordinator or recruiter directly and asking about it.

In my associate degree program, we spent 100 hours in OB (70 hours postpartum, 10 hours delivery observation, and 20 hours high risk antepartum). But we spend 100 hours in all of our rotations (med/surg 2x, peds, psych, OB, rehab). Our last clinical rotation is an elective and it is 160 hours. I agree that it probably varies greatly.

If you have any real desire to do nursing, I'm sure anyone can suck something up for 10-15 weeks...

for my adn program we spend 5 weeks (2 days a week) on maternity (most of which was postpartum).

Also, I spent about 50% of my 72 hours in intrapartum or observing C-sections, about 30% in postpartum, and about 20% in newborn nursery and NICU. So, even among programs that do have a full L&D rotation, where you spend your time can vary widely!

Thanks for the input. I thought it would be a bit more standardized. The description says "nursing care of women and children" during that course. When I went down this path I never thought I would still be so averse to it by the time I got to the point of actually applying. I had nightmares for a year after the birth of my last child and I am quite pathetically not so sure I am up to "sucking it up". I previously had no problem sucking up to just about anything, I have no problem with blood, guts and bodily fluids and have put down my share of animals by rifle but the thought of walking into a delivery or OBGYN room makes me quiver. If I could kick my own butt for it I would; what a waste. Maybe I need to look into radiology more.

I have moved to a rather economically depressed area and there are not many reliable professions to pursue. I need a new career; nursing seemed like a practical choice.... Except for the apparent maternity phobia thing . I am not going to ask specifically as that would que in that I have an issue with it and just single me out for extra scrutiny if I decide to go for it. If I do take the leap I certainly don't need any extra breathing down my neck during it. I would just want to do what I have to do and learn what I have to learn.

I would see if you can talk with faculty or past students what exactly the OB rotation is all about. I know a number of schools in my area are just strictly postpartum. At least at my school, they were pretty understanding if you didn't wish to watch a delivery (one student passed out less than a minute into it so she was excused for our next quarter OR observation day).

MarieLeah, have you ever thought of talking to someone about your birth experience? It sounds like you may be suffering from birth trauma related anxiety (a lot more common than many people realize - it's frequently attributed to "baby blues" or PPD) and talking through things with an understanding person may help you work through it enough to handle the OB rotation if it's the only thing standing in the way of you becoming a nurse. If you're interested I can try to put you in touch with some resources.

Good luck with what ever you decide! :)

I think I will try to find past students, I don't want to talk to staff about it for the aforementioned reasons. I will be attending their information meeting for the BSN program this Saturday. Hopefully they will get into some detail about it. Maybe if I get in there and start tossing my cookies and having a nervous breakdown they would give me some kind of alternate course. I am obviously not going to put any of the formal OB learning experience to use. My own personal learning experience says I am NOT going to be working in that specialty!

I know I got a hefty dose of PTSD but I also know that there is little to be done about it. I think it could be worked through and over and around and it still won't go away. I'll just have to learn to work around the scar, which I quickly decided includes getting a job and ditching the SAHM business. It's a matter of deciding which I dislike more....seeing babies be born or staying at home and staring at one all day! The thought of another year at home makes me want to say "I'll do it! I'll do it! Anything to get me out of here!". I just have to Choose my poison. Grape or cherry flavored? yum.

Thanks everyone!

Another random thought...does your school have a counseling center? Mine does, and I believe services are free (or very cheap) for students - may be based on a sliding scale/pay what you can. If you decide to go the route of confronting the anxiety/trauma rather than avoiding L&D, that might be an option. I have no children (still deciding if I want to go down that path!) and cannot relate to what you have been through, but it truly sounds life-changing and challenging. Good luck in nursing or wherever you end up!

Depending upon your state's BON, they may require that you do a minimum number of hours in OB, so that's another area worth investigating.

I still definitely think you should consider talking to someone and it doesn't have to be anyone affiliated with your school.

See if you can get into a maternity unit someplace and walk around just to desensitize yourself. If you don't know anyone having a baby, then that might be tough to do, lol.

I was at a diploma school for a year. We did L/D in nursing 2 and 3, unlike most schools that tack it on at the end. I gowned up and watched a c-section of a patient with placenta abruptio. It wasn't gory, or traumatic, and I didn't even actually get to stand really close. I monitored three women in labor and watched them get epidurals and give birth lady partslly. I followed up with them the next day, doing postpartum assessments and neonatal assessment. Watched a resident do circumcisions. And I wrote up a whole lot of paperwork about all of that.

My problems with mother-baby and L/D were more like I just totally lacked any interest in motherhood or childbearing / childrearing, all of it makes me very uncomfortable, and I don't really want anything to do with it at all. That clinical experience for me was very stressful, only because at my age and in that particular area of nursing, people expect a woman to have been through and know a lot about preg, birth, and kids, and I know absolutely NOTHING about any of it except what I read in my nursing books, lol.

Probably if you can concentrate on the people, and on what is actually going on in the rooms, and involve yourself in doing tasks, and do not allow yourself to think back on your own experience, then you will do fine. You might even like the atmosphere there, because the women there are generally not sick, and are happy about giving birth, happy to have a baby, etc. If there is anyting really bad happening, a student will be very quickly removed from the situation.

This fear you have can be overcome. It's just a fear, and you need to get it out of your head. If you really like nursing, then find a way to put it behind you and not let it ruin your clinical experience or future career.

Me, I never felt comfortable doing the nurturing thing to complete strangers. And, as I stated, people just expected a woman to know how to take care of people, be Mom, and I am a technologist, introverted, non-Mom kind of person. Nursing school just made me feel totally incompetent, inadequate, and nursing school just took far too much out of me, at least the way that small town diploma school wanted it done, small-town homemaker style.

OP - I PMed you. :)