How did you do it?

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When you started nursing school did you have a job or kids? It is amazing how woman have overcome these obstacles. I am very young and do not have kids and will quit my job to pursue nursing.

School is hard enough I can't imagine how some woman are able to balance a job and kids with this. I've noticed these woman are mature and my age and maturity can work against me. I want to know what are my chances in succeeding nursing school I'm a B student but have alot of maturing to do. I would also like to know how you guys went through nursing school whether you had a kid or job also and how you got through it?

Specializes in Forensic Psych.
I think you can do anything you have to do... if you have no choice. Does that make sense? If you not working means you don't eat, you'll find a way to balance everything.

I agree. Sometimes things seem impossible from the outside, but when it's you, with your own obstacles, people who have the fortitude to get this far just keep going.

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Ah, getting through nursing school was one of the hardest things that I have ever done. I had a child before I started, she was one that gave me the drive to continue. I worked 3 part time jobs in order to accommodate the various school and clinical hours. I did neglect my friends and family. I was so worried about possibly hurting someone because I went to a concert or party that I just kept my focus on school. I also had to get very very organized. All house keeping, shopping and laundry was done only one day a week. I learned how to pre-cook meals and used the crock pot very often so our dinner was always ready when we got home.

And as for cleaning day it was a hoot. My daughter knew that after all the work was done, we could finally play so she would help out. I got her a carpet sweeper which she loved as she could mimic mommy cleaning. But she was good at it. After the house was clean, I'd pack up a bag for her, all the laundry (so much faster to go to the laundry mat and finish in 2 hours what would have kept me at home doing all day), my VERY heavy book bag and off we'd go. Throw the laundry in and study while we waited. After this, off to McDonald's for a treat. Then grocery shopping. Now I have to say, I got very strong during this time as we lived on the 2nd and 3rd floors of apartment buildings without elevators. So, I'd have several trips to bring all the stuff back up. During one winter, my daughter sprained her ankle and was on crutches so I had to haul her around as well lol.

During this time, we only had one car and my husband worked an hour away in the city. We'd get up at 4am so I could drive him to work and have the car to get my daughter to daycare and myself to either school/clinicals/or one of my 3 jobs. Then have to pick him up in the height of rush hour traffic. We'd usually stop off at a farm stand to get fresh fruit or veggies for my daughter to eat on the way. A treat for her. On the way home, I had all of my flash cards so that I could study (I was usally too sleepy to study on the way there). In my bathroom opposite the sink, I had various diagrams...skeletal system, nervous system, bones etc. While I bathed my daughter or brushed my teeth or did my hair, I always had this up to study. I fit studying in any way I could lol. But I have to say that I was never in a study group, I simply did not have time left for this at all though I would take turns driving with another student, who was an LPN getting her RN. We would test each other as we drove. This helped alot.

I had calendars, large ones. On the first pages was the usual yearly calendar, just so I knew the date. This was followed by a monthly one, here I plotted all the major events...which job to go to when, which clinical site, daycare, doctors visits etc. After this was a page by page calendar for the month. Here I placed specific classes, papers due etc. I have to say, that when it got really really tough. When I got so so tired and overwhelmed and wanted to quit because my body and mind just could not take it anymore, I would focus on these pages. Telling myself not to look at 'Only 1 more year 'til graduation' or 'Only 1 more month 'til spring break.' but could only focus on what I had to do for the next hour.

10am Bio test

11am A and P

3 - 5pm Lab

Pick up daughter and husband

7 - 12am work

12am til I drop, study lol.

Then it got interesting during my peds/ob rotation. I got pregnant...I swear that pregnancy is catchy! So all illusions of having a clean house went out the window. And though I was determined to continue to on, bleeding in mid trimester forced me to start quitting my jobs one by one. Money got tighter, but the goal was so near. So we hung on. I tried to keep up with my studying habits, however, my growing little one had other ideas and I'd find myself waking up at the table at 4am, falling asleep if I wanted to or not. Labor started while in my ICU rotation, the day before finals. She did cooperate and I made it to finals...she was born later that day at 3pm.

I found that only focusing on getting through the next hour, hour by hour, turned into days, that turned into a year that turned into graduating! And upon getting my first nursing job, was so thrilled that 'they were paying me to do this' to do what I had been paying to learn about. To be priveledged to help people with what I struggled to learn! I even had my friends take a picture of me with my first nursing check!

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Specializes in ED.
Ah, getting through nursing school was one of the hardest things that I have ever done. I had a child before I started, she was one that gave me the drive to continue. I worked 3 part time jobs in order to accommodate the various school and clinical hours. I did neglect my friends and family. I was so worried about possibly hurting someone because I went to a concert or party that I just kept my focus on school. I also had to get very very organized. All house keeping, shopping and laundry was done only one day a week. I learned how to pre-cook meals and used the crock pot very often so our dinner was always ready when we got home.

And as for cleaning day it was a hoot. My daughter knew that after all the work was done, we could finally play so she would help out. I got her a carpet sweeper which she loved as she could mimic mommy cleaning. But she was good at it. After the house was clean, I'd pack up a bag for her, all the laundry (so much faster to go to the laundry mat and finish in 2 hours what would have kept me at home doing all day), my VERY heavy book bag and off we'd go. Throw the laundry in and study while we waited. After this, off to McDonald's for a treat. Then grocery shopping. Now I have to say, I got very strong during this time as we lived on the 2nd and 3rd floors of apartment buildings without elevators. So, I'd have several trips to bring all the stuff back up. During one winter, my daughter sprained her ankle and was on crutches so I had to haul her around as well lol.

During this time, we only had one car and my husband worked an hour away in the city. We'd get up at 4am so I could drive him to work and have the car to get my daughter to daycare and myself to either school/clinicals/or one of my 3 jobs. Then have to pick him up in the height of rush hour traffic. We'd usually stop off at a farm stand to get fresh fruit or veggies for my daughter to eat on the way. A treat for her. On the way home, I had all of my flash cards so that I could study (I was usally too sleepy to study on the way there). In my bathroom opposite the sink, I had various diagrams...skeletal system, nervous system, bones etc. While I bathed my daughter or brushed my teeth or did my hair, I always had this up to study. I fit studying in any way I could lol. But I have to say that I was never in a study group, I simply did not have time left for this at all though I would take turns driving with another student, who was an LPN getting her RN. We would test each other as we drove. This helped alot.

I had calendars, large ones. On the first pages was the usual yearly calendar, just so I knew the date. This was followed by a monthly one, here I plotted all the major events...which job to go to when, which clinical site, daycare, doctors visits etc. After this was a page by page calendar for the month. Here I placed specific classes, papers due etc. I have to say, that when it got really really tough. When I got so so tired and overwhelmed and wanted to quit because my body and mind just could not take it anymore, I would focus on these pages. Telling myself not to look at 'Only 1 more year 'til graduation' or 'Only 1 more month 'til spring break.' but could only focus on what I had to do for the next hour.

10am Bio test

11am A and P

3 - 5pm Lab

Pick up daughter and husband

7 - 12am work

12am til I drop, study lol.

Then it got interesting during my peds/ob rotation. I got pregnant...I swear that pregnancy is catchy! So all illusions of having a clean house went out the window. And though I was determined to continue to on, bleeding in mid trimester forced me to start quitting my jobs one by one. Money got tighter, but the goal was so near. So we hung on. I tried to keep up with my studying habits, however, my growing little one had other ideas and I'd find myself waking up at the table at 4am, falling asleep if I wanted to or not. Labor started while in my ICU rotation, the day before finals. She did cooperate and I made it to finals...she was born later that day at 3pm.

I found that only focusing on getting through the next hour, hour by hour, turned into days, that turned into a year that turned into graduating! And upon getting my first nursing job, was so thrilled that 'they were paying me to do this' to do what I had been paying to learn about. To be priveledged to help people with what I struggled to learn! I even had my friends take a picture of me with my first nursing check!

That is an amazing and encouraging story for sure!! Kudos to you and your husband! Thanks for sharing that with us all!

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Specializes in ED.

OP, if you get a keurig you won't have to worry about learning how to make coffee! Lol.. And so you won't have to worry about having nasty coffee. You can also make hot tea, hot water, hot cocoa, iced tea, and iced coffee with it! It's worth the investment. It makes different amounts so you can pick. If you're gonna get one.. Go all out if you can. I have just a small one. But I only drink one cup a day so it works for me. I'm a water person :)

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OP, if you get a keurig you won't have to worry about learning how to make coffee! Lol.. And so you won't have to worry about having nasty coffee. You can also make hot tea, hot water, hot cocoa, iced tea, and iced coffee with it! It's worth the investment. It makes different amounts so you can pick. If you're gonna get one.. Go all out if you can. I have just a small one. But I only drink one cup a day so it works for me. I'm a water person :)

Are you sure he needs coffee? :lol2:

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Specializes in ED.

Lol.. Welllll.. If he procrastinates then he may need it for late nights while he is catching up! :p

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Ice been looking at 5 hour energetic drinks. Anyone have any comments?

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Specializes in ED.

Considering my ped once called me a nutrition Nazi.. I'm gonna say um no to those. Yuck.

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Specializes in Labor and Delivery.

They're really bad for you and for me they don't work. I also can drink a gallon of coffee and go to bed too lol

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Specializes in NICU, Cardiac.

I have 3 little boys and while I don't work, my husband puts in a lot of hours to support us being a single income home. My oldest also has a host of medical issues that we are still working through. It is hard to balance life plus nursing school and I don't get (or expect) any extra accommodations because I have a family. I just buckle down and work my tail off to make good grades. I'm exhausted and I miss my kids and husband a lot, especially on those long clinical days when I don't see them at all. I'm not supremely organized, but I make sure that I have my stuff as together as I possibly can be. I'm very disciplined when it comes to my school work though and I may not study as long as my peers, the quality of my study time makes up for it.

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Specializes in Psych/AOD.

Fabulous post LockhartRN. I can relate to so many things you said.

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