I definitely not recommend nursing.

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I basically gave up 2 years of my sons lives when they were 8 and 10 to complete my RN. I never saw them awake till the weekend. I had school from 0630 till 12:45 and worked as a secretary on a psych unit from 1400 till 2230. I thought I was doing it to provide them with a secure future. All it gave them was a mother who was stressed out, had back surgery twice, and missed their school concerts and PTA meetings because she was always at work. Luckily they are now grown and have turned out well. But I missed too much, and I can't get it back. I don't feel we are compensated for our sacrifices, nor are we supported or respected by "mahogany hall" administrators. And I would like to know where in this country an RN makes $25.00 to $30.00 an hour. I've been an ICU nurse for 10 years and the best I pull is $18.00. No it's not just about the money, it's about not having the time to give the nursing care you want to give. If I have a patient going for CABG, and they are nervous and scared, I don't have time to sit and explain and encourage, but I'm supposed to take the time to write on the education sheet the teaching I've done. That's hypocritical, but it's the facts. No I wouldn't recommend this back wrenching, exhausting , thankless, tiring, heart wrenching, disrespected job to anyone.

I haven't seen too many "cliques" but I have never, ever been spoken so rudely to before by co-workers since becoming a nurse. When I was a tech on another floor I actually witnessed a nurse shove a tech! It's ridiculous.

I don't mind floor nursing, but the co-workers and lack of support is what has pushed me away from it. The charge nurses encourage you to ask questions, but when you do they act irritated!! I don't care though, I ask anyway and tough if they don't like it. :rolleyes:

I'm making about $25 an hour at my hospital job (includes night differential) and am leaving for a lower paying job. I know alot of nurses that have taken lower paying jobs in exchange for less stress and absolutely love their jobs. For me it's not about the money. I want to be at a job that I love and am not depressed about.

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I guess the reason nursing is like that is that nursing is such a stressful job, people just don't know how to handle their stress? Still no excuse, though. If your job causes you so much stress you shove other people, then it's definitely time for a change!! I guess being a "2nd career" nurse, this is easier for me to say, because I have already made a huge career change. Thankfully our family finances allowed me to do this (just barely - and I now have lots of debt). But I think if it got to the point where I was shoving people, I would just have to get out of it no matter what, even if it meant I had to rely on government assistance for a while...

I agree, quality of life is more important than the extra pay. Besides, when your extra pay is sucked up by therapy and antidepressants because you're so so wrecked emotionally and psychologically from the job, then the money might come out even in the end anyway! ha ha (Only halfway kidding, as I am IN therapy right now - partly to deal with work stress - and the therapist suggested antidepressants...)

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Therapy? No doubt. I went to a therapist through our employee assistance program. She was pretty helpful. The only thing though was that she told me that I needed to get it in my head to put the workday behind me. Basically "realize I did the best job possible and it's behind me". Ha! easier said then done. I had that thought in my head then the nagging question would come, yea but is your best good enough?

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I have been an RN for 20 years now and have 2 adult daughters in college, and a 13 yo dgt still at home. No, nursing is not the easiest job in the world, but we have such flexibility as nurses. I have not in my 20 years found the best job in the world, but I have been allowed to experience different types of nursing....med-surg, home health, icu, insurance company, ltc, week-ends only, registry, clinics etc.... Heck, I have even become disgruntled as a nurse and tried out other fields, but found that I missed working with patients too much!Every job has it's own set of drawbacks as well as benefits. There are too many opporutnities out here for us to be stuck in a job that we don't like! Not very many careers offer that opportunity. I'm now considering going back to school to be some sort of NP! The opportunities are limitless for us. :balloons: On to the subject of children: There are times when, as a new nurse, I went to work while my own children were sick at home and felt tons of guilt while at work. As I became more confident as a nurse, I set my priorities and decided that when one of my children was very ill, not to go to work and stay at home to take care of my sick child. (Of course, Employers not too happy with my decision...but oh well) Despite my guilty feelings I had while raising my children (missing meetings, school plays, they have let me know that I did a very good job of raising them. They learned to be independent, assertive women with good heads on their shoulders and I am very proud of them. They have a good work ethic by seeing Mom (and Dad) get up to go to work. They know that it takes sacrfices to be a good provider. They have had friends whose parents couldn't provide them with the nicer things in life and they learned to appreciate them. No, they were'nt designer clothing and $100 sneaker kids who demanded to have expensive things given to them at their command, but they know the value of a dollar. I think that nurses who are Mom's deal with a lot of guilt because of our jobs, but know that children are very forgiving and we need to stop beating ourselves up over things that we can't do with our children. The quality of time strongly outweighs the quantitiy of time we spend with our children. >>>To those of you who are disgruntled about your jobs. Know that you are not stuck in some dead-end job. Look for other opportunities. Proud to be an RN, Robin :) I love what I do!

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Specializes in Hey I'm now an RN!!.

Hmmm...I believe starting salaries for a graduate RN start at $19/hr, more for specialized care .75 more for a BS. This is Upstate NY.

I basically gave up 2 years of my sons lives when they were 8 and 10 to complete my RN. I never saw them awake till the weekend. I had school from 0630 till 12:45 and worked as a secretary on a psych unit from 1400 till 2230. I thought I was doing it to provide them with a secure future. All it gave them was a mother who was stressed out, had back surgery twice, and missed their school concerts and PTA meetings because she was always at work. Luckily they are now grown and have turned out well. But I missed too much, and I can't get it back. I don't feel we are compensated for our sacrifices, nor are we supported or respected by "mahogany hall" administrators. And I would like to know where in this country an RN makes $25.00 to $30.00 an hour. I've been an ICU nurse for 10 years and the best I pull is $18.00. No it's not just about the money, it's about not having the time to give the nursing care you want to give. If I have a patient going for CABG, and they are nervous and scared, I don't have time to sit and explain and encourage, but I'm supposed to take the time to write on the education sheet the teaching I've done. That's hypocritical, but it's the facts. No I wouldn't recommend this back wrenching, exhausting , thankless, tiring, heart wrenching, disrespected job to anyone.
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julie foster - don't put yourself down. Your opinion is worth just as much as the next persons. Being a RN probably more. Nurse's need to stop selling us short..... That's my dollars worth :)

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....hmmm this thread has gone on for ages....

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Specializes in ICU.

please note the date on the original post on this thread and consider that the original poster has in all probability moved on.

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Specializes in Critical Care / Psychiatry.
please note the date on the original post on this thread and consider that the original poster has in all probability moved on.

honestly, i think much of this is not directed at the original poster, but instead in response to all of the posts thereafter by other people. i am happy this thread is continuing. it gives burned-out nurses a chance to vent and i find it very eye-opening as a nursing student. i know that nearly every job has its corrupted management and unattainable stupid corporate goals that change with every management position change. cliques and backstabbing everywhere. you can expect that with any group of people. nursing isn't much different, but why would we expect it to be? there does need to be more cohesiveness between nurses all over the us. i would really like to see the ana more active in that. there is a lot of room for improvement and i wish i could do something for all of you poor burned-out underpaid dearies out there. :o

i'm not saying that when i become a nurse i'll be different and change the world. that's not my goal at all. however, you can expect me to leave any job that makes me feel beaten down or underpaid. i owe myself that much! if everyone stayed where they were and remained unhappy just because they thought they were stuck and they had to in order to pay the bills or support their family...no one would get anywhere. you have more options than you think. don't be afraid to use them. i've taken so many major risks in my life to change something for the better, and i've never regretted a single one.

never understimate being proactive.

shel

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Specializes in Emergency.

I'm a single mom my son is 4 years old and I'm proud to make 21/hr on regular time.

At least i'm not on welfare as I was in nursing school. At least my son can say "my mom is a nurse". At least we have some pride about ourselves these days.

At least I can now pay for our food electric gas and rent on my salary......

I thank god that I graduated nursing school last june and passed my boards.......

I am now able to provide a better life for my son!!!!!!

(((((people wanna ***** bout nursing wages and yes i agree they are low compared to the work we do but at least we can support ourselves on our wages))))))

xoxo Jenni

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Specializes in Emergency Room.
I'm a single mom my son is 4 years old and I'm proud to make 21/hr on regular time.

At least i'm not on welfare as I was in nursing school. At least my son can say "my mom is a nurse". At least we have some pride about ourselves these days.

At least I can now pay for our food electric gas and rent on my salary......

I thank god that I graduated nursing school last june and passed my boards.......

I am now able to provide a better life for my son!!!!!!

(((((people wanna ***** bout nursing wages and yes i agree they are low compared to the work we do but at least we can support ourselves on our wages))))))

xoxo Jenni

tiny, you have the right attitude about your career. sometimes it takes people to struggle through life to appreciate when they have something better. i don't believe people should settle for something just because it pays the bills, but if a person is truly that unhappy it is time to find another career. i can appreciate my $25/hr salary because i was making $10/hr (with a degree!!). i have worked in business offices, accounting firms, banks. i have had plenty of 9-5 jobs, you name it. these jobs don't pay as well as people think and they definitely come with there own set of crap. i was miserable. when i began my healthcare care as a medical assistant i KNEW without a doubt i wanted to be a nurse. the day i graduated nursing school was one of the happiest days of my life. i love being a nurse and i don't plan to look back. tiny, be proud of your accomplishment. i always admire single mothers that make a choice to do better for themselves and their children. congratulations!

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this is very irritating to me and like a slap in the face. I've been a nurse for almost 20 years. Took a job in a nursing home to work weekends so I could pursue my BSN. I work with three LPN's soon to graduate as RN's ( May 15th) I make 18.00 an hour and they will be hired in at 17.00 an hour. It seems like it took me a lifetime to get to this measly salary and new grads can just walk right into it!:angryfire

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