I like being different.

being unique/different, is more an expression of your personality and character, versus your appearance.

when i was a nsg student, there were very strict limitations in how we dressed.

you'll be freer to be more flexible after graduating.

good luck, honey.

leslie

At age 49 I wouldn't care if you had any of that stuff. Just be a good nurse!

However, it just depends on the employer.

You are the new wave and well help shape the new normal. Have fun!

All of these tats and piercings are becoming the norm for this generation now ready to enter college. Its a coming storm....

They are the me generation.

What they are going to find is that their mom and dad's generation will be the ones hiring and its not going to be pretty for them. My son went and got tatoos up and down the full length of both arms....I warned him and now....he is having a devil of a time getting hired anywhere....

I have my ears gauged to a 00g, I have been known to stick a pen or two through there (not at work :) ). I have gotten many compliments from curious patients and families and nothing negative has been said (to my face, anyway). I dont wear obnoxiously big earrings though and sometimes its hard to tell its a big hole rather than a big earring. Lol.

The place I work for allows nose rings, but no other facial piercings. They suggest visible tattoos be "non-offensive" and also no unnatural hair colors. I feel this still give room to play with your identity. For school however, much stricter rules. I had to cover or remove my nose ring and I kept my gauges as discrete as possible. Too many other things to worry about to get in a tizzy over my appearance. Good luck.

You'll find the gamut of opinions if you search out, "Guys with visible tatoos" (IIRC) in the Men in Nursing section. I have a long-ish biker-stache, and 1 visible tattoo.

The one practical warning I would have for you is that mean and/or confused people may have a respectable go at ripping stuff out. A Munroe would be fairly safe, but anything torn out is one hell of an exposure, both for you and the pt. Just bear in mind that not all the world will be accepting, and much of the world is completely willing to ignore what you may consider your personal boundaries. Just be careful...

I have friends covered in tattoos who are nurses, midwives, etc. I myself have a tongue ring and large, albiet, coverable tattoos. It all depends on your culture. Get hired first, then most people won't say anything :)

Also different departments are a little different...ER and L&D I have found are a little younger and more flexible, night shift is usually younger as well. It all depends.

I have friends covered in tattoos who are nurses, midwives, etc. I myself have a tongue ring and large, albiet, coverable tattoos. It all depends on your culture. Get hired first, then most people won't say anything :)

Also different departments are a little different...ER and L&D I have found are a little younger and more flexible, night shift is usually younger as well. It all depends.

You must be a West Coaster because here in the south, the body art is not gonna fly, ever

So, you are allowed to stand outside the hospital, or at the store in your scrubs after work and smoke...but you are not allowed a piercing or different color hair, because that is considered "unprofessional".

We can attack someone for expressing themselves and being unique, because something like a piercing may have offended people 40 years ago, but maybe we should focus that energy on some of the larger professional issues that affect us and our work.

Just my two cents

Actually, if I am in my scrubs and displaying my school logo, I am not allowed to do those things unless I cover the logo somehow.

As for nurses smoking, that makes about as much sense as a chicken farmer raising foxes in the hen house....

Actually, if I am in my scrubs and displaying my school logo, I am not allowed to do those things unless I cover the logo somehow.

As for nurses smoking, that makes about as much sense as a chicken farmer raising foxes in the hen house....

Oh lord, not the "should nurses smoke" debate again.

haha i know its a tired old horse is it not? but do tell....

How is it that a person can have the education, see with their own eyes on a regular basis what the end result of smoking is, and then still smoke?

boggles my mind

haha i know its a tired old horse is it not? but do tell....

How is it that a person can have the education, see with their own eyes on a regular basis what the end result of smoking is, and then still smoke?

boggles my mind

I used to work at a large inner city hospital that specialized in oncology and cardiology. When we went "smoke free" (no smoking on campus, could smoke on side walk), the staff that complained most were the cardiologists and the pulmologists, as they would no longer be able to smoke on their way in from the parking lot.