I took time off from nursing school and now regret it

EmilyCCRN · Oct 14, 2004

Bria,

Two students in my class are "returning" students, so I know it can be done. They both left the program a couple of years ago and are now back at it. You can do it, too! It's never too late to become what you want to be. Go for it, and welcome to AllNurses! :)

LPN-n-2005 · Oct 14, 2004

I know EXACTLY how you feel about taking time off from school. My family situation was not good b/c I was working a low paying job and living with my mom who almost enjoyed creating problems of her own. constant bickering and fighting about bills and how much she could get out of me. i finally have been able to move down with my fiancee to the lower end of the state and left all that garbage where i moved from. i too have returned to school and things are a lot better now. i am excited about getting started again. i wiped the slate clean and am much more dedicated now. hold ur head up things will look a lot brighter once you start seeing progress! Happy B-day, how old are you turning? I am 24 and returning back to school after taking an absence when my parents were divorcing. I was just focused on having a roof over my head and dealing with constant threats of if i didn't do such and such or pay such and such that i would kicked to the curb with no where to live.

PennyLane, RN · Oct 14, 2004

bria,

happy birthday!!! :balloons: :balloons:

good for you for realizing you were at a point in your life where you needed to concentrate on your life and not school. taking time off is nothing to be ashamed of. i know people who've taken off for a semester or two, and are back and doing great.

you said yourself you've made positive changes in your life and will now be a better student. you only finished one semester so hopefully you'll pick everything up just fine!

don't beat yourself up about it. i say to myself every day, if only i'd decided on nursing when i was in my early 20s, i'd be a nurse today too. if that's your goal, then go for it!

will you be able to pick up where you left off in the same program?

Jo Dirt · Oct 14, 2004

I understand exactly how you feel. I dropped all my classes last spring because of a mental breakdown due to family-related stress (I mean I took a big leap off the high dive, went stark raving mad, I'm STILL paying for it in more ways than one) and I kick myself everyday because I could have accomplished a lot over the last year had this not happened. All we can do is pick up the pieces and start over. I have seen what some of my high school classmates have done with their lives (nurse practitioner, pharmacist, etc.) and it only makes me feel like even more of a loser.

Tweety, BSN, RN · Oct 14, 2004

I went to college fresh out of high school. Finally got my ADN in 1992. In January I hope to start my BSN and get it by oh, maybe 2009.

I don't waste a minute of my time thinking "I could have had this BSN in 1981". Or why didn't I get my BSN right after the ADN program and I could be done by now.

Be patient and understanding with yourself. I understand, but don't look back with regret.

Good luck!

Briac · Oct 15, 2004

Awww thanks everyone for your kindness.

To answer a few questions...I turned 33 yesterday and I am not going back to the same nursing program just because I don't feel it was the best program for me. I found another program that I am much more excited about and I can't wait to get started. I am naturally a person that has to remind myself not to look back because I do get caught up in the "what ifs", but I am just going to have to retrain my stubborn brain.

Bria

SarasotaRN2b · Oct 15, 2004

Bria, I can totally understand how you feel. But don't...it is only a waste of your time and energy. I can think of it the same way...if I stayed way back when I first graduated from High School, I would actually have been a nurse for 20 years...but a lot of good things happened during that time. I feel that the experiences I've had (good and bad) were learning experiences and will hopefully make me a better nurse when I graduate.

Nursesuzi · Oct 15, 2004

Briac,

I started nursing school in 1996, a two year adn program. I quit exactly half way thru due to the fact I was pregnant and had a "funny feeling" that the stress of nursing might endanger my preg. I had had miscarriages before nursing school. A week after I quit I started bleeding and spent the rest of my preg in bed w/placenta previa. Anyway, FIVE years later life lead me back to nursing (now I was divorcing and needed to have a way to support my two kids). The hardest part of returning was remembering Med Surg. The two weeks before I reentered school I crammed med surg down my throat, studied my school notes, med surg cards, etc. Also, I reviewed common procedures (basic injections, medications,etc.) To reent my program I had to pass an extensive skills test of 10 skills (injections, insulin prep, iv stuff). Because of my prep at home it went ok. However, I found the hardest part was preparing for NCLEX. The gap in my studies made my review more time intensive.

Its hard spending the extra time; you have to really motivate your self and maximize your study time. But it's DO ABLE! I passed NCLEX and am 4 months into my first job in L&D at a great hospital. This is my second career and I can tell you, pursuing nursing is well worth it. I could never sit at a desk job again. Go for it!

Hi everyone!
This is actually my first post so here it goes. I was a nursing student a little over 2 years ago and I took time off after my first semester due to some family situations and because I was stressed out. It just wasn't a good situation. I have come to regret my decision because the same script keeps playing over and over in my head, "you could be a nurse right now". Truth be told, I know I needed the time off because I have made many positive changes in my life and I think I will be a more dedicated nursing student, but I can't help beating myself up and feeling like a "loser" because I feel like I am taking steps backwards.
Did anyone else take time off from nursing school and finally go back to finish? I suppose I need to words of encouragement...it doesn't help that today is my birthday and I'm feeling like I should have accomplished more than I have. Sorry, if this is a downer post, but I am normally an upbeat and happy person. Thanks for listening.
Bria

hypnotic_nurse · Oct 15, 2004

Please, just remember that life isn't a race. Some people reach goals quickly, some slowly, some never get there at all, and some wind up on a different road entirely (hey, I was going to teach FRENCH! and look at me now!). It's the ones that give up on life that are losers. Doesn't sound like ANY of you are giving up.

:)

Paleobug · Oct 15, 2004

I'm 45 and I'm in school for my 3rd degree. My friend and I were accepted for this fall, and after a week, she disappeared and I didn't know what happened to her. I called her house and her husband didn't me tell what had happened. She finally called me the other night to let me know that she had to withdraw the first week of school because her mother had a stroke and she had to go up to Idaho for a month. Now she's trying to be reinstated for this spring. Things happen in life. Just hang in there.

oregonnurse · Oct 18, 2004

Hi Bria,

I, too, started nursing school only to postpone it. Now I am an RN working in a hospital on our telemetry floor.

Part of my motivation to stick with school the second time around was knowing that it was round two. The biggest secret of finishing nursing school is DON'T QUIT!

Congratulations on your new program and good luck!

Paula.