I have trouble admitting that I will be a nurse

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I will be starting accelerated BSN program in 2 months. I have some anxiety about starting school partly because I'm leaving a good career and also I feel a little embarassed about being a nurse. Actually, embarassed is not the right word, I'm little apprehensive about the nursing field due to the fact that I don't really know what it would be like working in an all female dominated field. Also, threads like "why male nurses are looked down on?" doesn't help elleviate my anxiety (which I have stayed away from). I keep asking myself if this is the right choice especially because I'm making a huge financial investment. I ultimately want to go onto a CRNA program. However, I still need to go through nursing school and be a bedside nurse for a while. Anyway, I'm mostly excited about starting school, but I little apprehensive too. Has anybody else felt like this before starting school? Please tell me that this is normal. Thanks.

The more confident and affirmed you are giving the response of becoming a nurse, the less likely it will be that the person asking will question why you may be entering the field. My father in law has been a nurse for over 30 years. He is extremely proud of his profession, and it shows in his demeanor. If someone has issue with a guy as a nurse, it's only an indicator of their own insecurities and you don't need to concern yourself with them.

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I graduated high school in 1982 an started my pre-reqs about a year and a half ago with no other college experience. I have worked my butt off for little pay in pretty much dead-end jobs for years. I can say I'm a Welder (railroad cars)-that's manly. I'm an industrial maintanance man and welder at a concrete plant-also manly. I'm a signage and exhibit fabricator and can build just about anything-these manly jobs have absolutely no meaning to them. I start nursing classes in the fall Yahooo!!! For me to worry about what others think is totally ridiculous. To become a respected healthcare professional instead of doing back-breaking skilled labor- now that is embarrasing. Honestly I have received nothing but praise and encouragement because everyone that knows me knows that I am an intellegent, caring person and that I will make a great nurse. I tell everyone that I am going to school to become a REGISTERED NURSE and it is the most worthwhile thing I've ever done.

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Specializes in Eventually - ED.
As a good friend (a female nurse co-worker) said to me over lunch one day as I voiced the same concern.

"Listen, Mike. You are a forty-year old male nurse surrounded by a mob of young twenty-somethings who laugh at all your dumb jokes. And you drive a Vette. What's to complain about?"

Ahh, wisdom from the all-knowing! :lol2:

Mike

That is so true!

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So, you sound like you want the job description of being a nurse without having to wear the title of "NURSE". Be honest, do you want to be a nurse with everything the scope of practice entails, the many paths you can experience or make a bigger investment, go into medicine with all that entails? I work in an OR and love the balance of men and women. Male nurses are appreciated by the staff and the patients really think it's great. I have a doctor friend who had his son go to nursing school before entering med school because he wanted him to be of value. That is a great endorsement for nursing, male or female.

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For my part, I want to continue to enjoy the job satisfaction that I have as a paramedic, but with the increased professionalism, employment opportunities, and pay that come with the nursing profession. I have done many things in my life, but handing someone their child that you have resuscitated is OFF THE SCALE job satisfaction. Nursing is a wonderful profession, while being a medic is a trade. I proudly tell anyone that asks that I am going to be a nurse. Man up and get on with it!

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i agree with NurseguyFL. most of the registered straight guy nurses i know thrive on pressure at er and icu. probably because guys have more knack on the technical side with the use of all the medical equipment than females. some guy nurses i know enjoy working in dialysis. i also am looking forward in being assigned at the er once i graduate.

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Specializes in LTC Geriatrics.

You are definitely going on the right track since it seems a good majority of males go into that field ultimately; including me hehe. So here's what I suggest. Be proud to be a male nurse; if you can't have pride in the work that you do and the label that you'll be carrying around then its just going to be that much harder, mentally, to continue with a world AND you against you. If you can't come out of the nursing closet then I hope you can just suck-it-up and deal with it your own way. The road to getting an RN and 2 yrs of ICU experience (before the CRNA program) is a long one so reserve alot of patience and confidence to at least get you through to your RN. Once you start working in the ICU I doubt you will have any denial issues or any issues at all being a nurse d/t the level of professionalism you will be dealing with. much props to you for choosing this path. good luck and never give up bro!

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It has been a while since I have responded to this thread but wanted to chime in AGAIN about how proud I am about becoming an RN. I just took my second position at a PICU in a children's hospital (. That puts me one step closer to my CRNA which is one of my goals.

I have yet to get any guff for being a male nurse, I do get lots of praise from familys on how I kept their familymember alive during a code because I was strong enough to actually compress their overweight family members chest (my initial job is on a hemo/renal dialysis med surg unit). I am NOT ashamed for one second about any of that!

Peace

:pumpiron:

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I was bit hesitant telling people I was going to be a nurse when I first started nursing school. Now, however, I am proud of the fact that I am going to be a nurse. Going though clinicals has given me a whole new respect to nursing as a profession. Nurses are very intelligent people (for the most part) and nursing school is a challenge that most people aren't willing to take and respect you for taking.

I have found that overall people have a very positive response when I tell them I am going to be a nurse. One negative response that I had was actually very comical to me. I was at the bar last week and I saw this guy who I grew up with and he asked me what I was doing and I told him I was in nursing school. He proceeded to laugh and thought that I was joking about it. Well, after all of the hilarity, I asked him what he had been up to. He explained that he was a waiter at a restaurant, never went to college, and lives at home with his mom. :lol2:....I couldn't help but laugh (but not in his face, unfortunately).

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I had a geriatric woman tell me the other day that she prefers male nurses because they are more tolerant and "kinder."

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Specializes in Med/Surg/Tele.

everyone asks me why I'm in college, and I always respond with a chuckle as I tell them that I'm going to be a nurse. They say "why are you laughing? That's awesome"!

I was dragged out to a bar the other night for the first time in a while, and some girl asked me what I was going to school for. When I said I was going to be a nurse, I thought she was propose to me on the spot. Apparently male nurses are "hot". I told her that I thought the misconception was that they were gay; not "hot". But there was no talking her out of it, haha. She later asked me to go home with her. It was terribly slutty, and of course I didn't accept the offer because I'm just not like that. But...my point is that I've been halfway embarrassed to tell people about it, but the more and more I tell people, the more proud I am that I have chosen nursing.

I have never taken any "guff" about being a "male nurse". Yeah, my friends may call me "gaylord" sometimes, but it's all in good fun. I've talked two of my friends into nursing school already.

congrats on the job! I hope to be a CRNA after I practice for a few years as well.

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Just had to chime in again :biere:

Even on my best day as an engineer I did not save a life or make a death less painfull. Some people will never understand that. THAT is why we "get" nursing and they do not.

In a small sidebar, I have heard it proposed that we male nurses start to call ourselves "Medics". I think that I would be cool with that.

Any thoughts?

Peace all!

I like the sound of that..."Medics".

me and another guy from my class were trying to think of a more fitting name than "nurse".

I usually tell people i'm in RN school. When I say nursing or nurse, I think of breastfeeding someone. I did have a classmate send me this though:

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