I'm young and nervous about going into the nursing profession

[Dlansey]

I'm nervous because I'm 19 years old and only ever had 3 jobs in my whole life. And I worked all of those 3 jobs within this year and stayed at the 1st one for 1 month and a half; 2nd job for 2.5 months; and the 3rd one for only 1.5 weeks.

So you can see, I am a job hopper and when I don't want to do something anymore I immediately back out of it. It's the same for my older sister, she has had 14 jobs within this year and never stayed at them for more than 2 months, or college (she dropped that within a few weeks too).

So I'm afraid that I will become just like her and back out of the nursing profession because something I don't like about it and I don't want it to be like that.

So how do you nurses deal with a environment that you do not like? What keeps you working at a job for a year or more? It is my ultimate goal to have a job for at least a year but I know that will never happpen.

I still depend on my mother finacially and so does my older sister (21 years old), so we always have a safety net to rely on when we don't want to deal with the realities of the world.

[idialyze, BSN, RN]

So who is going to rescue you when you're Mom's gone? You have to decide for yourself how you want

your own life to be. Trust me, there is no future for you if you constantly quit everything that may be a

little difficult. Nursing school is hard, life is hard sometimes too. By the time I was 19, I was married,

a full time nursing student and worked as a Nursing Technician 24 hrs a week. I just knew there was

always something better out there that I deserved, but realized that I had to work to get it. Nothing is

free in this life, and your Mom is doing you a disservice to you by allowing you to not do anything you

think is hard!

You MUST work as a CNA before spending thousands on tuition, and quitting when the going gets

tough. If you decide Nursing is just not your thing, decide what you DO want to do.

I am very lucky to have had a career that lasted me 34 years, I love my job even today, as long as

I have been a Nurse, I'm 56 years old, don't see myself retiring any time soon!

Find something you love, and go for it!

[anitalaff, BSN, RN]

At ages 16-21, I think I probably had at least 10 jobs, so don't fret. It is a time of your life you find something you can live with as you're probably not going to 'love' your job. You might however try to focus more on getting good pay (even if that means manual labor) than having a job you like. As far as nursing goes, I routinely try to talk young people out of the profession of nursing. I went back when I was older and knew what I was getting in to and why and now often still regret that decision. However there are lots of job options in nursing and paths for non-clinical careers. Likewise there are tons of non-nursing healthcare careers that offer a lot of the same employment opportunities without the downside of nursing (doing the grunt work). If you are really to be happy in the profession of nursing in the long run you have to understand yourself and the profession. Go volunteer at a hospital or hospice company and stand on your feet for 12 hours and help a person do everything in their day (eat, take meds, bathe, walk, sit/stand, etc). And imagine doing these things under a time constraint with multiple patients. Now imagine doing that every day as your job for 10 years and if that sounds awesome and rewarding to you, then nursing is a good fit. However if you are creative, a problem solver, a thinker, someone who likes complex situations and real intellectual challenges, autonomy and decision making, then nursing may not be a good fit. If you want to show up to work every day and basically be told what to do by a doctor's order set, then nursing is your job. Whatever you decide, don't do something stupid like take out $60k in loans to pay for a degree. Go to a community college, work while in school, get exposure to healthcare and see what you like. Come out of college with no debt having a fair idea of what you really are willing to tolerate at work is the key. I say this from experience. Know yourself first, your strengths, your desires, your personality and what type of career environment will challenge you without being incongruent with who you are.

There is so much about this post response that I like. In terms of the OP, it sounds to me like you are really trying to reflect and consider what your strengths and challenges are while you plan your future. I APPLAUD you for doing this work. It also sounds like you're asking, not so much about nursing, but about your ability to change and grow. My answer to you is yes, you can. Keep thinking about what motivates you and energizes you.

Foggnm, you are bang on the mark about knowing yourself first. Your words resonated with me.

[anitalaff, BSN, RN]

Hey,

In your case neither you or your 21 year old sister have committed to working diligently. I am sorry but I feel like the both of you take working as a joke. You are quite lucky that you are still under your mom's wings to be financially supported.

Clearly the OP does not take working as a joke, but is trying to be honest in his/her self analysis- thus the posting.

[Ramennoodles, BSN]

Just remember, your life is YOUR LIFE and you are not required, or even likely, to follow in your sister's footsteps if you don't want to. It sounds like you already know that quitting/giving up is not the way you want your professional life to be. If you dream it, you can do it. Cliche, but true. If you dream of becoming a nurse, why would you quit? That the surest way to lose. Trust me, when you are free from your mom's financial safety net, you will be SO proud of yourself. Just keep focused on what you want in life. Become the BEST at what you do, really apply yourself to your studies. Think positively. If you are constantly worried about your job sucking, then you will only see the ways that it sucks.

Try focusing only on the good things about nursing, because no job is going to be perfect. That's 100% guaranteed.

[Ramennoodles, BSN]

Also I have to add that working as a CNA firs is totally unnecessary! Those minimum wage jobs DO suck, I have had a lot of them and they are AWFUL, especially if you are someone who dreams of having a great job that pays well, is challenging, encourages you to improve and better yourself.... those minimum wage jobs are boring and depressing tbh. They are just a paycheck. Nursing is a vocation, you are there to help people and to be the best you can be. It requires schooling and committment. If you can make it through nursing school and the NCLEX, why wouldn't you make it in your profession as a nurse if that's really your dream?

My mom always told me not to be a CNA because CNA's do not do what nurses do. Sorry to any CNAs but they don't. A lot of the work they do is difficult, dirty, demeaning work. They are VITAL to the team in the hospital but if you go and decide being a nurse isn't for you just because being a CNA isn't for you, that's just unrealistic because being a nurse is different than being a CNA.

[NICUismylife, ADN, BSN, RN]

not to be a CNA because CNA's do not do what nurses do. Sorry to any CNAs but they don't. A lot of the work they do is difficult, dirty, demeaning work.

As a nurse, you should 100% be willing to do anything a CNA does. In fact, there are some specialties (ICU, peds) where RNs do total care and there are no CNAs on the floor.

To quote Florence Nightengale:

"If a nurse declines to do these kinds of things for her patient, "because it is not her business," I should say that nursing was not her calling. I have seen surgical "sisters," women whose hands were worth to them two or three guineas a-week, down upon their knees scouring a room or hut, because they thought it otherwise not fit for their patients to go into. I am far from wishing nurses to scour. It is a waste of power. But I do say that these women had the true nurse-calling—the good of their sick first, and second only the consideration what it was their "place" to do—and that women who wait for the housemaid to do this, or for the charwoman to do that, when their patients are suffering, have not the making of a nurse in them" -Florence Nightengale

[NICUismylife, ADN, BSN, RN]

Futhermore, if you have worked as a CNA, it makes you truly appreciative of your CNAs and how much they help you.

[future_nurse_d]

I think that you are showing a lot of promise by being able to acknowledge your shortcomings and weaknesses and to show interest in correcting them. A lot of people don't have that ability.

I can resonate with you because I'm 22, so we are about the same age. I graduate with my BSN in May. I've had 6 jobs including the two positions I'm in right now. My first job ever was at Steak 'n Shake making $2.13/hour plus tips as a waitress. That lasted 6 months. Then I worked retail for 6 months and I enjoyed it. Then I worked at another restaurant for 3.5 years making $7.25/hr. Never saw a raise. Now I work as a tutor at my college and as a nurse Extern at a local hospital.

I have never been labeled as a job hopper. When you're young and in high school and early college and don't really have any qualifications, I don't think anyone is surprised to see that you've worked multiple jobs before. I think that's probably expected.

I used to work as a nurse Extern at a VERY large Level 1 trauma center in my area. While I was there, I did several shifts working as a tech/CNA. So I got experience in how to be a nurse as well as the CNA side of things. It was hard work, and I left due to different reasons - I didn't mind working as a tech. I actually enjoyed it, when someone wasn't calling me every 5 minutes asking for ice cream while I was elbow deep in poop.

So, I do agree with everyone who suggests that you work as a CNA first. It's not the same tasks that nurses do, but there is some overlap and you will at least become exposed to the environment. I learned a lot. Do some research and try to get a CNA position and see how you like it. That's the best advice I can give.

[CCU BSN RN]

I can't believe no one has suggested it yet, but PLEASE SEE A COUNSELOR OR THERAPIST, or any mental health practitioner, for that matter.

You're really young, and you have a lot of years in front of you to learn and grow, but if you're an adult that can't hold down a minimum wage job for 2 weeks, you're not ready for nursing yet. Nursing is wonderful, I learn something new every day. I also have shifts where I argue with demented people about staying in bed and fetch water and commodes. Literally shifts where that is 80% of how I spend my time. We all have something we don't like doing. Nursing is such a vast field, I HATE infected stage 4 pressure ulcers, projectile vomit, and dialysis. But there are days when I have to deal with all of the above, and put a smile on while I do it. You don't sound like you're ready to do something you don't want to do for even a few weeks, so how will you cope when that's your career and not some minimum wage job?

I think you're lacking some 'adulting' skills, and you need to start finding them before you know what you want to do. You don't have to be perfect or have it all figured out, but I'd see a professional and try to learn a little more introspectively before I jumped into any decisions.

I entered nursing school at 18 and was moderately supported by my parents while in school. I worked, but I worked to pay for books and beer and gas, not out of a necessity. I was super immature and did NOT have a good grasp on appropriate professional conduct. Adulting was WAY off point for me for quite awhile. I give you this advice as someone who wishes she could go back in time 10 years and give it to herself. My journey might have been much easier on me if I'd spent some time on myself and/or general lifeskills before I went to college.

[thelittleRNwhocould]

First of all, I want to say thank you for being vulnerable and honest - it is not easy to acknowledge, let alone openly share, one's shortcomings and fears. You have reached out for advice and help - and that is a good thing! I intend this comment in a compassionate, helpful manner, so I apologize if I come across as harsh at any point.

Second of all: I think a fundamental problem here has to do with perspective. The concept of "if something is unpleasant, I can just walk away from it" is a flawed way to operate. There are many things in life that are difficult, messy, and unpleasant - but some of those things are crucial to personal growth. Reasonable discomfort can actually build your endurance. I advise a shift in perspective: when you experience something at a job that you don't like, think of it as a challenge to rise to, a way to strengthen your character. Embrace difficulty as a necessary growth mechanism. That is NOT to say that you should remain in a dead-end job that you absolutely cannot stand; however, you have to build thicker skin in order to get through the more unpleasant or mundane aspects of a job.

Personally, I have never held a job for less than seven months (and I quit that one because I was working another job concurrently), and I have worked consistently since I was fifteen (I am now twenty-one). Even though you are young, it's time to start building reliability and endurance - you are entering adulthood, and you can no longer exist in the freedom of childhood where you don't have to work, or where your actions don't have consequences. I understand your feelings - I don't "like" working. It's unpleasant to set aside my desires and give up my time, but it is so necessary to becoming a responsible, self-sufficient adult.

Now that I've written a book (sorry!), I have one more suggestion: work as a PCT/CNA. I suggest hospital work. Even though a tech's job is different from an RN's, it will serve several purposes. 1: you will gain healthcare experience and will be proficient in performing patient care tasks, which RNs DO need to know how to do, 2: you will build relationships within the hospital system, making yourself more hireable, and 3: you will build time-management skills and an ability to keep working even when things are unpleasant (such as rude patients, busy/stressful days, isolation precautions where you have to gown up every time you enter the room, etc).

Most importantly: good luck! I am rooting for you, and fully believe that you are more than capable of making this change in your life. Your family's patterns of behavior do not have to define you - you are your own person who has so much potential.

[gere7404, BSN, RN]

My mom always told me not to be a CNA because CNA's do not do what nurses do. Sorry to any CNAs but they don't. A lot of the work they do is difficult, dirty, demeaning work. They are VITAL to the team in the hospital but if you go and decide being a nurse isn't for you just because being a CNA isn't for you, that's just unrealistic because being a nurse is different than being a CNA.

As an RN you are responsible for delegating CNA's tasks -- you need to be able to know how to do them so you know what the right way looks like. Pretty much my first quarter in my BSN program was learning basic CNA skills and working UNDER CNA's in assisted care or long term care facilities so we could gain an understanding and appreciation for what they do in a nursing team.

Most programs also give preference to applicants who have worked as CNA's, because of that insight as well.

[Ramennoodles, BSN]

As a nurse, you should 100% be willing to do anything a CNA does. In fact, there are some specialties (ICU, peds) where RNs do total care and there are no CNAs on the floor.

To quote Florence Nightengale:

"If a nurse declines to do these kinds of things for her patient, "because it is not her business," I should say that nursing was not her calling. I have seen surgical "sisters," women whose hands were worth to them two or three guineas a-week, down upon their knees scouring a room or hut, because they thought it otherwise not fit for their patients to go into. I am far from wishing nurses to scour. It is a waste of power. But I do say that these women had the true nurse-calling—the good of their sick first, and second only the consideration what it was their "place" to do—and that women who wait for the housemaid to do this, or for the charwoman to do that, when their patients are suffering, have not the making of a nurse in them" -Florence Nightengale

...obviously. You work together. But that doesn't mean being a CNA is the same as being an RN. It's not. That's all I'm saying. RNs have far more/different responsibilities depending on job setting, so only seeing what a CNA does could deter someone from a profession that might otherwise be a great fit for them. A job is a sum total of all the aspects, what a CNA does is just one of the aspects and in certain settings, none of what they do applies. Nursing is a flexible profession, why discourage others to do it? There's more than one way to become a nurse (skin a cat, literally, in anatomy lab haha í ½í¸) and sometimes I feel in here that people think their way is the ONLY way; that's the only point I'm trying to make, not to put down cna's but as an RN I do far more than what they do. My job is not that of a CNA.