Is your loved one sick of hearing nursing stuff?

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Oct 17, 2008

I'm quite the opposite. My family always wants to hear something interesting about my job, but I really don't like discussing work. I've admittedly lost a great deal of enthusiasm for my career pathway, so I don't really care to explain stuff to them.

Of course, I pretend to be interested when one of my family members is discussing a subject that doesn't interest me. I do this out of politeness, although my annoyance will show if they're being too repetitive.

RNof2008 · Oct 17, 2008

Yeah I think he's being selfish not to want to listen because you respect him enough to listen regarding his job he should do the same!! When I was in nursing school I did the same and my sister hated hearing my stories all the time but I still told them anyway!!!

RNof2008 · Oct 17, 2008

I am much like you I love nursing because I love caring for others!!

Pmkn10RN · Oct 17, 2008

He is being extremely selfish and I'm sorry you have to deal with that. You should be able to tell your husband about work....infact every day when you come home he should ask you how your day was. My boyfriend is always asking me about how nursing school is going but I'm the one who says I really don't want to talk about it lol( school is fine but it consumes so much of my life I want a break from it sometimes). Has he always been unsupportive of you or is this a new finding? Tell him that you don't give a s*** about his job and see how he likes it :cool: . On a more constructive note....he needs to understand that he doesn't have to care about nursing so to speak, he needs to care about his wife aka expressing an interest in what you have to say....even if it is about "nursing stuff".

smartin13 · Oct 18, 2008

I agree with pmkn, he doesn't have to care about nursing, what you have learned or saw even. He does however have to care about you, and to me part of that is listening to whatever you have to say. My boyfriend (god bless him) listenes every day and lets me test my skills on him. I know he isn't intereseted or enjoying it, but because he loves and respects me and knows that it makes me happy he just goes along with it.

DeadHeadRN, BSN, RN · Oct 18, 2008

it seems you should be able to share your work life with your husband. i'm lucky enough that mine is an rn himself, so we talk about it all the time. it's tough, because i think about the other people in my life and i know they don't like to hear it all the time. like my mom, she's pretty good at listening as long as the word gangrene doesn't come into it. for some reason just hearing word makes her gag. sometime we say it just to see what she'll do. i'll walk up behind her and whisper "gangrene" in her ear. it's hilarious. maybe a little mean, but still very funny.

i definitely think he's being a little selfish. the only situation i have to compare it to is a good friend of mine that i graduated nursing school with. she didn't work all through school and has a young daughter. she had become totally and completely financially dependent on her boyfriend, and when we were getting close to graduating, he started acting really weird. after we graduated and she began working and making her own money, he got over it and things went back to normal. i think the problem was that he had gotten used to "being in control" at least financially and like all of us at times, didn't necessarily handle the change as well as he could have. maybe it's not a financial with your husband, but he's getting ready to go through a change when you graduate and maybe he's having a hard time with it. i'm not defending the behavior, or the hurt he causing you, just playing devil's advocate :devil: . i'm sorry that you're having this problem, and i hope it gets better for you.

Virgo_RN, BSN, RN · Oct 18, 2008

I think it's important, in a partnership, to be willing to listen to the other person. For example, my partner loves the Red Sox. I don't give a rip about baseball, but I listen to him because I care about him. He doesn't care about what happens at the hospital, but he listens to me because he cares about me.

At the same time, I think it can go too far. I hold back sometimes when I could keep talking, because I don't want to bore him to tears, and he does the same for me.

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · Oct 18, 2008

As long as it's nothing gross, he's all ears. He can't stomach the blood and body fluid tales :chuckle

If he doesn't want to hear about it, stop talking and see what happens. I'd be willing to bet that after a couple of weeks of nothing from you, he'll probably start asking. In the meanwhile, find other family members and friends and talk to them.

Woodenpug, BSN · Oct 18, 2008

My wife is the same. Wants to hear nothing about nursing. I empathize, because like you, I love nursing and it's an important part of my life. It started when I was doing my pre-reqs and continues to this day.

Shadow31 · Oct 18, 2008

My bf has a problem with my RN stories as well. I can be explaining that I had a pt with a temp of 99.0 and he goes running out of the room with his hands over his ears screaming "That is so gross!" :rolleyes: I think I have told too many no so pretty stories about nursing that I have ruined him for anything medical ever again. I do wish I had someone to talk to about it since I find it so exciting, and it would be nice to have someone to vent with at the end of the day. I wish we had the hang out at the bar after work group just so I could share my stories... but then again could you imagine the drama that would come from that.

Bobylon · Oct 18, 2008

Yeah, I also believe he's acting selfishly, for lack of a better word. My wife has no problems listening to my story-of-the-day...of course, it helps immensely that she's in the medical field also (vascular ultrasound tech for a group of surgeons) and we have several good friends already nurses. She's used to it :)