Is nursing really that bad of a career choice?

Nurses Career Support

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Hey everyone! So I'm 18, I'll be attending college next fall, and I was planning on majoring in nursing. I've always been interested in medicine, I'm very much a people-person, I want a meaningful career, and I also want something with a lot of excitement and change. Nursing seemed like a really good choice for me ... but then I discovered this site. It seems like a lot of nurses are on here are tired, miserable, trapped, and just don't like their jobs. It scares me because I don't want to end up like that! I mean, I know that every job has its bad days, and obviously nothing is going to be perfect. I just want to make the right decision.

So I guess my question is this: is being a nurse really that bad? Should I stay as far away from it as possible? And if you're a nurse, would you pick a different career if you could do it all over again? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! :)

Where do you work in Florida ? I am new in this area and I would like some feedback about the hospitals here . Thank you ;)

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I second the person who said try to work as a CNA first. I recommend that to everyone.

This is just me, but I agree with that wholeheartedly. To the OP of this thread: Work as a nurse's aide first for a few years, to get the experience, and also to see firsthand if this is really what you want to do. It's my belief, after four years of initially being an aide myself (I am now finally a licensed nurse), that all nurses should be required to be an NA or a CNA first, for at least couple of years, before they become a nurse.

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Agree. We are all individuals with different experiences & what works for one may not work for the next person. Personally, I wish I had gone into nursing from the start, instead of as a 2nd career (although my 1st was also health-related & very satisfying).

Continue to research the field & market in your area, maybe job shadow if you can. Sounds like you are quite mature for 18 & doing your best to go into nursing with eyes wide open.

This is me also - Nursing is a second career later in life for me. Sometimes I wish that I had gotten into this earlier when I was like in my twenties but then again who knows - If I had done that maybe I would have just gotten burned out by my forties with it. A medical career just wasn't on my radar back at that age. Things have worked out fine for me this way though. One thing about nursing is that there are more ways to be a nurse than just bedside hospital nursing. I myself am gravitating toward eventually doing community health out in the wider community, especially with poor people who are really under-served by our health system. Maybe even travel to third-world countries where many people go through their entire lives without seeing a nurse or a doctor.

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Really. We have here a site that provides nurses from every conceivable specialty describing their experiences, feelings, opinions and expertise without restrictions. What would you suggest ?

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Hi Alyssa, I have been a nurse longer than I care to admit. It is a job that one has to love in order to do. If you aren't going into it for the right reasons, you will be unhappy.

Right now there are a LOT of changes going on. Change is difficult for anyone no matter what. So the adaptations are difficult and make nurses gripe a bit more. But I am hopeful and optimistic that nursing will be shaped by nurses for the most part. I am getting to the age where I may need to be a patient one day and I am really counting on great nurses who love to take care of people and make a difference in their health to take care of me. It is how I have tried to take care of others during my life as a nurse. So if your passion is in nursing, please go into nursing, be involved in the decisions that are being made and keep focused that the reason nurses are so great is because it is what they love to do. Good luck!

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Specializes in Float Pool-Med-Surg, Telemetry, IMCU.

Travel Junkie- Might I argue that if you go into it for the the right reasons you may be even more unhappy when you realize just how little organizations support us in the work we do? :( Sorry, I've been very cynical lately.

To the original poster: I echo the statements of the other posters- work as a nursing assistant first. I did, and am thankful for it. Also do not be seduced into thinking that hospital nursing is the be-all and end-all of nursing experience. There are many different environments a nurse can work in.

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I've been a nurse for 22 years....and I love it today as I did when I first graduated. Yes, there are days when I would rather pull my eye lashes out, one by one....yes, there are days when the thanklessness gets to me...and yes there are days when I'd rather be doing anything other than caring for that " one" pt.

But honestly, those days are few and far between...and EVERYTHING else that being a nurse represents, reminds of why I do what I do...day in and night out!!

Every job, in every profession will give you a hard time...will make your question your capacities and abilities and definitely your patience and confidence....unless there is some new industry the 'Care Bears' have sanctioned....that's just life, my dear young friend!!

Hang in there!! You'll do fine!!

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I have been a nurse for many, many, years with my primary experience being in Emergency Nursing and Flight Nursing. Most of the time, it is a thankless, dirty job. BUT....I wouldn't change my career choice for the world! Nursing can't be something you do for the pats on the back, the praise, or the money...it must be something you do for your own personal satisfaction. A nurse must be able to self-motivate, and find satisfaction within her/himself. It has been my experience that when I am feeling the most beaten down by the job and the verbal abuse, something or someone will come along to make it all worth it....whether it be a heartfelt "thank you" from a patient or family member, or a miraculous recovery by a patient. If you understand all this, and still have the desire to be a nurse, then I say go for it.

As others have mentioned, there are shadowing programs at most hospitals that will allow you to hang out for a day or two to see what you think. I would also recommend a part-time job in a patient-care area to get a "feel" for it. Try and shadow, or work, in a couple of different areas to get different perspectives. There are a million different careers within a nursing career...it's important you find the one that's right for you in order to be happy.

Good luck, and let us know what you decide.

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RE: Become a CNA first; that's great advice as far as being able to supervise and relate to aides. It will give you an idea of what it's like to care for people, but will not prepare you to be or think like a nurse. It's a completely different skill set and mind set. I was an aide first, recently became a nurse in the same facility, and the two jobs are night and day.

I completely agree with the sentiment that all fields have a negative side. The trick is to find the right area of nursing and the right employer for you. I define success as being able to identify more positives than negatives. Good luck, whatever you decide to do!

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Hi,

Nursing is my second career. I had an Economics degree and worked in various organizations. My last employment was in one of the big banks here in Australia. I chose nursing after having worked in a bank for 4 years and realized how bored I was with the job and at the age of 42 I decided to take up nursing degree while still working at the bank. I am now 46 and got a grad placement I am so sure I am not bored at all three is no time to get bored. I love every task given to me, I am determined to learn more about nursing. Every shift I learn something. In saying that, I have some grad nurse colleagues who already complain about their job status. I notice since they are youngish they do not develop any coping mechanism. My coping mechanism is after my work I relax, drive to the country, meditate, cook and appreciate my life. Good luck in your decision. As for this site, I am greatful it exists it gives me sense of not being alone.

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Wow, thank you all so much for the advice! Very encouraging and it gave me a lot to think about. I'll definitely be shadowing a nurse as soon as I can. Again, thank you all so much! I really appreciate it! :)

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...The thing for me about nursing that I really struggle with is the moral and ethical issues. Mainly resuscitating patients who clinically/ethically/morally should be allowed to die in peace and comfort....

The reason I personally do not struggle with this is that I consider weather or not a person ultimately lives or dies to be out of my hands really - I have a job to do and I do it - and if even after I've done my very best someone still dies (or thanks to my help keeps living), well, someone higher than me, or than all of us, decides who lives and dies. All I do is help. It's not my place to say who ought to live or die.

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