I've been a nurse for six months. Here's what I've learned so far.

ReWritten · Dec 23, 2010

Nice post! I'm at my 5 month mark and more or less feel the same. Having patient, more experienced coworkers have been my godsend. And it's nice when they remind me that it's not possible to know everything. There's been quite a few times where I've just been, "uhhh" with patient questions or on the phone with a doctor.

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide · Dec 23, 2010

Beautiful!

I hope you can stay positive about nursing throughout the years ahead, because you make an excellent case for it as a career and could serve as a shining example of what nurses can and should be. Congratulations, and may your career be long and prosperous. :up:

Nascar nurse, ASN, RN · Dec 23, 2010

i've been an lpn for 19 years & rn for 5 1/2 years now. long by any means but still a good amount of time to allow me to sit down and reflect upon the path that i've chosen. these are mainly personal musings and surely not everyone will agree.
1.) night shifts are great...while your body can handle them.
been there done that & at 43 years old with 2 teenagers, i think it would flat out kill me now.
2.) one nurse year equals about three normal person years.
i'm a pretty healthy gal but even i'm starting to feel the pains of such a physical career. i've got my massage therapist on speed dial.
3.) nurse techs and respiratory therapists are lifesavers.
pretty self-explanatory. yes they are & you are so wise to figure this out early
4.) experienced nurses, even those with a couple years of work under their belts, are a wealth of knowledge.
i never realized how much i could learn from my coworkers. i'm fortunate enough to work with great people who don't mind taking the time to explain and enlighten certain diseases, treatments, procedures, etc. even after 24 years of working, i feel there is still much to learn & am always pleasantly humbled when the new guy shows up with a great attitude and a new trick up their sleeve to teach this "old" nurse.
5.) patients are, for the most part, very appreciative of what you do for them.
i've only encountered a handful of patients that are rather rude and couldn't care less about me and what i'm doing. some of those feelings can be explained from being in the hospital in the first place but most of it is just a character issue. otherwise i've had some wonderful patients. there have been a few that come onto my floor multiple times and even if i'm not their nurse while they are there, they still some say hello to me and give me a hug. it's a phenomenal feeling and it gives me a tremendous sense of self-worth. amen...but watch those family members. they are the ones that can be most evil
6.) i don't nor can i know it all.
this was the toughest lesson for me to learn considering my ego and the amount of pride i place in being smart. i simply don't know all there is to know. i draw blanks on questions patients and their families ask me. i say, "uhhh," when the doctors ask me questions. it's embarrassing. i slowly began to realize, though, that i can't be expected to know everything about everything. it's just not possible. that doesn't mean i have an excuse for being incompetent. far from it. i hold myself and my career in high regard and expect the best from myself and my peers. however, it's unfair for me to place such demands and pressure on myself. i'm 24 years in; somedays i still feel like a rookie.
7.) i made the right choice.
mom and dad must be happy to know that all that college tuition didn't go to waste. i love what i do. i can support myself, help people, learn, and have fun all while doing it. what's not to love?

if i was your mom/dad, i would be very proud of you and this post. can only hope my own soon to be college kids can find a career that satisfies them this well. best of luck to your future and thank you for such a great post.

CrufflerJJ, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Dec 23, 2010

One nurse year equals about three normal person years.

And one ICU nurse year = ~7 normal person years. Just about like dog years.

Despareux · Dec 23, 2010

I've been an RN for about half a year now. Not long by any means but still a good amount of time to allow me to sit down and reflect upon the path that I've chosen. These are mainly personal musings and surely not everyone will agree.
1.) Night shifts are great...while your body can handle them.
My unit puts new nurses on night shift to start out with after they wrap up orientation. While the patient load is higher, it's a much slower environment and the pressure is undoubtedly lower. Of course there are some nights that are pretty hectic and chaotic, but on the whole it's much more laid back. As a young 23 year-old it's not too difficult for me to manage them. It comes as no surprise to me (or anyone for that matter), though, that there is a high turnover on night shifts simply because it burns nurses out. Couple the physical strains with having a family, it gets tough. For now, though, I'm enjoying the shift differential and low-key environment.
2.) One nurse year equals about three normal person years.
I'm a pretty healthy dude but even I'm starting to feel the pains of such a physical career. I've got my massage therapist on speed dial.
3.) Nurse techs and respiratory therapists are lifesavers.
Pretty self-explanatory.
4.) Experienced nurses, even those with a couple years of work under their belts, are a wealth of knowledge.
I never realized how much I could learn from my coworkers. I'm fortunate enough to work with great people who don't mind taking the time to explain and enlighten certain diseases, treatments, procedures, etc. Even after only six months of working, I feel much more competent than when I started and a large part of that is because of the experienced nurses I work with.
5.) Patients are, for the most part, very appreciative of what you do for them.
I've only encountered a handful of patients that are rather rude and couldn't care less about me and what I'm doing. Some of those feelings can be explained from being in the hospital in the first place but most of it is just a character issue. Otherwise I've had some wonderful patients. There have been a few that come onto my floor multiple times and even if I'm not their nurse while they are there, they still some say hello to me and give me a hug. It's a phenomenal feeling and it gives me a tremendous sense of self-worth.
6.) I don't nor can I know it all.
This was the toughest lesson for me to learn considering my ego and the amount of pride I place in being smart. I simply don't know all there is to know. I draw blanks on questions patients and their families ask me. I say, "uhhh," when the doctors ask me questions. It's embarrassing. I slowly began to realize, though, that I can't be expected to know everything about everything. It's just not possible. That doesn't mean I have an excuse for being incompetent. Far from it. I hold myself and my career in high regard and expect the best from myself and my peers. However, it's unfair for me to place such demands and pressure on myself. I'm six months in; I'm still a rookie.
7.) I made the right choice.
Mom and dad must be happy to know that all that college tuition didn't go to waste. I love what I do. I can support myself, help people, learn, and have fun all while doing it. What's not to love?

Thank you for posting this! As a student nurse, I needed to read this.

allnurses Guide · Dec 23, 2010

:candle:What a great list! I admit I cringed for a minute thinking this might be another bash-fest about nurses eating their -- yeah that one. Thanks for sharing!

jadu1106 · Dec 23, 2010

what a great post! thank you for sharing your experiences with us! :)

rayne215 · Dec 23, 2010

3.) Nurse techs and respiratory therapists are lifesavers.
Pretty self-explanatory.

YAY! im a respiratory therapy student, cant wait to be part of team!

W2BANU · Dec 23, 2010

What a great post, thank you so much for writing it. I start school in a few weeks and was worried about my choice, given all the negative posts that are usually published, I love allnurses.com, but sometimes it can be a real downer. This is certainly a breath of fresh air, I hope more nurses follow your example and focus on the positive aspects of nursing and share them with of us aspiring nurses. :yeah:

calljs15, ADN · Dec 23, 2010

As a nursing student, I needed to see this too. Thank you for posting and being positive!

carolmaccas66, BSN, RN · Dec 23, 2010

I SO wish I could work nightshifts where u r! We do 10 hour nightshifts and no one gets a break because it is just so insanely busy. Lucky it's only occasionally for me but the other RNs say 3 in a row kills them, & they don't see their families.

I wish I could look on nursing at your age through rose coloured glasses as well. I did think it was the perfect career when I was a bit younger too, thought I would cope with shiftwork if I stayed fit, ate/slept well, etc, etc. I found out all I could about the profession, & asked people who were nurses what it was REALLY like. So I had no illusions about nursing when I chose it as a career - I knew it was going to be a hard slog doing unpaid shiftwork clinicals, working & studying at the same time. So I thought I was pretty much prepared, plus my sis-in-law was a nurse so she told me much of what it was like.

But the reality of nursing gets to you. You are still young, so I really hope u can stay on this happy cloud. You have less responsibilites to worry about (I take it from ur post u aren't a parent yet?).

There are many procedures/things done in nursing I don't agree with but still have to do (barring talking religion here, I'm not getting into that at all). The shiftwork kills you as you get older. I don't have a family, but my friends do & many have had babies, then had to go back to to work 4-6 weeks later for the money. Nursing/care work is all they know - they knew they'd have to do shiftwork but didn't train for anything else. My gf had her little boy late in life (she was in her 40's, he was unplanned) & as she was a single mum, had no choice but to work & missed him growing up. She told me she really regrets getting a job with shiftwork, but that is all she's done.

I think as you get older nursing does age you, I agree. I have friends who do great clerical/admin jobs, have nice nails, wear nice clothes & high heels 2 work, can wear their hair loose, etc. I can't do that. They tap on a keyboard all day, have scheduled breaks, have EXTRA breaks, sit & laugh at funny emails & all go out to lunch together - I can't do that (though most times I get one, scheduled break). They all seem so carefree, talking re what they'll do over the holidays, don't seem to have put on any weight, and don't have degrees. I often sit & wonder where my life went since getting my degree, & putting on weight from working and studying so much, and having lost 2 relationships choosing nursing over settling down. I tell you: it has gotten me absolutely nowhere.

So much for self pity! That is why I am out of nursing in about 6-12 months & will be studying what I wanted to do originally, writing & saving to travel. I'm so excited thinking about it, I can't wait!

If anyone on here is young and thinking of nursing as a career, hey, it is OK when ur young, but I urge you to get into another field first or get a degree in something you love. Otherwise nursing can destroy your soul and your family as well. I've heard too many heartbreaking stories to think that nursing is anything but a hard slog that will eventually lead you into an early grave. Very dramatic you may think. But there are statistics I've read somewhere (sorry can't remember the source right now), that nurses on average, die younger & just wear themselves out from the stress on ur body and of the job itself.

Don't do nursing if ur young. Look at some other careers, get extra training in other positions & then think about nursing a bit later, when ur mature & have had some life experience & some fun.