Juggling Nursing School and Motherhood

keepingmycool30 · Jul 18, 2007

I will not be starting school to this fall but I can relate to what you are going through. Alot of the nurses I work with went through school as single mothers and the advice they give me is do what HAS to be done and dont worry about what you THINK needs to be done. Good advice? We shall see this fall

Jilaweez, BSN, MSN, RN · Jul 18, 2007

I am one of those moms juggling work, school and kids. I will not begin nursing school until next month, but I have taken all the pre-reqs and my best advice is just take it one day at a time. Make the time you do have with your kids count. My husband is helpful and so far my kids are doing wonderfully. Good luck!

eldragon · Jul 18, 2007

I had been a stay-at-home mom for 8 years, and started LPN school last January. (I did make money online - $1000 + per month).

My kids are older - 18 and 10, and my husband is very supportive.

Still, I'm exhausted. The classes are hard and fast. I'm also older, 43 - and spend most if not all of my weekends, all of my evenings and mornings studying to get the grades. (79.9 is a failing grade.)

This block has been incredibly tough. We have 3 weeks to do all of Pharmacology, along with our othe two classes, of course. We have an exam - usually a unit exam consisting of up to 10 chapters - every other day in Pharm, and on the alternate days - other class exams.

It hardly seems worth it. My classmates are/have dropped like flies. We have lost 60% of the class so far, and more will go with Pharm. I might even fail, because there is so much to know - and the teacher gives us the hardest test questions she can come up with - (20+ choose all that apply) and is terrible in lecture, when she gives one at all.

Her exams rarely have topics / questions that we covered in class. Her thing is "You need to know the entire unit, which includes 1000's of drug names *by generic and brand name) their classes, uses, side effects and drug interaction - by tomorrow."

Doing laundry, making food for my kids, grocery shopping, heck - even checking the mail - is impossible on school days.

You can do it if you have good teachers, supportive family, financial stability and everyone around you is happy and stable. Throw in a crisis, and it's really hard.

In fact, I need to be studying right now.

LMRN10 · Jul 18, 2007

Well, I have a very full schedule. I have been working full-time (usually away from home between 7am & 5:30pm). Started school in the summer of 2004...2 classes at a time at night (just took it slow), continued that and then in September, 2005, my daughter was thrown into the mix of my crazy schedule!!! I have yet to start the Nursing Classes (hoping for Spring '08), but I have taken it very easy since she was born, even took a couple of semesters off. I am now down with pre-req's at this point and waiting to get accepted.

If you have it in you, have the support you need, both at home and at work, I think it is definitely possible!!! My work and my husband are supportive (well, my DH could help just a bit more). I will only be taking one Nursing class at a time, so I am not sure what kind of schedule you will be looking at.

I think it is possible to do it. Not sure how much time it will actually take away from your family though when the Nursing classes begin, but so far for me, it's been ok. And once I get into the program and begin those classes, I know the sacrafices I will have to make with my time will be worth it in the end!

Best of luck to you with your decision and with your classes!

atrice, BSN, RN · Jul 18, 2007

I am a single mother, work part-time, and starting my final year in the nursing program this fall....I graduate May of 2008....thank you Lord. Anyway, nursing school is very demanding....my best advice is to take it one day at a time and hold on because the ride is very fast paced...but if you are determined you will SUCCEED!!

natrgrrl · Jul 18, 2007

I have been a SAHM for 7 years. Since I started school last summer, I do the laundry when I can, I rarely do the dishes and the kids call me a "school addict" because I have moved the focus of my attention away from them. I don't know if I would say that I regret it but there is give and take in the whole experience.

I actually had to reassess my core beliefs about motherhood and parenting in order to go back to succeed in school. If you would have asked me 5 years ago if I would ignore my kids for 6-8 hrs a day, I would have laughed in your face. Now, I'm either at school or locked away in my room studying and that was just for my pre-reqs. NS starts in the Fall.

JarOfPennies · Jul 18, 2007

Keep with it, eldragon! I don't know how many semesters you have under your belt, but hang in there. One day, you will be able to sleep and your household will go back to normal.

I'm a mom and I worry about the same things you are. I don't start until September, but I have a fear that there won't be enough hours in the day to do everything that needs to be done. But we're here to support each other, so hang in there! I'll be thinking of you.

laura11 · Jul 18, 2007

I too will be starting ns in the fall, i have 3 kids and work full time. I am gradually preparing everyone come september and practicing time management. Other people have done it, so it can be done as long as you have positive and supportive people behind you.

momx4 · Jul 18, 2007

I am entering my senior year of nursing school this fall. I have been a SAHM for about 13yrs and I have 4 kids total......13y,11y,6y,and 3y

My best advice is to commit completely and the rest will fall into to place. Having a little boy going through terrible 2's has been so difficult but I am still staying a float. I dont get much sleep and I am in an excelerated program. my class started with 48 students and we are down to 28. So me the mom of 4 kids is hanging on strong. I believe that this life change will help my children and it is all worth the sacrifices we are going through. They ALL help out, support and believe in me. This is the hardest thing I have ever done and I am so proud for succeeded thus far. How you succeed......TIME management, ORGANIZE (household and schoolwork), and READ,READ READ!!!! You also need to dedicate one day to family only.

I WILL graduate in May 2008! I WILL!

Good luck in your journey!

SunnyCaRN · Jul 19, 2007

You can do it! Your kids are all at an age where they are in school and can keep themselves occupied for awhile. You can even do your homework all together at the end of the day. If you haven't started yet there are alot of general ed classes and pre-req's to get out of he way before and you can probably get a good schedule while they are in school. I would do an ADN instead of the LPN the step up is easier and I think you would have a better opportunity in finding jobs.

cherokeesummer · Jul 19, 2007

Hi Renee and welcome to the crazy world of nursing!

I started nursing school while working full time but had no children at the time. Halfway through my program I was pleased to find out that I was pregnant! This was after 9 years of trying! So I took the next semester off b/c I was high risk r/t type I diabetes so I had 6 months off and then went back to school but not to work. I wanted to be a stay at home mom so that is what I did.

I can tell you that I studied when he slept, or while he was doing something different like coloring, etc. Now I study while he reads his books too, etc. I will say I don't think I study as much now as I did before I had him, but my grades have stayed relatively the same. I think it just has to do with me figuring out the best way to study and still be with my family.

I usually do a little reading here and there and then get really serious about the material one week before the test.

Now that I've graduated I'm working on studying for the NCLEX and thats another story!