Not sure if nursing is the right field for me...

Jennerizer, ASN, RN · Apr 21, 2006

I would not go off the opinion's of others & experience it for myself.

I've been a nurse for a year & a half & I think it's a great profession so far. I read plenty on here prior to becoming a nurse & decided I would form my own opinions & not be influenced by those that probably should get out of nursing rather than continue to bash it.

Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN · Apr 21, 2006

I would not go off the opinion's of others & experience it for myself.

I've been a nurse for a year & a half & I think it's a great profession so far. I read plenty on here prior to becoming a nurse & decided I would form my own opinions & not be influenced by those that probably should get out of nursing rather than continue to bash it.[/QUOTE]
Your post is very disheartening.
We come here to vent- "bashing" nursing is one of the coping mechanisms that helps many of us to be able continue on in this very tough profession.
As a nurse, you should recognize this and empathize.
I don't think anyone who has been a nurse for only a year and half has any business judging those of us who have been working our butts off and taking the pressure of nursing for decades.
Once you are a seasoned nurse and have been through the ringer like the rest of us, I do not think you will be so quick to judge.

MarySunshine · Apr 21, 2006

JGriff,

Maybe you should try to shadow some nurses and see what they do at work? Also, I recommend Echo Heron's non-fiction books on nursing. They're a bit dated but they do really well at describing the bitter sweetness of this profession. I work in an ICU with several male nurses and no one discriminates against them -- they're a valued part of the team. It's going to be impossible for anyone to give you any definitive advice on this (as you already know), because this profession is great for some and not for others.

And as the poster above me pointed out, many nurses come here to vent after a bad day. As in any profession, we have good days and bad days. For many of us, the good outweigh the bad. Best wishes in your decision making! PM me if you have any questions -- I've only been a nurse 8 months, I remember the student part well. :)

Genista, BSN, RN · Apr 21, 2006

I agree with MarySunshine's idea to shadow some RNs. You can contact your local hospital, a home health agency, dialysis clinic, etc. and let them know you are considering becoming a nurse and want to job shadow. I think it's important to remember that there are many, many different settings and specialties in which you can work as a nurse. Some may suit you more than others.

Like many others,I have struggled with burnout in nursing. I felt pretty burned out after only 4 years on med/surg floors (I've been a nurse 8 years now). I had to change units, cut back hours, and re-evaluate in order to come back to enjoying work again. Nursing can be exhausting with the fast pace, responsibility, drama, and inadequate staffing.There are only so many times you can work short staffed and overtime before you start getting a little cranky if you know what I mean! LOL! I think bittersweet is a good term to describe nursing. You've already read the negatives, so how's about I list a few positives...meaningful work, making a difference in people's lives, learning something new everyday, collaborating with other health care professionals, flexible hours, decent pay (in my state anyhow...I'm union by the way), part time or full time, a wide variety of specialties to work in.

Most jobs have their downside. You read some of the drawbacks to nursing here. The big question is, do the positives outweigh the negatives? Only you can decide. You'll never know unless you check it out, though. I think you need to see things first hand before you make up your mind. Don't make up your mind based only on other people's comments. Perhaps consider volunteering on a unit somewhere. I did that before nursing school & enjoyed it immensely. Good luck! Keep us posted on what you decide!

Tweety, BSN, RN · Apr 21, 2006

I think it's good that you are asking these questions.

As a male nurse, let me say I don't see very much discrimination. Does it happen? Absolutely? But there's probably more racism in nursing in America than sexism, but yes it's still there. Just yesterday a patient whose daughter was a nurse and whose friend was a nurse administrator shooed away the male nurse and the male tech who was assigned to her mother when she was admitted because "mom is shy". Mom was covered in blood from an accident and needed bathing, but they wanted to do it themselves. But that's just an individual problem, not discrimination. You will encourter "shy" patients from time to time.

I don't suffer from depression or anxiety. Although I get nervous in new situations and with group speaking.

I have from time to time had symptoms of burnout. It's up to me to be self-aware and self-nurturing. I got burned out when I worked in the restaurant business when I was in school - it was a high stress/high pressure busy place.

Remember this is a message board where we come to vent our frustrations in the hope that someone can realte and help. The negatives tend to stand out and it tends to skew towards the negative. We don't come here and make a post "I had a good day, no drama and I'm physically well today". Know what I mean? Also, count the number of posts, count the number of negative posts, and it's not as bad as you think, it's just the negative stand out to you because your senistive to it because you have a dream to be a nurse.

Nursing is a tough, demanding, backbreaking profession without a doubt. Good luck to you in all that you do.

Katnip, RN · Apr 21, 2006

People come here to vent their frustrations with their jobs or a particularly bad day they're having because really only other people in the profession can fully understand the unique stresses that nurses have.

And yes, nursing can be a stressful as well as rewarding job.

High level of burnout? Remember you aren't seeing the whole picture here. For every person who complains of burnout there are probably 100 nurses who aren't posting because they are content with where they are.

Nurses probably don't have any more stress, depression or anxiety than the general population. Again, this is a place for people to come and vent these things.

As a female nurse, I love any nurse, male or female who is a good nurse and a teamworker. The men I've worked with state they rarely if ever have run into discrimination against them. As a matter of fact, most say they've felt very valued as part of the medical team.

Edit to add: It seems to me that you and many others are focusing only on the negative posts here. If you step back you can see there are many positive, humorous and encouraging threads as well.

I do wish you luck with your decision.

~Kat

Faeriewand, ASN, RN · Apr 21, 2006

jgriff I too felt somewhat disheartened when I first came here and started reading all the posts. If your dream is to be a nurse then go for it. Why not try for a job in a hospital or a volunteer position? That way you can see what it is really like. I think with your degree in Health Promotion and a degree in Nursing you would make a great nurse someday.

And like another poster said, read Echo Heron's books. :)

APP · Apr 21, 2006

I am thinking about going to nursing school. I volunteered for 6 months (1 evening per week) at a urban hospital on a general medical ward, and it gave me a great deal of insight (some of which was terrifying!) into hospitals, health-care, and nursing. It gave me confidence that I can deal with the less pleasent aspects of the job (code browns, icky stuff etc). I had the opportunity to observe hospice nurses in action when my father died (I also provided alot of hands-on care for him).

I highly recommending volunteering in a health-care setting, and let them know you are considering nursing as a carreer. There are many settings to chose from: hospitals, long-term care facilities, public health clinics.

jgriff650s · Apr 21, 2006

Thanks for the replies! I think ill take this summer to do some shadowing and volunteer work...

...if you work in settings other then hositals such as a clinic, is the pay competitive with the hospitals? and is this setting less stressful (with better hours i.e. 9am-5pm)?

jgriff650s · Apr 21, 2006

also bout the books by Echo Heron, which one would you recomment that I read

Curious1alwys, BSN, RN · Apr 21, 2006

You need to look at whether you TRULY want to be a nurse. Do you enjoy taking care of people, have an interest in the medical field? Can you tolerate being in a hospital all the time? Can you TAKE ORDERS or are you an ORDER GIVER?

These boards can be very helpful, but also very harmful. If you are the type of person (like I am) that always second guesses yourself you will never be at peace with whether you made the right choice UNLESS you TRULY have a drive to be a nurse for reasons other than security and stability. I went into it because it would be a secure, stable job and I really don't know now if that wasn't the wrong reason. Maybe life is truly about finding what you love and DOING IT regardless of how much money it makes or how little prestige it gives. If, when people ask you, "why did you want to become a nurse?" you say something like, "To make a difference in people's lives" or "because I love taking care of people" then you are likely pursuing the right field. If you can't really give a solid reason or if you say security or money but you have never truly been a "caretaker" (I am talking personality here), then maybe you need to do some more soul searching.

Alot of people think that shadowing will help you decide, and for some, it does. But for me, I kept telling myself that there SURELY would be some niche in nursing that would appeal to me and kept pushing on. I'd have days where I just wanted to drop out and days when I would say, "Ok this may not be so bad". But I never said, "Wow, I am really loving this". when people ask me how school is going, I don't beam. I get uncomfortable usually and say, "Pretty good" and smile... I just took a leave of abscence from Block 2 of a 4 Block ADN program. Now I really need to do some soul searching to see if I want to continue. Find out what else I am meant to do in this world. Pursue my desires w/o consideration to how much money I will make. At first, i thought I would go ahead and get the nursing degree, "just in case", and then pursue my "fun" career (personal training). But nursing school is really tough to keep pushing through if you don't really love it/want it. Try very hard to figure it out before you get in because I am here to tell you it won't be easier to decide once you are in. Then you will just keep coming up with excuses to stay in/not leave. It gets worse when you get in because now you don't want to lose what you have done thus far....

There are many negative to nursing. I have seen them first hand now and I am sure there is much I have not seen/experienced. But if it was my true calling, my true passion, I think all that negative stuff would fall to the wayside. Look at the reasons you want to be a nurse. Believe those posts. Don't pursue something you don't really want just because you have run out of other options....

GOOD LUCK TO YOU!!:balloons: