Nursing is my passion but I feel like I am too dumb.

littlelimabean01, LPN · Feb 25, 2016

Don't feel dumb! and please keep pursuing your career as a nurse. A nurse above all has to have a heart. Yes, basic knowledge is extremely important, but much of it is learned on the job. Dosage calculations was my big hang up and scared me a lot. But my husband is a math whiz and taught himself then me. I wish you were near me cause I could teach you A and P. Please don't give up cause your passion is clear, you belong in this profession.

promeza · Feb 25, 2016

Is nursing truly your passion? Because if it is, then that is who you need to be.

And I am not talking about a little passion, I am not talking about liking nursing, I am talking about TRULY passionate. If this is really you then SO WHAT if its hard. I don't want it to be easy because I want capable nurses on my floor. But you see, capable nurses don't get that way overnight. They don't get that way from getting A's in nursing school either. I have met a lot of "book smart" nurses who are people who just passed the test but should never take care of patients. I should know, I have interviewed many of them in my career who wanted to work on my unit.

Do the work, whatever that means to you. Get a tutor, read things twice, stay up even later, whatever that means. I was a "C" student who grew up in a bad neighborhood. I entered nursing school and HATED it. But by the time I finished, I had learned to be an "A" student who LOVED taking care of people. It was and still is a process.

Home schooling is NOT a disadvantage. In home school you learned how to be self sufficient. Use those skills to find extra lessons and learn. Grab the info and absorb it your way. You are just not use to a class room setting. Adjust, you are more than able. If becoming a nurse is important enough to you then make it important enough that you WILL do what ever it takes to make it.

Katlin1315 · Feb 26, 2016

I'm so blessed and amazed by all the support from so many!! Saying thank you a hundred times could not express my gratitude!! You all have really helped me to see that Im not dumb but need to find the way of studying works for me. I'm still in that process but I've gained many helpful ideas!! Today I had the realization that im viewing it all as so technical and now when I'm reading I look up the affects of each and every part so I know how it plays into diseases and also an overall healthy being! I found it fun to read real life examples. I'm not going to give up on a&p, Im going to work harder and smarter. Knowing these things aren't just for me but for the patients and their families, and by knowing that I am willing to give it my all! Tomorrow begins a new chapter where I get to shadow and provide assistance to the nurses and patients at a children's hospital, and I will go in with alot more confidence thanks to all of you:) Thanks again for the support and well wishes!

Splockster · Feb 26, 2016

I'm so blessed and amazed by all the support from so many!! Saying thank you a hundred times could not express my gratitude!! You all have really helped me to see that Im not dumb but need to find the way of studying works for me. I'm still in that process but I've gained many helpful ideas!! Today I had the realization that im viewing it all as so technical and now when I'm reading I look up the affects of each and every part so I know how it plays into diseases and also an overall healthy being! I found it fun to read real life examples. I'm not going to give up on a&p, Im going to work harder and smarter. Knowing these things aren't just for me but for the patients and their families, and by knowing that I am willing to give it my all! Tomorrow begins a new chapter where I get to shadow and provide assistance to the nurses and patients at a children's hospital, and I will go in with alot more confidence thanks to all of you:) Thanks again for the support and well wishes!

I'm sure you're not "dumb" , just the fact that you approach your problem the way you do shows this. We're all clever in our own way , at the start of nurse school ( at least in Denmark) is full of anatomy and Latin words that can be intimidating. I found researching where the word comes from and how it was used Back in the day to be a great help. Later in the education it starts to focus more on the humanitarian part of nursing and becomes a little easier for those a natural

skill for dealing with people and a wish to help . Please don't give up if nursing is what you want to do, it's a very rewarding life and needs people with a desire to connect with people during the most vulnerable times of their lives.

That being said if the grades are stopping you and you are not academically inclined, there are other positions in healthcare less focused on " book smarts"

im not sure of the US term but " nurse assistant " " nurse helper" and social and health assistant are all positions in and around the nursing trade that focus more on the hands on approach on the path to caring.

I hope this helped, the terms don't really translate to English but I'm sure others here know what I mean :)

good luck on the road to the caring profession !

ABirch · Feb 26, 2016

Katlin1315,

I use this site a lot although I don't post much. First, my daughter is in her first year of college at a top university - she was homeschooled. She is planning on going to either PA school or Med school. Don't knock yourself for homeschooling!! You have learned so much at home and you need to hold onto that!!

Secondly, at 47 I went to LPN school. I am now an LPN finishing up my AS/RN. I can't sit and read textbooks and learn complex concepts like A&P. I used all kinds of websites, YouTube, anything I could find to help me understand concepts. I would even suggest using sites that were meant for kids or highschooler's to get the basic idea when learning a new topic. This helped me a lot when I was clueless - start at the bottom and then move up into more advanced websites/learning tools. Khan Academy, HippoCampus, YouTube are all good. Here's a list of A & P sites I found on the internet, perhaps some of them will help.

Remember, you had to become good at learning independently to learn at home. You can do it. Use whatever supplemental materials you need to get through. Please don't give up!

Best of luck to you.

Arlene

Anatomy and Physiology Links & Websites | Anatomy and Physiology Resources

Cda/Usa · Feb 26, 2016

A&P were my most challenging challenging classes. Don't give up! You can pass anatomy by memorizing. Granted there is a lot to memorize, but I did it. I used to take diagrams of certain areas, say the brachial artery, white out the labels, make copies and then try to remember all the labels. Website like innerbody.com are useful tool as well. Good luck

Joe mama · Feb 27, 2016

If you want to pursue nursing you should go for it. Nursing has a ways been my passion and I felt the same way you did. I dropped out of high school at 16 and had a baby. I've since married and had two more children and went back school. Every class that I took I felt like I wasn't going to make it and that I was too dumb but I stuck with it and I finally graduated nursing school and my lowest grade was a B+. Sometimes I just had to memorize things for a test and then go back afterwards and teach it to myself but you can do it, don't let anyone discourage you from following your dreams. Sometimes you just need a different instructor too

Joy97 · Feb 27, 2016

I'm a homeschool grad, almost done year 2 of 4 for my BScN. I don't think that homeschooling can really be 'knocked' or criticised as being the reason you're having trouble with A & P. For me, homeschooling did give me a science background, and it also gave me a really strong, and independent work ethic and study skills. Nursing is a tough program to be in, partly because you only get accepted (at least where I live) if you have extremely high grades and are quite smart--so these are the people you are comparing yourself to all the time. This being said, I'm in the nursing program, but often feel that I'm not as smart as I need to be . I found A &P and medical microbiology to be extremely tough, and I didn't get stellar marks in those classes, but I don't think that's going to majorly affect my ability to be a good nurse. :) Don't give up---best wishes, and keep trying!

Mini2544, ASN, RN · Feb 27, 2016

If you're like me, instructors can have a great deal to do with how you perceive and learn the info. My suggestion would be to drop the class, research the better professors at your school and then re take it with them. Make friends in your class and work with a study group to help you learn the info better! You def SHOULD NOT give up your desire to pursue nursing because you aren't getting the info in one class. I can't believe anyone would suggest that, I am slightly appalled and no matter what education you did in high school, home school, normal school whatever...if this is what you want to do, you can do it. I barely passed bio my freshman year of college with a C and after taking 10 years off from college and going back, I am making straight A's in all my pre reqs and that includes science. It is all up to you!

Best of luck with everything!

Sarah

CaseyKRN · Feb 27, 2016

Katlin, I only read the first few sentences of your post and had to reply. Just because you 'feel' you are dumb, does not mean you are dumb!! If you have a true passion for nursing and doing the right thing even when no one else is looking , PLEASE continue on and become a nurse !! Your community needs people like you. Hang in there, give your education all that you have, and you will make it! You will be the best nurse around! God bless

vintagemother, BSN, CNA, LVN, RN · Feb 27, 2016

For the tissue/microscope pictures, I took actual pictures of the slide on my microscope in lab and then made flashcards with it. My teacher tested me on the microscope with the same exact slides, so this worked out great! Hopefully this helps you!

^^this! Especially if the teacher uses those slides for tests.

Some teachers use book pics, one teacher said she likes to take the test tissue slides from multiple sources to help us really learn to ID tissues that can look different from "typical". When I had instructors who did it this way, I supplemented my pics of the class slides with Google pics of tissues, also.

Tima,RN · Feb 28, 2016

To be completely honest! Nursing school is 1000 times harder than anatomy but it also has a part that is applied! Most nursing fresh out of school can't even apply any of the knowledge they learned in school for a whole year out! So if you can apply things you will make a good nurse! Half the stuff you learn in nursing school you will either never use or you will grow to understand it! I know people who barley passed anatomy and made great nurses! Remember C equals Nurse