Nursing School with 2 children!

Anna Flaxis, BSN, RN · Jan 14, 2012

Between classes, lab, clinicals, and studying for exams, I was busy 7 days a week. I also worked close to full time. Lucky for me, my kids were 17 & 18 years old, so they were very independent. I don't know what I would have done had they been as young as yours, unless I had a supportive partner or family willing and able to help out. Do you have anybody, like a spouse, parents, or friends in similar circumstances who can do child care trades/take turns with chaufeuring duties, etc?

DemonWings · Jan 14, 2012

I usually had 3 classes per semester, ill give you an example

Monday-class one 8-945, class two 12-245

Tuesday- class 3 8-945

Wednesday- OFF :)

Thursday- clinic 7-330

Friday- clinic 7-330

And I would probably study 1-2 hours per day on the weekdays, and usually 5-6 hours saturday/sunday, care plans I would easily spend 10-12 hours working on, and my final semester care plans took me about 30 hours each.

If I had an exam I would cram (not the best strategy but it worked for me)

When I started nursing school my kids were 1 and 3. My grandma babysat the kids while I was at school and I didnt work, It wasnt hard All the time, but my kids both have medical problems/conditions so it did add to my stress level. I would put the kids to bed around 9pm and study only at night, this was really hard but it was almost impossible to get any productive studing done when they were awake. I did have many many many nights where I would go to bed at around 4 am getting ready for clinic and be up ready to work at 7am.

And to add I nursed my 1 year old the whole first year of the program (she was 2 when I stopped, I know I know most people think its gross, but I dont care:D)

DemonWings · Jan 14, 2012

Oh I forgot that first semester our classes were considerably longer for the first month or so when we were learning our physical assessments, med administration ect. So on top of those three classes we had a 4th that was about 4-5 hours long, it was by far the Worst semester....get through that and you can get through anything :)

Jazzi_CNA · Jan 14, 2012

My family has always been there to help me. I don't want to miss out on their lives but, I do want this for the better. I am confused because my family say that I am making the right choice and that they will support me as much as possible. I'm in a situation where my family will give unlimited helpas long as me and my kids father are trying to work or go to school. Then their father says that he will keep them, but whenever I get into college and he is suppose to help my family ends up having our kids. If their father keeps them he will complain about how he can't do anything if he has the kids all day. Their father complains that I will forget about him and cheat on him during the point of my success. I guess my boyfriend is tearing me apart and it feels like he is jealous.

DemonWings · Jan 14, 2012

Wow sounds like he needs to grow up a little, dads are fully capable of taking care of Their kids. It should not be that he is "babysitting" them because he is not, he has just as much of a responsibility to care for them as you do. He is acting like a child. Does he think your going to go work in a hospital and find yourself a handsome doctor and leave him high and dry??

RainMom · Jan 14, 2012

I also started nursing school with 2 kids --- & finished with 3 !!

First of all, forget housework! Bare minimum as in food & clean clothes; if you are married, tell them you're gonna need some help.

Cook extra that can be frozen or eaten as leftovers. Crock pots are our friends.

Try to keep your work hours to a minimum if possible (I kept it at about 12-16 hrs). I know others who were able to work much more, but a lot of those students had big trouble keeping up & some ended up dropping out (even with no kids at home).

Most nursing programs are different, I'm sure, when it comes to how much actual class time there is in a week. For me in a community college program, I was finished by noon 2 days, 1:00 on 1 day, & then had 1 full day of clinical. That left me one full day to work (or study) with weekends off. Since my kids were a bit older, they were in school while I could study in the afternoon. Then when we had our 3rd child during my final semester (not planned obviously; who would do that to themselves while in nursing school?), I quit working all together in order to still have time to be with the baby & study.

You will probably be told that you have to do TONS of reading....um, I always focused on the actual material covered in lecture. We had access to the powerpoints ahead of time which I would try to review & then read on that specific material in the books; otherwise, to read everything was literally a dozen or more chapters in 3-4 books for each test (which was usually every 2-4 wks) plus your reading about info that the instructor would later say "this is good to know, not have to know" ie Not on Test.

Since you will have to be taking the kids to daycare while you are in class, allow an extra hour or two to leave them there & let you study. I thought it helps to review what was covered in class later that same day while it is still fresh in memory. Also, don't try to sit & study for hours! I think you'll remember better if you do shorter 30-60 minute session (say, the length of a typical cartoon?), rather than a 4-5 hour study-a-thon, but that's just me.

Ask your instructors if they mind if you audio record the lectures so you can play them back later (especially good while driving).

Was never a fan of index cards except for a few things like labs, but some students do really well with them.

Just don't get down on yourself if you aren't keeping up the house & spending as much time with the kids as you're used to. Remember what the goal is & how much it will mean to you & your kids too! Good Luck!!

Jazzi_CNA · Jan 15, 2012

Honestly, I believe he thinks this about me everywhere I go. I barely made it through my medical assistant program because he was so insecure. I just need a little encouragement for nursing School. He makes me feel like I am doing wrong because I am taking the time to become a nurse. He sure thinks the RN wages are cool but is not willing to help me get through to my dream. He is seeing $$ signs while I see helping people.

cstatic · Jan 15, 2012

My tip for nursing school, make sure you have a plan B for drop off/picking up the kids and someone willing to watch them since the schedule can change daily! Plan meals based on budget and TIME. No fancy dinners that take an hour to prep and then clean up. Put both kids in the shower with you and do them at the same time as you.

As for the boyfriend, I have three children and while everything may work out great..... if it doesn't and you two part ways how will you take care of yourself and your two children if you Don't follow through with school?

If he is a great guy who is just insecure, then tell him that you are going to make it, and you would much rather view him as the man you love who helped make it happen by being such a support, than the guy who made it more difficult and tried to drag you down...

If he is really kind of a jerk though, then just remind yourself that financial independence, even a few years away=freedom, while a lifetime of minimum wage and dependence on a man is soul crushing.

Ivanna_Nurse, BSN, RN · Jan 15, 2012

Take advantage of your family if they will help you with the kids when your bf won't. I think there has been some excellent advice for actual study practices by previous posters. However if you are with a jealous insecure person who won't provide support for you during this time this is all the more reason to do it. You need a plan to be able to provide for yourself as well as your kids. Nursing school is a great plan for you. Don't let him hold you back!! Ivanna

Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN · Jan 15, 2012

Honestly, I believe he thinks this about me everywhere I go. I barely made it through my medical assistant program because he was so insecure. I just need a little encouragement for nursing School. He makes me feel like I am doing wrong because I am taking the time to become a nurse. He sure thinks the RN wages are cool but is not willing to help me get through to my dream. He is seeing $$ signs while I see helping people.

I mean this in the best way honey......you need to consider a different boyfriend.:hug: He should celebrate your achievments for a better life for your babies if he wants to be along for the benefits and be a part of your life. Nursing school is very stress full and will keep you busy so that your spare time needs to be with yoru babies. He sounds like a parasite to me......you need to maybe move on. I wish you the best:redbeathe

andreasmom02 · Jan 15, 2012

I'm currently taking my prerequisites for nursing. I have two small children, my daughter is 1 and my son is 4 and in preschool. I need some idea of how many days a week and hours a day Nursing school in general would be. I am worried about not have enough time to get things done for school, work , and my kids! What advice can any of you give me, Please help!!!

I went to nursing school when my first daughter was 4, and it was tough at times, but is possible! My daughter was in preschool as well, and that definitely helped. Fortunately for me, the college I went to nursing school at offered an evening/weekend nursing program. I went to nursing school two days a week, and did my clinicals on Saturday. I went to nursing school on Tues. and Thurs. nights. My husband who was on dayshift would watch our daughter while I was at school in the evenings. I studied on Mon. Wed. Fri. & Sun. since I didn't have school those days, while my daughter was at preschool. I went to clinicals all day Saturdays, and didn't study on Saturdays. It was still hard though. I had to let some housework go at times, and felt like I never had a break for family fun.

I think not getting to spend as much time with family was the tough part. I would lock myself in our bedroom and just study, study, study while hubby spent time with our daughter. I studied my butt off & still made "C's." But, I passed and am a nurse now! It was worth it in the end. I now have a part time clinic nursing job that works great with my family time. My hubby makes good money, so I really don't need to work, but want to feel like I can work if something ever happens to his job. So I keep my nursing license active, and try to work part time for experience. So anyway, try to juggle your time wisely & you can do it. It's worth it in the end. I'm so proud of myself for becoming a nurse, and no one can ever take my education away! :)