Pregnant new grad in the ED?

labcat01, BSN, RN · Jun 22, 2006

ok..this is just my OPINION but I just can't see starting a new job and being pregnant. Everyone always talks about how hard the first year of nursing is- you might have your baby and never go back! Also, I can't imagine being pregnant without first-hand knowledge of the demands of your job. Twenty five is still young! It won't be the end of the world if you have to wait another year.

As a young mom myself, I would really recommend getting your feet wet first (and travel as much as you can!) before you start a family.

That's just me :)

carachel2 · Jun 23, 2006

ok..this is just my OPINION but I just can't see starting a new job and being pregnant. Everyone always talks about how hard the first year of nursing is- you might have your baby and never go back! Also, I can't imagine being pregnant without first-hand knowledge of the demands of your job. Twenty five is still young! It won't be the end of the world if you have to wait another year.
As a young mom myself, I would really recommend getting your feet wet first (and travel as much as you can!) before you start a family.
That's just me :)

I agree with this too. You are going to be overwhelmed and exhausted with either one of the scenarious: new grad in the ER OR being pregnant. Why not allow yourself the luxury of assimilating BOTH experiences seperately. There is no huge rush. Enjoy being out of school and earning some money and learning.....you and your husband will enjoy the time and you will learn sooooo much more if you aren't exhausted from being pregnant.

Also, there is no way to predict how your body will respond to being pregnant. You may be one of the lucky ones who sail through, but there are PLENTY of nurses who end up with hyperemesis, pre-term labor, pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes,etc. Wait until you have saved up personal time off, paid for short-term disability and are strong in your nursing skills.

Nursing is THE best career to combine motherhood and work though !

PedsER-RN, BSN, RN · Jun 23, 2006

lovethechaos said:

I graduate in december, I really want to start in the ED, and I really want to start a family. I know, they don't seem to fit, do they? I will be precepting in the ED during my last semester at the hospital I will be working at and they have a 6 month orientation program for new grads. it's a really supportive atmosphere but I'm wondering if I should even be thinking about getting pregnant my first year? my husband is 32, I'm 25, and we are both ready for a baby. my main concern is being stressed out while pregnant. I don't want the baby to be affected adversely from this, but then I figure that I'm probably going to be stressed out no matter where I start. I just need some sound advice from your perspective. thanks.

I've never been pregnant, so I'm only speaking for what I've observed at work. I work with a nurse (she's about 24-25 now) who was pregnant last year with her first child. she had worked in our dept for about a year and worked through her whole pregnancy. she did fine-there were a couple days when she didn't drink enough water or got pukey and had to go home, but other than that she seemed to manage well. she's actually pregnant again (about 14 weeks now) and is doing well again.

otoh, I also work with a nurse who just came back from maternity leave. she had many problems; htn, severe swelling, exhaustion. she worked through her whole pregnancy as well but I know she had a difficult time.

one of my good friends who works mom/baby just went back to work last month. she finished school last may and b/c of preeclampsia and previa had to go on leave a couple months early.

so, I think it depends on each person; how you handle stress and the type of pregnancy you'll have. having previa and preeclampsia would be hard no matter where you work or how experienced you are. just be aware that er's are fast-paced, you're on your feet alot, and often don't have time for breaks (I.e. keep water nearby!). maybe give yourself time to let your body get accustomed to the er environment and the demands it puts on you before you get pregnant. then when you do get pregnant, you'll be able to focus on adjusting to the pregnancy without having to adjust to work as well.

BabyRN2Be · Jun 23, 2006

pedser-RN said:

I think it depends on each person; how you handle stress and the type of pregnancy you'll have. having previa and preeclampsia would be hard no matter where you work or how experienced you are. just be aware that er's are fast-paced, you're on your feet alot, and often don't have time for breaks (I.e. keep water nearby!). maybe give yourself time to let your body get accustomed to the er environment and the demands it puts on you before you get pregnant. then when you do get pregnant, you'll be able to focus on adjusting to the pregnancy without having to adjust to work as well.

this is excellent advice. actually, the whole post was great but the last part was extremely well articulated.

Lurksalot, BSN, RN · Jun 28, 2006

I would recommend waiting on the baby. The above posters gave great responses, I just wanted to add that you may want to put off pregnancy just so you will have more opportunity to enjoy it. It's such an amazing time, if you don't have to make any commitments suring it the better. It's hard to say how you will feel with your pregnany, or how you will manage working during it. And it's also impossible to predict how the pregnancy will go.

I also have been faced with making this decision, and I know how tough it is to wait when you want a baby! I have one child already, and my last pregnancy was no picinic. I know that I would call off work/orientation in a second if the pregnancy experienced a complication, and knowing that I decided to wait. The ER that hired me is making a committment to to putting me through ACLS, PALS, and critical care courses, and an extensive orientation, and I signed a contract with them to complete all this. So, as much as I want a baby now, it would be waaay too much pressure to have to deal with it all at once, even if it all went smoothly.

Good luck with your plans, hth. :)

Aneroo, LPN · Jul 3, 2006

I haven't read the other posts. Forgive if I am stepping on toes, or if this has already been mentioned.

I've been working in our ED for a year. I was about 10 wks pregnant when I started. This was a unplanned pregnancy. I worked just fine.

I told my preceptor straight up I was pregnant. That was if a smell caught me funny or something and I needed to go running for a trash can, she knew why. :) At the end of my pregnancy, I had to stop lifting/pulling/pushing (due to pain, no all preggos needed to stop). That was difficulty. If I were more experienced, I could probably done a lot of time in triage, but I just didn't have the experience for that!

I went back about 8 weeks. I was out a few weeks before also (had been contracting). Going back was hard, but I don't have a choice. DH is still in school, so I have to work right now!

she.lpn · Jul 3, 2006

As a pregnant floor nurse this is my first baby and I am exhausted! I'm 5 months and haven't had any problems except terrible back pain, lifting restrictions. Your first year is hectic as by itself, your first pregnancy is scary and exhausting. Give yourself time to get used to your new jobs first.

Secondly, to qualify for short term disability and FMLA you have to be at most jobs for at least six months to a year.

Faeriewand, ASN, RN · Jul 3, 2006

I say wait a bit to start your family. Right now you and hubby can enjoy the time you spend together and take vacations. Things will be different once you have a baby so enjoy now and the money you will be making just for the two of you. :)

lovethechaos · Jul 4, 2006

Thank you all so much for taking the time to reply. It's always good to hear from experienced nurses and get your points of view. I think that I will wait a little while, especially to see how my body responds to the ER without a pregnancy, and then go from there. My hospital's policies regarding the short term disability and FMLA (I'm guessing that's maternity leave?) will also definitely contribute to my decision. Those are things I hadn't really though of, so thank you for bringing them up. Oh, and we are definitely going on a vacation after I graduate. Going through the BSN program on the two year plan has worn me DOWN. And my poor hubby, he definitely deserves a lot of attention from me after all of this.

Aneroo, LPN · Jul 4, 2006

Thank you all so much for taking the time to reply. It's always good to hear from experienced nurses and get your points of view. I think that I will wait a little while, especially to see how my body responds to the ER without a pregnancy, and then go from there. My hospital's policies regarding the short term disability and FMLA (I'm guessing that's maternity leave?) will also definitely contribute to my decision. Those are things I hadn't really though of, so thank you for bringing them up. Oh, and we are definitely going on a vacation after I graduate. Going through the BSN program on the two year plan has worn me DOWN. And my poor hubby, he definitely deserves a lot of attention from me after all of this.

Awesome! FMLA is considered maternity leave, but it can also be used if a close family member is sick or you have a non-pregnancy related illness. We don't have short term disability at the facility I work for, so you might want to check into that.

This way you can also save up vacation and sick time. Most places have UNPAID maternity leave.

mtnmom · Jul 6, 2006

A pregnancy (yes, even a planned and wanted one) and any new job are both major life stressors. Unless God intervenes, why not take a few months (at least) to get acclimated to the job first? Then when you do start your family you can really focus on and enjoy it without being quite so stressed.

Of course, that's just my 2 cents worth