Zac100

This is exactly what I want. The knowledge that I made someone's life better. So the Red Cross has their CNA Class for $1,400. Since I'll be commuting two hours a day, thats an extra $200 bucks making it $1,600 total to take the class. Is that relatively expensive for a class?

Thanks for your enlightning response. The main reason I want to be a nurse is to be able to make a positive difference in someones life. Yet I understand the job of a nurse is difficult and stressful. I feel if I can deal with the stress and other difficulties of being a CNA but atleast make someones day a little better, it will all be worth it and push me to continue my education, become a nurse and hopefully be able to help more people.

I feel like nursing is a passion I need to pursue. To see if I'm cut out for it, the obvious next step is to go for a CNA position, but there are a few things stopping me. One of them is that I got a job about a month ago. I'd really rather not quit at this point. It's not that I rely on the money or anything ($8 an hour) but I don't want people thinking that I gave up on it, you know? I don't want to be viewed as a quitter. The other challenge is getting my certificate. Some LTC's offer training in exchange for employment, but they're basically all day classes which conflict with my schooling that is full time. The Red Cross is offering training during winter break, but it's in a city about one hour away. I don't know if I can manage to do that commute. Any advice or tips? I'm at a loss at what to do

I do the same thing, although I'm not squemish I just pass out instead. I plan on taking Anatomy next semester to see if I can tough it out.

I have been back and forth about whether to purse a nursing career for over a year. I feel like if I become a nurse I'll have the chance to really make a difference in someones life and help them through a tough time. The only problem is that, to put it bluntly, the human body freaks me out. The fact that the human brain is all just a bunch of chemical reactions and how the only reason we're alive is because oxygen is being carried throughout our body by our vein is just trippy. I have a history of fainting whenever I hear about a freak injury or something else about medicine. I don't even know how I'd make it through an anatomy lecture. I really want to overcome this but I just don't know how. Volunteering for the local hospital doesn't open up until next spring and I really don't have any other ideas on how to overcome this. Advice?

Any suggestions at all?

A nursing job has everything I could ask for: Being able to help people, think critically, being on your feet, and the pay doesn't seem too bad either. But there's one thing stopping me. Blood and gore make me woozy. I get light-headed whenever I look in an anatomy book or someone gives a presentation on how the heart works. And it will usually make me pass out and start sweating, it's really bad. I've tried getting over it; watching Plastic Surgery shows and the like but the result is the same. I'm a pretty driven person, if someone tells me no I take it as a challenge. But I don't even know how I'd sit through an anatomy lecture without passing out. Is there something else I can try that will help me with this? I really want to be a nurse but I don't see how I can.

Well I ended up calling a ton of places, and they all said the same thing. The only place offering CNA classes is in another town, 45 minutes away. So I guess I'm out of luck. Since CNA is out of the question, I'm going to start looking for other jobs in the medical field that don't require much training, to get my feet wet. If you have any suggestions, other than CNA obviously, than let me know! Thanks for all the help guys.

I looked online and the Red Cross isn't offering any classes near me. I will have to call a few places to see if they know where they're being offered. Will report back tomorrow with what I uncover, wish me luck!

Yes I have, but they discontinued their program awhile ago. Thanks for the link! It shows one facility in my area, but when I went to their website it says they wern't offering the class.

I've been looking for ages but I can't find anyone offering CNA training in my area. It's depressing calling all of these places asking if they offer them and being shot down. I did manage to find one, but they didn't offer night classes which I need so I can still go to school. Any tips on how to find where they're being held? I've tried googling it but I just came up with dead ends. I'm thinking about calling my hospital and asking if they know a place that's offering such training. Thanks for any help. Also first post here!