UmmIdontknow

i've been scouring this site trying to figure out who offended you so, but can't figure it out. but i did go back and reread your posts, and what caught my eye is that you are interested in going into er, icu, or, and flight nursing, and crna, which are the "sexy" specialites. sexy not in a sexual way, but in the way that when you tell people you're a nurse, they all get really chilled and thrilled by what you do. i laughed so hard at your description. thanks for that :) you are not going to be able to go to nursing school, glide through your coursework, and pop up out of the program as nurse carol hathaway's fully-formed bearded sidekick. the fact that you eschew the job of cna while leaning toward being an emt confirms that. there is nothing wrong with wanting to go into those areas of nursing. but you seem to have a fantastical view of the profession, and are not willing to put in the scut work to succeed. fair, and i have considered this. from what i can tell it will take a few years experience to get into many of those positions. though i feel that if i get my emt-b certification like i planned, and get a job as an er tech - getting a job in the er as a nurse (which some new grads do) would be an easier transition. it's not that i am not willing to put in any of the scut work, i'd just prefer as little of it as possible, even as an emt people soil themselves or vomit on you. so it's not like i can't handle it. based on your previous professional and academic experiences, it seems that you have a tendency to go into things with starry eyes about the outcome, and then become frustrated when reality hits, and then quit. my time in college boils down to this. i initially went for computer programming because i was told i had to go to college right after high school. i was basically forced to go. it definitely was not something i cared about or wanted to take seriously. the second time i went to college, that was more along the lines of - i just wanted to take an acting class. i had no dreams of getting an acting major or anything like that. i took the class for fun. i've never gone to college and taken it seriously, because i've never wanted to be there. now i do. you need to think about this more. i think about it everyday :) and i still do quite a bit of research daily, though my website has taken up some time the past few days. i can tell you though, that back when i was your age i worked professionally as a writer. for a long time i made a pretty decent living doing it, until i got so sick of spending all my time inside my own head i couldn't stand it anymore. i will give you some writerly advice that might help you a little here. print out everything you have written on this thread. put it all in front of you on your desk. grab a red pen and make a decision to cut it down to 1000 words or less, and then start to slash and burn through your posts. eliminate the redundancies, the irrelevancies, and any concept that requires more than two sentences to explain. when you've gotten all of it tightened out, you will have learned a thing or two about yourself. and, if you do decide to go to nursing school, you will have the beginnings of a really good admission essay. wow, i hadn't considered this. thank you so much for that idea :) and thank you for your time as well, i do appreciate it.

That's fine, because I still agree 100% with what I said. Compassion isn't just a switch you turn on and off when you get exhausted or drained. I may not be a nurse but I help people in anyway i can, whenever I can, and I do it with a smile on my face - because I enjoy helping others no matter what their problem may be. These problems can be had by someone in person, or maybe on the internet. I'm always there for anyone who might need it. What's more is even when I don't get along with a person (lets say the person we are currently talking about) I'd still help them and I'd be friendly while doing it, because that's the kind of PERSON I am, not the kind of person I'm employed to be. So yes, I'm sure it is exhausting, but it's no excuse for acting like that, looking down on others looking for help. I didn't come here to be judged, and that was the first thing she did. If you can't handle the stresses of a job without turning into that kind of person, well, it's in my opinion that maybe she needs to look at herself before she starts looking at others. It's one of those things where, if you are replying to someone in that manner - maybe it is just best to turn the computer off. Other people here have basically suggested the same thing that she did, yet in a more professional and constructive manner. (I specifically asked for these kinds of replies) For her, It just seemed like she needed someone to ***** at. That was me, that's fine. Glad I could be someones stress ball. I also think you confuse my lack of respect for said individual with the ability to work as a team and being civil, I've worked with people I have not liked before and we rocked whatever we did. We may not have liked each other, but we respected the job, and the others ability to do the job. We always came out on top. How many times do Nurses just hate each other? How many times do EMT's really dread working with that one partner that they get signed up with? How many times do you have to save someones life, or care for a sick person with the nurse that just spread a whole bunch of gossip about you to other nurses? Not suggesting that I hate her, as I hate no person... However, that happens daily for many nurses and EMT's and yet they still come together to save lives and care for other people. All differences are tossed aside for the help of another. Not everyone can get along, I'd probably let it go if I worked with her, but I don't and I'm sure we are BOTH glad that we probably never will have that chance. For the record, I am sure she is probably a fine nurse and has helped many people, I just think her attitude sucks.

For someone that never wanted to be older than 18, 27 feels really old to me. I wanted to hold on to being a kid for as long as I could, and I guess I did - it's just way past time for me to let that go. So what many of you did earlier in life, I am doing now. I may be 10 years behind, but I'm trying to get my life straightened away. To find something I enjoy doing. Something that when the day ends it lets me say that I made a difference in someones life. Perhaps I should ask a more constructive question pertaining to this.. Like I mentioned before, blood, gore, snot, pee, vomit - none of that bothers me... yet for a long time I would get strangely upset when my finger would go through the toilet paper. lol, ok - im kidding - but really how do you get over something if you have a hard time dealing with it? I know that each nurse has something they really do not like to deal with. Again, I realize it's something that I'd have to deal with, probably frequently - depending. It's something I'd like to get over, but I've more than disliked feces sine I was a kid. I was scared to death of the plunger for the longest time! Thank you for your time and reply, I appreciate it and will check out the website

@type1nurse - during your two years of prereqs were you going to college full time? @jngo91 - all you know is what i have told you, which hasn't been too much. let it be known that a big reason i have been looking into this is because i have always enjoyed helping others. though certain nurse specialties excite me more than others. (not just er, or, or icu nursing but flight nursing as well) my sole interest does not lie only in the fact that it pays well and is respected. thank you for your reply though :) as far as the cna thing goes - i will address this in a moment. @xtxrn - lol! i'm so surprised with all the positive vibes towards my writing. if anyone wants to read my creative writing... they can message me and i will link them to my site or facebook. @x_factor - i wish you the best of luck with your goals! and thank you so much for the advice, i will highly consider it. @wooh - with all due respect, you should treat others as you would like to be treated. she was condescending, i stood up for myself. for someone who is supposed to be a professional in compassionate care, she failed miserably at that. i was not sick, but i was hurting. you think i'm going to respect anyone who looks down on a person who is trying to find their way? she judged me based not on 14 hours of reading my posts, but from kind of reading one post written in frustration and confusion.. so no - nurse or not - she does not deserve my respect. i love her and appreciate her as a human being as i do all sentient beings, and i respect what she does - but that does not mean i need to respect her. i know some great nurses, and i know some crappy ones, and i'm not implying that she is a bad nurse (i don't know her) i just know that if a nurse ever acted that way to me in person, i'd be asking for another nurse and probably file a complaint. if helping people is her passion, that passion shouldn't just stop when she leaves the hospital. you should live that passion. just because i didn't want to be a cna, didn't mean i don't want to help people - it means that i want to help people in an area that is right for me. nursing has many areas, as i am sure you are aware and i am looking at them all. if humanitarian work payed, that's what i would be doing with my life. after college (wether its a nursing degree or something else, peace corps will be where i am at) also know that the 14 hours of research that i mentioned was just pertaining to that day, i've been researching for a long time now. i just wanted to express thanks to everyone that replied once again. i'm not feeling as frustrated or lost anymore. i plan on taking an emt course and finding a job in a hospital while i start my prereqs. this will provide me with some money for "now" and give me a look into whether i want to continue to peruse medicine. thanks to a few kind souls on here, i feel like i can accomplish what ever i want. as far as the cna stuff goes - i'm considering it.

Type1Nurse - Thank you very much! :) I will look into it some more... As far as takin an ADN at a community college, I think the issue is that for an ADN, at least around here is that the community colleges around here have a 5-7 year wait list. (yikes)

Thanks :)

slinkyheadcna. what you say is fair, i have never done the job of a cna, but am going by what other people who have done it have said. having read through these forums and talking to cna's this was my conclusion. so i do apologize if i was wrong. i am also aware that in order to do travel nursing you need generally at least 1-2 years in your specialty before you can begin and bsn is required to move up into management. all fine with me. i am looking into job shadowing now and hope to do some volunteer work soon. was not aware of the cna in preparation. though doable, it's only a 4 week course out here. i am sure you love your job as a cna, and i am sure many do... but having read from other nurses who hated doing cna work due to the excess toileting and feces work yet love their nursing jobs, it just didn't feel like a fit for me. i mean no disrespect to what you do, i think it's a wonderful thing and god knows that it's much worse to be the one being cleaned up than the one doing the cleaning. it is an essential job and i respect you for doing it. thank you slinkyhead and crittytn for your prereq advice. lovelyb26 thank you for the kind words and advice :)

dixieredhead "sir, at 27 you still have a lot of things to learn. so you are "not willing to shave" to be a cna, but you would do it to get into nursing school? and you can't do poop as a cna but you would be willing to "deal with it" as a nurse?" not willing to shave for a career where i have to be shaven everyday, which - would not be a cna position as you put it - but an emt-b position. maybe spend a little more time reading and a little less time judging. now nursing is not a position where i would need to shave everyday. as i have said, many male nurses have trimmed beards. emt's do not. "oh, and you need something that let's you help others and travel? airline host?" funny, but the amount of positions for traveling er nurse, or nurse, icu nurse, etc are pretty high and i know several nurses that have taken this route. "here is my uplifting advice. get a job. you can think about your choices, options, and needs while you are working? and stop looking down your nose at people who have service jobs. if you had started working at burger king when you were 17 years old, stuck with it, and applied yourself, you could own a franchise by now." oh just what i always wanted! a burger king franchise, that my friend is the american dream i cannot wait to fulfill. honestly, who cares. i've had "these so called service jobs" and i hated them, they aren't fulfilling the slightest. i own my own companies, while they are volunteer based and not surrounding making money, they are still successful. you criticize me for wanting to make my life better for my future family and self? how noble of you. we all have to start somewhere. "do you think they like mopping poop? they do not. does it "feel right"? i don't think so; it never has for me, but i still do it. seriously, i do not think you are cut out for nursing." p pretty sure i said, and multiple times at that - that it will come with the territory, and that is ok. obviously you do not have to be great at comprehension to get a degree in nursing. no offense, but you really should read things thoroughly before you post and pass judgement on others. the issue being that a job in cna 99% (exaggerated estimate) is toileting and wiping asses. nurses do that, but not nearly as much (depending on the field). i know several nurses, and especially quite a few on just these forums that hated being cna's for this very reason but love being a nurse. so thank you for your lack of compassionate care, seriously, i do not think you are cut out for nursing. subee - i know many males with beards in nursing that would not be willing to part with them, so apples and oranges. i can get rid of my beard for a course, or for school - but to get rid of it permanantely is not something i wish to do. it has been a part of me for so long. we all have our issues, this just happens to be one of mine. it is something i can work on i guess, i just never had to work on it, since i've never had a need to shave. lets just say i have some deep rooted reasons for having a beard that stem from being bullied in school. thankfully outside of any courses, emt-b, or nursing school - i wouldn't need to stay clean shaven (if i went into er tech or nursing) . talked to a few nurses around here that confirmed this. so i fail to see how this is a big deal, considering that i am willing to shave for what is necessary. leenak - had a job, several of them in fact. even worked without pay for some of them. in radio, i was there early every morning and stayed hours past my scheduled "go home time" for up to a year with wide eyes hoping for employment. i was doing so well i even had my own segment on the air. i then worked on a hollywood movie feature (again without pay) this involved me getting up again at 4 am and standing on my feet outside in the middle of blizzard conditions for up to 14-16 hours a day. am i lazy? you tell me. i have accomplished alot - all without schooling, but i'm no longer happy with the instability of these careers. looking at new avenues. own my own company - putting alot of my time into that. while it could eventually be profitable, it isn't right now and i as you might know - cannot put all of my eggs in one basket. crittytn - i think my post was in an effort to help find direction past these so-called-excuses. for example, i'd like to start working on my prereqs... but what prereqs do i take? there was a suggestion earlier in the thread, and i have seen those listed a few times, but again.. it seems like each school has different prereq requirements. i'd like to be safe and take what gives me the ability to apply for different schools - not just one. is that so unfair that i am looking for advice pertaining to this? it seems pro-active to me in approach. as far as taking the right steps, that's why i am here, and i thank you so much for your uplifting yet, constructive criticism. it seems not everyone is capable of that. it helps me see where i have gone wrong, but lets me believe i can still achieve what i want to achieve. i have things to work on for sure, but the ability to get to where i want to be is within me, even if others here seem to think i am a lost cause. i have just never had to work on these issues before. it's nice to have some support and belief among the negativity. thanks you. xtxrn and always learning - i actually am a writer! my current business is a satirical based news site. i have some of the most influential people in my city working for or writing for me. it's all volunteer based at the moment though. it has the potential to eventually earn money, and i am hard at work trying to make that happen, but it may not and i have to be fully prepared for such an outcome! mazy touche. i wrote my post at the end of a 14 plus hour research session. i was frustrated and tired. i didn't mean to be negative with all that, i'm more or less looking for ways i can tackle these issues. instead of being written off with things such as, "you aren't cut out for nursing" or "quit now, i hate nursing!!" i want to talk to people who over came similar issues who can help me see a way past them. as far as nursing school is concerned, i'm well aware of what i'd have to do in nursing school, and have fully factored all that in. to be fair - only certain jobs in nursing "revolve" around poop - other jobs in nursing merely have to deal with it on occasion. hell , my mother during her time in nursing school and having been a nurse for over 15 years has only had to wipe one ass during that time. she makes good money as well. in the 50,000+ range. alternatively, i know er nurses that are making 90,000 a year. i'm not sure what your idea of a well paying job is, but you might have some pretty high standards. so i think getting paid well depends on your area and specialty. staff nurses probably don't make nearly as much. some places don't pay worth crap, other places pay bank. with a profession with so many different avenues to go into, i find it hard to believe any generalization you place on the career. i will consider your last piece of advice however and do some hard thinking on that matter. everyone - thank you all for your replies, they all mean alot to me and i will take everything you all have said into consideration. i think an issue i've been having is that i have been trying to tackle everything at once, trying to figure everything out all at the same time. i will attempt to take things slower and figure things out on a more realistic basis. thanks again.

Thanks for the replies. My plan of attack would be as follows EMT-B or MA - ADN - BSN (if i so desired) - then either NP or CRNA I understand that feces is something I'm going to have to deal with regardless. It's not something I look forward to either (who would) but I don't want it to be the bulk of my job. Becoming a CNA would be a great way for me to get burnt out doing what would be my least favorite thing in nursing. My main interests are in ER, OR and maybe ICU (if I want to go for a CRNA program down the road) I know ICU does not have CNAs and the RN has to the majority of the care. Though I hear that males as CNA's move up through the ranks like no ones business. Nurse here said I could be running a place in under 2 years. Again though, CNA - not for me. As far as general classes, that's one of the things I am having issues with. What are the general classes? Different colleges seem to have different prereqs.. which confuses me way more than I should be at this point.

I've been a ghost on these forums for quite some time now, I've read everything from the gleaming posts of those that love their jobs to the endless negative posts by those who probably would have been better suited for a different profession. So far I have been able to wade through the negativity while keeping my head held high enough to keep an interest in the medical field... though it's getting harder and harder. This is my story so far... Let's throw one thing out there to give you some better perspective. I am a male and I'm 27 years old. Growing up I never had an interest in school, I hated everything about it. As much as I was told what I did here would impact my future... I didn't listen and found it more entertaining to spend my teenage years being a teenager. I spent a majority of my 20's being... well, what would be a continuation of being a teenager. During these years I went to college twice, both times with not much interest in what I was doing. First I went to college for Computer Programming, and then a few years later I went for Acting. I dropped out both times. Decided college was not for me, as there was nothing that interested me - though I didn't give it much thought either. I've done a few odd jobs here and there. I've worked in Radio, Film etc and while I loved these jobs, finding secure jobs in these avenues are near impossible. In the end I interned for Radio (without pay) for an entire year and never got a job, and watched all my successful friends in Radio get fired. Film is even more fickle and ultimately is just a great way to end up as a waiter/waitress. I've also worked as a bartender, grocery bagger, customer service representative, dating coach, entrepreneur, writer, and publisher. None of these careers have felt right to me. I am also a rescue diver, and during my rescue and CPR/first responder courses, some of the stories peaked my interest in a medical related field. The rush of saving lives intrigued me, I've always been an adrenaline junkie. I for quite awhile wanted to go into firefighting, and knew that you had to have your EMT license to do that... so I started researching that. While Firefighting had the rush that I was looking for most of the time, I psyched myself out, and ultimately wasn't comfortable with putting myself into a burning building. So what about EMT-B? Well, an exciting job to be sure, but for poor wages and not much advancement. Paramedics pay increase for an additional 1 and a half years of schooling didn't seem to be worth it either. I dropped this idea for a few months since I missed the deadline for classes anyways. During this time I had to do some short term care. My grandmother has dialysis, and she goes to have this done a few times a week. Usually one of her daughters takes her, but as they were out of town I took the job. I had to pick her up from her nursing home, help her get her stuff ready, help her out the door, into the car, out of the car, into the dialysis center, to where she needed to go.. and then I would have to pick her up later and do it all over again. This of course is pretty simple stuff, but I enjoyed it and it once again piqued my interest in the medical profession. (Side note about working with the elderly - I'ts amazing how we spend most of our lives trying to act like we are strong , but in the end all we all have to show everyone just how weak we really are, I think that has to be hardest part of growing older) So I started looking into it some more, it didn't really dawn on me before to go back to college or even that there might be jobs similar to an EMT-B in the hospitals but as I researched I found jobs that would be suited to my need for a rush and my desire to help others. All of them in the nursing field. Coming to this idea was a shock to me, since my mother has been a nurse for a very long time and I had never considered following in her footsteps. ER Nurse, OR Nurse, ICU Nurse etc.. All of these specialties looked amazing to me. Many with the ability to travel (my favorite thing to do!) As quickly as I got excited, my excitement was dashed away. 5-7 year waiting lists? I'm already 27! So I researched some more... I don't like accepting defeat. Schools that don't have waiting lists? Sure they are out there but my GPA cumulative from the few courses I took in college are at a resounding 2.33. Well, that's not good enough to get into those schools. Military nursing programs? Sure - Always a possibility, but a sure fire way to get deployed (even if you are in the reserves, nurses get shipped out all the time - and as much as I respect the soldiers who do fight for America, I'm not about to spend 4 years on a BSN, only to get shot over seas. Alright, Alright.. seems I am out of options. Not quite.. I researched more.. I can spend time getting my GPA up by working my prereqs? - Well I could, and I would - if I knew what prereqs to take. It seems all the no-wait schools have different prereqs that they require. I take a few and maybe I can apply to ONE school and get denied just to attempt again a year later? No, I'd rather be able to apply to multiple schools. On top of all this.. tuition is another scary subject. I have no money, and am deeply afraid of collecting high debt (as ive never been in debt) and not being able to pay it back. How in the world am I going to be able to afford this? I'm coming to the conclusion that... I'm not going to be able to afford it. More Options? Well, I looked at Rogers State University since my best friend is moving to Oklahoma and they only look at 5 prereqs for your GPA. You ace those courses I can't imagine it would be hard to get into the program. Problem is - they are a university and are EXPENSIIIVE. If i were a resident of Oklahoma the prices wouldnt be too bad but since I'm from Michigan they jump from 100 to 300 (plus a ton of additional fees) Next. Frustrated by my lack of options at this point, and a need to make money NOW as opposed to later. I figured I could work on my GPA while maybe getting my foot in the door. Turns out EMT-Bs can work as an ER Tech in a hospital, awesome!! Classes start next month, well.. I'm going to sign up for those classes right now. This might sound dumb to you but the EMT School requires that I be fully shaven, and I've only shaved twice since high school. Both times I looked like a young 10 year old virgin boy and it just brought back memories of getting relentlessly ridiculed in high school and middle school. First off, I would not be able to get any respect in any profession looking like a pre-pubescent. Now while I understand this is a requirement to get a good seal for the N95 mask, it's not something I am willing to do. I know that many nurses, many MANY male nurses have beards (and mine IS nicely trimmed) so that is something I am still looking into, Maybe this is because there are alternatives to the N95 in hospitals that are not available in an Emergency Vehicle. Also considered the possibility of shaving (UGHHH) for the 4 month long EMT-B class, and then grow it out as I apply for ER Tech Positions. (Still thinking about this one) Before anyone says anything - yes, I am aware I would have to shave for any nursing program out there (and that is something i could handle knowing that I could grow it back for my career choice) I am a very confident person, but only with my facial hair (the only thing that makes me even remotely look like I am a man ) One nurse told me I should become a CNA, to help better my chances of getting into nursing school and volunteer some hours in the field that I want to work in. Volunteer, cool.. I can do that. CNA? This is something I could not do. Much respect to all the CNAs here... but, wiping butts for a profession does not sound like fun. I can handle phlem, vomit, blood, you name it... but poop is not my cup of tea. Yes I know I will have to deal with that stuff in various points in my career if i went into nursing, but as opposed to it being a small part of your job, being a CNA, it's mostly your entire job. My local community college has a 4 month Registered Medical Assistant Program for 6,000 with 5 weeks externship, so I was going to jump onto that only to find that it's impossible to find a job as a MA (according to people here and other forums), and especially impossible as a male MA (seems employers are a bit sexist when it comes to this specific profession) Looked into LPN courses but it seems the demand for this profession is dwindling and even considering there is a long waiting list for these programs too. So here I am, unsure of what pre-reqs to take since they all differ from college to college, what to do in the meantime (ER Tech, MA, LPN, Burger King) How to afford tuition if i DO find a program... you name it - I am have a difficulty with it. For the record my credit score is clean and near perfect. I've never owed a bank more than 700 dollars and hate owing people or places money. I have been for many days now waking up, looking up medical professions and options, and reading on these forums, for over 12 hours a day (Not a joke, I woke up at 2pm today, and have been here in this computer chair since.. It is now 4:05 am) As I watch my friends make things of themselves, I'm 27 - uneducated, jobless and have no skills or talents that could prove useful in any other careers. I love to help others and I love the concept of saving lives and helping people get better. I need something secure that allows me to travel. (If humanitarian work paid, that is what I would be doing right now) I'm becoming more depressed by the day. Wondering how much longer it will be until I throw in the towel, buy my first trailer home and get a job at McDonalds. Someone, anyone - please, who can feel my pain who has gotten through this please offer some advice or guidance. I'm seriously stuck and not sure where to go. Negative Nancies - your opinion is welcome here too as long as its constructive, but what I really need is some positive uplifting advice because I honestly feel like I have run into a brick wall. Perhaps I've decided to grow up a bit too late...