abagail1220

Do you think that actually being a nurse will make the schooling (and torture) worth while? I was such a "gung-ho" student not very long ago, and now I'm SO concerned I'm making the wrong decision. Do we want to keep up with school for guilt and fear? I'm in exactly the same boat! Ugh... :/

Have you read the posts from actual nurses? Is all of this "busting our butts" actually worth it when we get into the real world? We have such good intentions in becoming nurses, but what is the real world of nursing going to look like when we are done? Scared that I'm getting into the wrong profession...

Where to start... HELP!! I am in my first semester of nursing school. I came to this site via a search for "reality of nursing career" and have spent the last hour and a half reading comments and ACTUAL realities of nursing. I started this search because I am really starting to wonder if this is the career for me... and only 6 weeks into a nursing program. I have the ability to go back to school and not work for the duration of my schooling. (Yes, I am lucky!) I already have a degree and have had a very sucessful career before moving across the country and deciding to start over again. I wanted to go into nursing beacuse firstly... I am altruistic! I want to help people, in whatever context it may be. Secondly, because it seems practical. There are many different paths you can take in nursing, and in theory, there should always be an open position for a nurse. Having a husband in the military, this is enticing and important. After busting my butt for two years doing the prerequisites (my previous degree was in music, so I needed many) I have finally started the program! It is nothing but dissapointing. The instructors are teaching us nursing theory that will never be used in "the real world." Clinicals are spent feeling like a piece of lint stuck in a dryer vent. (Is there any other time that I have felt so insignificant??) I get yelled at and demeaned in a way that I haven't felt since grammar school, on a regular basis. The instruction is poor, at best. (A good nurse doesn't necessarily make a good professor!) So... my first insight into actual nursing is pretty scary. Then, I read that life gets no better when you actually ARE a nurse... for the most part. I could change plans and get a masters degree in biology, teaching, music, or anything else. Is nursing going to be rewarding enough? Or rewarding at all? Do I want to feel like a doormat when I could be so much more? I'm feeling disolusioned, deflated and discouraged by nursing school and the nursing profession in general. People get into nursing because they want to HELP people and feel appreciated. This seems FAR from the reality. Any thoughts... from anyone? I need to make a decision soon if I am going to continue with this and any feedback or insight would be invaluable!! Many thanks... from someone who has spent the afternoon in tears. xoxo