Spellbound

I just wanted to say how great it was to read all of these postings. I just started school again at the age of 30. After years of working as a CNA, and being convinvced by an abusive now ex husband that I could never make it in college, I am now in my second semester and will apply to the nursing school in the fall of this year. I will be working on a double degree--nursing and psychology, with a minor in anthropology. Sure it is tough, but I am a lot more prepared now than I would have been earlier in my life. I know what a lot of the younger students do not, that this will be really hard work. But I also know that being a nurse is the thing that I have wanted for so long that if I did not follow my dream, I would not be a complete person. So all I can say is, follow your dream. For without our dreams, what do we have to live for??????????

I agree with both the other replies. When I worked as a CNA, people always said "I could never do that", whether because of the difficulties, the messes, or the deaths of patients. I always took it to mean, "I would not have the strength to do that." Let's face it, nurses are a special breed, and that is something to be proud of. After all, I haven't heard of too many people who go into the profession for the money!!!! I am not actually a nurse yet, I am in school completing my general education requirements before I can apply to nursing school, but I am, and have always been, a nurse at heart, and that is what really counts!!!!! So take it as a complement, no matter how the person saying it THINKS they mean it, you deserve it that way. Chris

Hi everyone. I am new to this BB too, and I love it. I have worked as a CNA for about 5 years in everything from LTC, rehab, home care, and adult foster care and am currently a student. I am still in the process of getting my general education requirements out of the way, and will be applying to my nursing school next fall or spring, and I am so excited. I have wanted for so long to be a nurse, and now, at 30 am finally working on fulfilling that dream. I found this site when I was doing research about writing in nursing for a project for my writing class last semester (my first), and I love it!!!! I think it is great that we all have a place where we can get feedback, vent our frustrations, and share our love of nursing. I titled my project paper "Sharing a Piece of Ourselves" and this BB is really a way to do that, so thanks to all who come here for sharing themselves with the rest of us. Chris [This message has been edited by Spellbound (edited January 05, 2001).]

Well, I am not actually a nurse yet, but I am in college to become one, does that count? I just completed my first semester of general education requirements, so I have a long way to go yet, but I have worked as a CNA for about 5 years in long-term care, adult foster care, and home health care. There are a few reasons why I chose this profession. As a child I was hospitalized to 2 weeks with undiagnosed bleeding from my kidneys. I had many wonderful nurses, but the one I remember the most was an angel in a uniform named Terri. She held my hand when I thought the pain would kill me. She wiped my eyes when I cried and just wanted to die rather than go through another test. She went to the store in the middle of the night and bought me popsicles with her own money when the kitchen ran out ( I was on a total liquid diet). Her loving care made an unbearable time bearable, and I have never forgotten her. I met many nurses in the course of my accident prone childhood, and so many of them treated me with loving patience, I thought they were angels or something. When my grandmother died a few years ago it was the nurses who helped me get through it. I stayed with her for 15 hours until she finally let go and left us, talking to her, singing songs, and just holding her hand. At one point I had 3 nurses, a doctor, a respiratory therapist, and the whole family in the room singing "Puff The Magic Dragon". Afterwards, the nurses came to me and hugged me tight and told me that even though my grandmother had been comatose the entire time I was there, that she had heard me and that I had made her leaving easier for her. It was at that moment that I knew I wanted to be a nurse. Because of a now ex-husband who had me convinced that I was too studpid to be a nurse, I did not follow that dream then. It took me many years, but I finally gathered the courage to leave him and now I am going to school to fulfill my dream. I have just completed my first semester of general education requirements with straight A's and will be applying to the nursing school next fall. I have a long way to go, but I know that it will be worth it. I love caring for people, and this is the best way I know to do that. Thank you to all the nurses out there, it is because of so many of you that most of us who now choose this profession do so. I feel honored to know that I will be joining your ranks in a few years. Chris

Hi! I am a pre-nurising student in Indiana who has an opportunity to go to England this summer to conduct a research project, and would like to gather some of the info I need before I go. I plan to research nursing in England and compare/contrast it to nursing in the US. Any information would be greatly appreciated. I will be focusing on the various roles that nurses play, required education, job opportunities, and the types of degrees/certificates in nursing that are available as well as documentation styles, etc. This project is very interesting and important to me, and I will be earning college credit toward my degree for it. Thanks in advance to all who reply. Chris

I am not actually a nurse yet, allthough I have worked as a certified nurses aid in long-term care centers and in an adult foster-care house for almost 5 years. I first became interested in nursing when I was hospitalized for two weeks when I was 10. I had a nurse there named Terri who I thought was an angel in disguise. I was bleeding from my kidneys and no one could tell me why. All I knew was that I was in a scary place and in constant pain. When I cried in the middle of the night, Terri held my hand and dried my tears. When I thought I would rather die than submit to one more of the many tests and procedures I had to undergo, Terri helped me find the courage to go through with it. And when the hospital kitchen ran out of popsicles, (I was on a liquid diet), Terri went to the store in the middle of the night and bought some with her own money just for me. Because of her, and many other nurses that I encountered in my accident-prone youth, I decided that I would become a nurse. I hope that Terri would be proud to know that after years of wanting to become a nurse, but being unable to pursue that dream because of a domineering now ex-husband, I have just completed my first semester on my way toward a nursing degree with straight A's. I will never forget Terri, or the loving care that she showed me. This is my thank you to her, and to all the nurses everywhere who are willing to hold and comfort a frightened child, (or adult). Never stop. Chris