EmRN14

Question for any nurses out there that may have worked from home or are working from home? I am expecting my first child and my husband and I work the same shift (M-F 8-5). Which would mean we would need childcare which as you know can be very expensive. Any insights on working from home? Has anyone done it with a baby? How much is the pay? Just would like some insight to this. I do not know much about it. Thanks!

Thank you so much for your reply. It is great knowing there are so many supportive and understanding nurses like me out there. I spoke with my husband and we went over the pros and cons to figure out what is best for me. After talking, without hesitation, I decided to take the job! I start April 25th! I am so excited!! I will also be done with my BSN in 2 weeks so I won't have the stress of school anymore. I spoke with my current manager and she was so happy for me. She is letting me stay PRN but I will have to work a total of 24 hours in 4 weeks. So we will see if that is doable. It should work out great though because I will be done with school and I don't have kids yet! Working PRN will actually provide a pay increase in total of all income. So I am excited. I know I made the right decision and I can't wait to start. Thank you all for helping me make this decision! All your posts were very encouraging and helped me to make the best choice for me in my nursing career!

Hello fellow nurses, so I know some of us are probably working tomorrow for April fools day. Anybody have any fun harmless pranks they'd like to share? I work on a postpartum floor and me an my coworker are trying to come up with simple harmless pranks to do tonight. Anyone want to share a story of pranks you've done on the past? I would love to hear it. I just need some ideas. Thanks!! Happy April fools!

That's really too bad. Unfortunately unless your friends are nurses, they have a difficult time understanding the stress that comes from nursing. My husband has a hard time understanding why I am stressed out. But I wish he could come to work with me for a day and see how difficult it can be. I too have called my nursing supporters when I am feeling down. They are the best people you can rely on. Sorry this happened to you. I would definitely move out as soon as you can. I am sure you will be happier.

I am leaving night shift in a few weeks because I also had a difficult time with my mental well-being, restful sleep, and other health issues. I am so excited to be on days. Maybe after being there for some time you can put in a request for days. I am sure it would benefit you.

I would stay where you are to get some experience and then move on to another unit. Home care and SNF's can be very difficult. Home care you have ill patients but no other nurses will be around you if you are unsure of something. SNF's can be very stressful because you are responsible for a lot of patients. I found that working in a SNF was awful. Telemetry would give you great experience and would help you move to an even better unit that interests you more once you get your experience in. Good luck!

As a new grad and working as a charge nurse in a SNF will be very difficult. It is a lot of work. I worked my first job at a SNF as a new grad and it was probably the hardest position I had. Not trying to scare you but it will be a very demanding job. I also only had 3 days of training and I felt so overwhelmed and I was not even working as a charge nurse. It was scary and a lot of pressure on me to take care of 30 residents by myself. I felt like more training would have been necessary for me to be successful. I felt like my license was already on the line. To be honest, I would keep trying for a hospital job. I am from Ohio and worked at the SNF for 3 months until I found a hospital job on a med surg floor. Then a year after that I moved on to OB. It takes time to get where you want to be but you can do it. If you feel confident that you can handle the charge nurse position then I would do it. Or maybe you can discuss possibly having a shadowing day to see if it would be right for you. Who knows, maybe you will enjoy the challenge! Good luck in whatever you decide!

When I was a hostess at the Cracker Barrell. Worst. Job. Ever.

Don't give up!! I got my adn and applied for over 70 jobs until I got an offer. I looked at the interviews as good practice. Once I found a job, it wasn't really something I wanted to do but I knew I needed experience so I took it. (Working in a rehab hospital was horrible, stressful, terrible place to work. So I stuck it out there for a year and started an online rn-bsn program. Right after I had been working there for a year, I began seeing more interest from employers. I got offered a job in a large hospital on a postpartum unit. I've Been there for 6 months and it's great!! Now I have 3 weeks left of school and I also had another job offer as s public health nurse which I'm going to take. I feel like finally I'm falling into a career where I want to be. It's definitely hard work and dedication but there is so many options for you to do in nursing. You will find your niche but patience is key. And your fiancé needs to be more understanding of that. And if he's not willing to make sacrifices, then he doesn't sound like someone to be with. You do what is best for you and keep trying! You will get there! You haven't even begun this crazy journey of nursing. Good luck to you.

This post summed it up. I need to show my husband. lol he just doesn't do nursing so he doesn't get it. Apparently the benefits are better though and the taxes would be less because of where it's located. They also pay for your retirement. My health insurance eould be less each paycheck as well. I think people like me focus so much on the hourly wage and not the whole job including benefits. So yes, I think it would benefit me and my a family a lot. My husband read these posts and said "I didn't realize nursing was that hard" he told me if it's better for me then we can make it work financially, thanks for everyone's posts!

Yes, I was thinking of going PRN at my current job and maybe doing a couple hours a month. That makes me feel more confident. I haven't made a decision but I feel like having much less stress would be so worth it in the long run! I just want to be happier and get my sanity back! haha

Yes, I did not think it was that bad either. If only spouses could experience the stress of nursing at least for a day then maybe they would understand better. lol

Hello fellow nurses, I was offered a job as a public health nurse today and I'm torn about what todo. This is something I would love to do but I would be taking a paycut from 23.90 an hour to 20.0 an hour. I currently work as a floor nurse on a postpartum unit 12 hours night shift and every other weekends. I enjoy my patient population but the 12 hour nights are becoming exhausting. If I take this job, I would do case management, community teaching, flu clinics, community clinics, and newborn home visits (which I would love). The hours would be 8-4:30 Monday through Friday with occasional weekend hours (maybe once every month) to help run a clinic. I am also looking to go back to school to get my masters and. I want something less stressful. They offered me the job today and I told them I wanted to give it some thought. My husband says it's a bad idea but I feel it would be best for me and my mental well being. Any other nurses put there run into a similar issue? What did you do? Any opinions I would take... Thank you

I have been wondering the same as I am beginning a new career on the mother-infant unit in a large hospital. I already have a hard time finding the right things to say to patients that are sad so I cannot imagine finding what to say to parents that have lost their baby. I hope that I receive proper education on this topic and learn how to help families going through this. Just say what comes from the heart. And I know that in nursing school they say not to cry but I feel like crying shows empathy and caring. Be strong but show that you care.

Definitely time for a new career and not a job. Find your passion. Don't work as an MA. Work as an RN like you are credentialed. Working as an MA will not help with your skills and it sounds like where you are working, you are underpaid and under appreciated. I would get out of there if that is really what is occuring.

Hello all, Just wanted some insight on a topic that I am sure others are struggling with at times. I have depression and I feel like it is getting worse lately. My anti-depressant was just switched and I have been feeling worse so I am sure my body is trying to adjust. My doctors also think I may be hyperthyroid so that makes it difficult as well. On top of that, I have just started a new job and trying to adjust to the new setting is stressful. Starting a new job can be hard and can intensify my anxiety and depression. I just feel like I have a lot going on and it is positive and good things as far as nursing goes....But I just wanted to talk to people on self management of depression and anxiety while being a nurse. How do you all deal with stress and anxiety? Any helpful self management techniques? Just wanted some guidance from others in the nursing field that may be having the same issue as I am.

I feel like the DON coming to your house was highly inappropriate. I would talk to your CEO or someone that would take care of that situation. I would have held the Lasix as well. You did not overstep your boundaries as a nurse. That is your job. Like most people say "chart or it didn't happen". I would chart what happened and why you didn't give it. Cover your butt. Also working in LTC is difficult. I worked there for a bit and I was miserable. I felt like it put my nursing license at risk. I got a job at a hospital and the patient load is much lighter and I have more support. I also feel like I am not walking on eggshells and I am not questioning my every action. Hopefully you figure this out soon! If I were you, I would start looking into a different position where you get more respect.

Haha!!! I will probably have that thought cross my mind fairly often

I feel like I am in your position! I graduated last year and started out on a med/surg floor. I will be there for a year in October. When I first started, I did not find it interesting at all. I found it to be terribly busy and i was very unhappy just giving people pills all days and performing skills on them. I do understand why it is important to get experience in a med/surg unit though for a year. You learn a lot of nursing skills that will help you in whatever direction you decide to go. I feel like I have learned a lot at my current job but now I feel like it is definitely time to move on to something I am more passionate about which is mother-infant. So I applied and got the job. it was within the same healthcare system, My manager found out but congratulated me because they knew it was something i have always wanted to do! I will start next month and I am definitely looking forward to trying a completely different field and enjoy going into my job! I suggest you go for it and do what makes you happy. Nothing is holding you back. What is the worst that could happen? If psych is your dream then I would definitely go for it! Good Luck

Hello all, I got offered a job on a mother-infant unit at a very large hospital with 30 beds. I am very nervous and very excited. I have been a nurse for a little over a year and am in school to receive my BSN and will finish in April. For the last year I have been working at a rehabilitation hospital specializing in strokes, amputations, brain injuries, and SCI's. It operates very similarly to a med-surg unit. Lots of pills, pain medication, dressing changes, treatments, PEGs, and trachs. It is a very fast paced environment and I often have 6-7 patients which I feel is too much. Anyways....I got offered this job and I absolutely could not pass it up because I have always loved this area of nursing! I am so excited to start but as a nurse with no experience in this field, I want to know from anyone what I should expect on a unit like this. Do you love it? Better than med-surg? Thanks and I would love any advice.

Transdermal is what our hospital uses. The only route I have ever used and it stays on for 72 hours.

I am a recent new grad (may 2014). Have 3 months experience in a snf and now I'm currently working in a rehab hospital which is really great!! Operates very similar to a med surg floor. However, I have been really wanting to get into OB/L&D. Soooo...how do I move up the ladder and get into this field? Is there a way to precept or shadow a nurse on an ob floor? I know it's a very saturated area but it is my dream!!! Any suggestions would be great! Thank you!

Cindy, nursing is definitely tough. I'm not in it for the money either. But sometimes I dread coming to this job. I'm hoping and praying my new job will be better. Also I hope everything will get better for you! Congrats on the new job! And thank you for your response.

thank you for that post. I really like reading from other nurses and knowing that it will get better. I'm hoping this new job will be better compared to my old one. I just want to be a good nurse and I'm still learning how to do just that. Thanks again for your kind words. I appreciate it.

Thank you! This is what I needed to hear. I thought after school it would get better! Not so true! :-) but it's good to know it still takes time and much more learning. thank you!