Thinking about quitting nursing school

MollyJ · Mar 21, 2015

You are very young and when I see young people admitted to nursing school, I wonder at the wisdom. But you're there.

Here's the news: You are going to have to take at least some of what she said "to heart". You are going to have to subsume being a typical 17 year old to some degree. The patients are not there for your edification, enjoyment or amusement. They are there for care. You are going to have to learn to censor yourself in a way that most 17 year olds don't have to.

If you can, go _back_ to that instructor and tell her you want to talk to her again--not on the floor but in private and in her office. If you cannot do it with her, do it with a faculty member you are comfortable with. Get a very concrete list of what you need to work on. Consider finding a mentor, a nurse who will talk through situations with you.

See, if you do that, you will be exhibiting a mature desire to work on doing what it takes to become a nurse.

we have very minimal contact with student nurses in my school setting and I often meet students that I think could benefit from mentoring but I've never seen it done systematically. Still, try to create that for yourself. wouldn't think you are alone on this....

CNMidwife2Be · Mar 21, 2015

I know it might not feel this way, but you have a lot of time to figure things out. I changed my mind about a dozen times when it came to choosing a profession. I eventually did an undergraduate degree in French, only to later realize I wanted to be a midwife! I did an accelerated BSN at 25 and am now two thirds through midwifery school at 29. I'm happy to be where I am at the age I am. I'm also grateful for my first degree and my life experience. By the way, at 25, I found nursing school to be brutal..it's hard academically and hard emotionally dealing w the stress of patient care and abusive preceptors. I don't know if nursing is right for you. What I do know is if you think it's where you want you be, don't let an impatient preceptor chase you away. It's important to learn what you can from what they say but try to be patient w yourself and don't take the WAY they criticize you personally. Meaning, you might still need to improve in the areas they're suggesting..they're simply not teaching in a kind, productive way - and that part is NOT about YOU. You're not a terrible person either. You're overwhelmed. I know it can be hard deciphering between being overwhelmed and actually being in the wrong program/profession but for a moment ignore how hard this is and try to imagine how you want to be spending your time. Can you find some nurses in your area to shadow (separately from school)? No pressure situations and being able to ask lots of questions about how they spend their day may be helpful. Nursing is a challenging profession for many reasons but I think others here will attest that it takes nursing school plus at least a year of work but you DO eventually lose the feelings of being lost and completely overwhelmed. If you do some exploration and start to feel it's not the right profession for you, that's ok too! Turning around when you realize something is wrong is BRAVE. There's no shame in it. Sometimes you have to try things to realize they're not right. Either way, listen to your intuition and keep going with nursing or keep trying new things. As long as you're open you'll eventually find what you're supposed to be doing and it doesn't matter how long that takes - it's more important that you're happy and doing something you love. Best of luck : )

AnnieOaklyRN, BSN, RN, EMT-P · Mar 21, 2015

Yes, how is this person even out of high school yet?

Annie

TheCommuter, BSN, RN · Mar 21, 2015

Yes, how is this person even out of high school yet?

A number of highly motivated young people graduate high school at age 16 or 17 and are finished with college by age 19 or 20.

There's also a growing number of people who drop out of high school at age 15 or 16, earn a GED soon thereafter, and attend open-enrollment institutions of higher education such as community college, technical school, trade school, and certain open-admissions city universities.

Also, do not forget about the massive number of homeschooled teens who opt to earn a GED, then attend the aforementioned open-enrollment schools.

We must also remain mindful that not all nursing programs require a boatload of prerequisite coursework prior to admission. A rural state college in a neighboring state offers an associate degree nursing program with just one prerequisite: a semester of college chemistry. The nursing program also accepts one year of high school chemistry in lieu of the semester of college chemistry. A young student can complete the chemistry requirement at high school or via dual enrollment at a community college.

SunriseDay · Mar 22, 2015

You've probably heard this before.. but you are sooo young! From 17-early 20's you might make brash decisions and do things which later you look back and wonder, why did I ever do that/I can't believe I really did all of that. A year or 4 (or an entire lifetime) seems endless and very, very long. You wonder what career you should do for the rest of your life and are indecisive, worried about making the right choices. Wrong choices and decisions seem permanent, when really, they're not and people can "put their blinders on" and only see one view at this time period.. imo..

One more year and a half of nursing school might seem like forever.. no social life ect (this won't mean much later.. you'll be working, and not studying, so a complete 360 from k-12 and college years), but 1 yr and a half is actually a blink of an eye in life, and as you get into your 20's and friends/you are done w/ 4 yrs of college (some the end of their entire life's school), you'll start to see that. Also, you're going to get yelled at by people everywhere about your job or goals or decisions, ect. They might get you off your path or goal for a little while, but as one door closes, others open including other people.

While I was yelled at while volunteering at a free-clinic a year and a half ago bc a patient cried after triage bc felt "judged" (was asking why taking uneeded prescriptions and about family and they're emotional if you get the gist), which caused me to leave the triaging job (don't be personal/ask q's like that I guess ?? I was mortified ).. and 3 years prior to that in 10th-11th grade got scolded for not notifying the hospital that I was quitting/couldn't get there anymore, which caused no letter of rec or ability to volunteer there again... and after a science-teaching internship for elementary kids getting scolded for being late sometimes/missing final test (yet still got credit)... I've also had probably 10-15ish recommendation letters from other people and experiences. Yet, it's so easy to focus on the negative. You might have been an achiever all life and those few people which are negative, blow up, are the most remembered and can shake you up, causing you to question your paths, yet that's not the total picture... the total picture is likely you are doing very well, with yes a few mess-ups, but minor compared to the total. It's probably scary... like maybe wondering if that "forgetting your watch or chewing gum" could turn into an IV problem or some critical medical mistake in the future (I had that fear about the patient getting emotional, crying, complaining and leaving for it to someday turn into something bigger), but probably everybody young and inexperienced has felt that. People who want to do their best feel that.

Don't worry about the instructor...I mean, keep what she says in mind and don't repeat those mistakes, remember your watch ect, show up prepared, but these are minor compared to bigger mistakes. You might lose some points for it, but I know as a young person, every minor thing seems like a big, big deal. End of the world. It isn't. What about your other instructors? You might be doing better with them. She's really telling you to "get it together" and be prepared to class... like how when I did an internship for science teaching and showed up late twice or a few times, the instructor said that maybe I should do a different class/drop it bc it's unacceptable. I begged and said I didn't, and stopped doing that... I still had a good time. Every instructor is different and like them, I think she's trying to make sure you are prepared. It's not the first time, and probably not the last. But it's not the end of the world.

I'd say finish the program.. you're about half-way done. You'll have other instructors, and you have the rest of the semester to be prepared, not chew gum, and the other things she pointed out. I wouldn't chew gum at most jobs.. if any, really. Maybe she thinks you're not motivated/putting your all into the clinicals, and she's worried that you might not show up a day and people might have to cover your spot. Or making mistakes, and others covering. Prove it that you don't want to quit, beg or whatever, and show you are motivated to be a nurse. It sounds like you just need a little organization to me, but of course, hearing that can cause people to focus on the negative and mess-ups, but focus on the positive. It really doesn't sound that bad. Congrats on getting in straight-away! I'm jellous... Huge achievement and don't get discouraged bc they'll be people/moments like that everywhere.. End of long-winded post!

TriciaJ, RN · Mar 22, 2015

Yes, 17 is young for the rigors of nursing school. At 17 I found waiting tables stressful enough. OP, nothing you do now has to be "for the rest of your life". You're not signing any life contract. If nursing is what draws you, then you'll find a way to toughen up and get through. You'll find helpful people who can mentor and support you.

If nursing isn't for you, then you will eventually find out what is. Maybe it isn't for you right now, but will be a whole lot easier in a year or two. Or maybe it is for you, but not forever. You are not locking yourself into anything, and your options will always be open. Good luck! There are many of us rooting for you, no matter where you end up. And if you do become a nurse, welcome aboard.

Aliareza, BSN · Mar 22, 2015

Honestly, I don't think that forgetting a watch and chewing gum makes you immature. I'm 26 and I show up to clinical every day chewing gum. I think that's a generational thing. Older people nearly always tell me to spit it out, younger people mostly don't care.

The best way to go about this is to evaluate what you really want and then make it happen. It sounds like maybe you've chosen nursing because you don't know what else you would choose. Nursing is HARD, no doubt about that, and I don't know if I could've handled it when I was 17. I didn't think so, and I chose an easier profession that I thought I could get a job in. I was wrong about that . It was only later in life that I figured out I should've sucked it up and chosen something challenging.

If you're already in a nursing program at the age of 17, chances are that you, too, prefer to be challenged. Nursing is great for that. Just look at it and ask yourself if you REALLY want to be a nurse. I think there's a fair chance that the answer is still yes.

If that's so, do it! We all had to smooth out some rough spots at the beginning of clinicals. I started taking my stethoscope + watch + penlight + name tag and putting them in my clinical bag. It's the only place I ever leave them. I don't go to clinical without my paperwork in that bag, and thus I never forget any of my important equipment. Compromise and spit your gum out when you arrive on-site. I don't know what made your instructor snap and start going off on you, but it's likely it had more to do with her stress/her own behaviors (chewing people out rant-style is not how you should ever handle things) than what you did. Don't take it personally; just do better next time so you're not her target.

Red Kryptonite · Mar 22, 2015

Yes, how is this person even out of high school yet?
Annie

My oldest will graduate this year two months after her 17th birthday. She started kindergarten at 4. Have you really never heard of this?

jadelpn, LPN, EMT-B · Mar 22, 2015

There are vocational high schools that offer an LPN program. At the end, you are a CNA until one turns 18, then can sit for the NCLEX-PN. Some even partner with local community colleges to the go to ADN bridge.

OP, are you are junior or a senior? If you are a senior, then I would look at this as an opportunity to at least have the option of working when you graduate, and then going onto a college and do what you want with your life.

Take advantage of your guidance counselor, and really explore what it is you would like to do. But meanwhile, you are training for a skill that could be in your best interest when you graduate. You may find you want to sit for the NCLEX, as then you have the opportunity to make enough money to be independent, and take whatever college path you choose.

If you are a junior, again, speak to the guidance counselor. Is there something else that is available that you may like, and that most importantly, can assist in getting a job when you graduate?

Everyone gets chewed out for things. Much like a mainstream high school, if you chew gum, ya gotta stay after school for 30 minutes--there are rules. Everywhere in life there are rules. And put your watch on top of your uniform, or in your purse so that you don't forget it. Even if it is an extra watch that you just keep in your bag.

Best wishes going forward, and use what resources you have available to you now so that you can go forward with skills to be employed, and the option of attending a college for further education.

By the way, look into Emergency Medical Technician at your local community college. Might be something worth exploring this summer.

BSNbeauty, BSN, RN · Mar 22, 2015

I started nursing school at 18 and finished my PN program at age 20.

NurseSpeedy, ADN, LPN, RN · Mar 22, 2015

You are so young! I remember going through my LPN program and being terrified by my instructor. It was like boot camp for nurses. No you shouldn't be chewing gum but you've learned from that one. Many nurses forget their watches and it's no big deal, there a clock in every room with a second hand anyway-but in nursing school just don't forget the watch! Keep a spare in your bag so that if you accidentally forget to put it on in the morning when you are rushing out the door you'll have a backup. As for your instructor telling you to quit, that was uncalled for over what the issue was. You didn't endanger or harm a patient and I have never heard of an instructor telling a student that they should quit nursing school. Given the fact that you have come so far and are so young I would stick it out and finish it. You could change your mind over and over again about your career choice between now and age 30. You may even like all the different fields of nursing that you can get into. It's a very diverse field. As far as studying all the time and having no social life this is how to be successful in any type of college. Yes, there are people who say that they go out with the friends all the time in college and don't really study and get a passing grade, but what they do not realize is that some of that stuff they are learning, especially in nursing school, you will need to be able to remember not just for the test but in years to come in your career while you are working with patients. In this type of field, its good to study like crazy. Then you're more likely to remember it. Look at the bright side, when you graduate, you'll still be young enough to enjoy a social life and have a career established too! Good Luck.

RNHospice · Mar 22, 2015

STICK IT OUT!

Hang in there and learn from your instructors. They are there to help you learn, grow, and become better.

It will be a long learning experience.