Wants to switch career from childcare to nursing

Editorial Team / Admin · May 10

Hello Eshaal,

It is great to hear you are reflecting and reaching out to the AllNurses Community to determine if you want to pursue a career nursing. If you need a good AllNurses resource, feel free to check out this article on how to get into nursing school.

I would have to be honest with you, if you're having back pain now, nursing is quite a physically demanding job. We have to mobilize patients, change patient if they've soiled, and sometimes not have time to use the bathroom for many hours. I understand there are different fields of nursing you can go into, but many employers would expect you to work in the hospital or long terms care first prior to getting a less physically demanding job. Just keep that in mind when choosing nursing as a career.

In terms of flexibility, shift work is nice because we have the option to work only nights, or be part time or casual, so this gives us more time with our kids. But we have to be able to manage those 12 hour shifts. Wishing you all the best!

Eshaal · May 11

Thank you so much for guidance.. I really appreciate that 💕

beachynurse, ASN, BSN · May 14

Julia Liou said:

Hello Eshaal,

It is great to hear you are reflecting and reaching out to the AllNurses Community to determine if you want to pursue a career nursing. If you need a good AllNurses resource, feel free to check out this article on how to get into nursing school.

I would have to be honest with you, if you're having back pain now, nursing is quite a physically demanding job. We have to mobilize patients, change patient if they've soiled, and sometimes not have time to use the bathroom for many hours. I understand there are different fields of nursing you can go into, but many employers would expect you to work in the hospital or long terms care first prior to getting a less physically demanding job. Just keep that in mind when choosing nursing as a career.

In terms of flexibility, shift work is nice because we have the option to work only nights, or be part time or casual, so this gives us more time with our kids. But we have to be able to manage those 12 hour shifts. Wishing you all the best!

I totally agree with you. Nursing can be quite hard on ones back, and if you already have problems they will most likely worsen. Speaking from experience. I've been a nurse for 39 years, and my back is shot. I've had 3 surgeries, and I am in agony. My back is constantly hurting, and I can't stand for long, or walk long distances without crutches. I'm very lucky that I can still work. I have 3 years before I can retire. I could retire on disability now, but then I have no health insurance until I'm 65 in 3 years. With you having a bad back already, you might want to rethink Nursing School.