When did you decide nursing was for you?

Guest27531 · Jul 9, 2011

I recently got a job as a CNA, I am about to be a senior in high school, currently getting my EMT-Basic. I was for sure that getting into trauma nursing is what I want. However, I am starting to second guess, I mean I am only in high school, how do I possibly know what I want to do with the rest of my life?
So, when was the moment that you decided nursing was for you? What happened?

I was 7 years old. I couldn't read or write but I learned "Hospital" so I could write it on a blackboard and put it at the entrance to my bedroom where I had my dolls lined up for shots. I was always very kind because I didn't want the shot to hurt.

History: My baby sister had allergies and we used to spend alot of time at the Navy infirmary getting allergy shots for her. I clearly remember sitting in the corner and watching the "health care provider" jab her arm again and again as she screamed. No one talked to her and no one seemed to be kind. As I sat there, a Navy nurse walked by, just outside the door and I wanted to call out to her to come in. I just had the feeling she would know what to do; she would be kind. I wanted to be her so I could help.

When I was in high school, I volunteered in a children's hospital in Wash, DC

When I was between high school and college I worked as a nurse's aide in a nursing home in California full time.

On each occasion, it was the nurses who gained my respect and, although I am saddened by our health care system, I am proud to be a nurse.

I would say to you that when the calling is there, it won't let you down. Follow your heart.

tokmom, BSN, RN · Jul 9, 2011

In high school, my senior year. I took a CNA class only because they took field trips:o. I soon fell in love with the nursing process and the medical field. That summer I had a job in a SNF on a graveyard shift. The RN was so self

assured and ran the facility with ease. I was in total awe of this woman. Her white uniform and school pin really sealed the deal. She was everything I wanted to be.

proudnurseRN · Jul 9, 2011

In 2002 I was working at a well known company, making decent money for a single girl, doing a job I hated and was slowly but surely getting shipped overseas. At the same time, my grandmother became seriously ill, and was transported from FL to IN on a med flight. She was expected to die and was placed in a nursing home.

I went to that nursing home everyday. I got to know the staff and the patients. I visited so frequently that I was one of the few people that could decipher what her roommate was saying (stroke) and would interpret for staff.

In 2003, major changes were happening. I hated my job. I was looking for something where I could use my brain, work with people, and wouldn't get shipped overseas. I decided nursing was my best bet. At the same time, my grandma was better and ready to move out of the nursing home, but wasn't quite prepared for independent living. She tried living with my dad, but it didn't work out well. By 2004 she had bought a house and agreed we (my husband and I) would live with her rent free while I attended school and we helped out with cooking, groceries, yard work, etc.

So, that was the moment. I went through several stages of areas I wanted to work in through nursing school... ER, peds, psych. Right now I'm in ortho and while I love it, I feel like I will have to move on soon to stimulate my brain further.

hjknisley · Jul 9, 2011

When my twins were born, I was in awe at how the nurse took control of the room. I was clueless about what my role was. I don't want to do labor and delivery, but I want my job to matter that much.

Double-Helix, BSN, RN · Jul 9, 2011

I'm not sure I can pinpoint an exact moment. I know that I was always a caring, compassionate kid. I had tons of stuffed animals that I loved and I even felt bad for inanimate objects. Like if I was choosing a book to read, I would feel bad for the book that wasn't chosen. I was also curious, smart and good with people. Nursing is a good fit for my personality and skills.

I guess the cliche applies: "I didn't choose nursing, nursing chose me."

pishoncna · Jul 9, 2011

" I would feel bad for the book that wasn't chosen."

Oh my goodness! I was the same way. It was kind of OCD for me.

The moments I really want to go into nursing, are when the Residents tell me they love me, or thank you so much. But, it's when I'm not working that I have doubts. Like, what if I want to grow old with a family? Will I have time for them?

canesdukegirl, BSN, RN · Jul 9, 2011

Quite like Proud^^^^, I was also a single gal working for a well known company. I loved my job, however. I was getting paid to play! One day, my father called the office and left a message with my secretary saying that I should come home as quickly as possible because Mom (who was a cancer researcher) had just had a seizure and was in the ICU.

When I got to the hospital, I found that Mom had been diagnosed with Stage IV renal cell carcinoma. She suffered a seizure from mets that had infiltrated her brain. The docs gave her a 6 week prognosis.

During the time of her illness, I was very impressed by the care she received from her hospice nurse. She gave Mom the moon and the stars...anything she wanted was provided by this thoughtful nurse. I was absolutely stapled to Mom's side during her illness...I couldn't bear to leave her for a minute! As a result, I was exposed to the various tasks of hospice nurses-the whole time thinking to myself, "I could NEVER be a nurse. This is just so overwhelming!". I had to excuse myself when things got 'too gross' for me.

It was only when Mom was in the last stages of dying, and the whole family encircled her bed as the priest read the Last Rites to Mom that I looked over and saw the hospice nurse sobbing along with the rest of the family, and something within me 'clicked'. I have written about this experience many times on this forum.

After Mom passed the next day, I took a long walk on the beach in front of her house. I took a personal inventory of the things that really mattered to me. I knew that I wanted to make a difference not only in my life, but more importantly the lives of others. I recognized that although my career was 'fun', it did not impact others the way that this hospice nurse had made a SOUND impact on our lives as a whole.

I really wanted to contribute to the lives of others...and this was probably the result of grieving for her and wanting desperately to allay the fears and hurt of people impacted by cancer. I know that now.

But that day on the beach as I was looking out into the ocean with tears streaming down my face, heaviness in my heart, but ironically a strong sense of optimism, I made my decision.

I enrolled in nursing school as soon as I came home. I have been a nurse now for 13 years. I give every bit of credit to the hospice nurse that took care of my Mom while she was ill. She changed my life simply by being a conscientious, professional, and empathic nurse. I became a nurse BECAUSE I recognized the positive impact she made on her patient, and the lives of all that knew and loved Mom.

I have never for one skinny minute regretted that decision. Sure, there are always days that I hate the BS of politics, the long shifts, the backbreaking work, the constant struggle to get from Point A to Point B without the red tape. But I NEVER forget WHY I became a nurse.

The least common denominator for me is the patient. The redundant paperwork that seems to multiply when JCAHO comes around, the useless committee meetings that are required of staff, the 'efficient computer charting' that is supposed to streamline our jobs, the never ending search for support staff, the frustrations of finding equipment that works, the aggravation of calling pharmacy again and again for the CORRECT medication seems to fall by the wayside when I focus on that patient in the bed. THEIR needs and THEIR circumstances far outweigh all of this static. As long as I remember that, and keep my patient in the forefront of my mind, I am humbled and less prone to complain.

I will never forget the day that I was called in at 0200 to do an emergency craniotomy. The resident was snarky, the anesthesiologist was moody, the scrub tech was snippy. Of course none of us wanted to be working in the dead of night, but when the attending neurosurgeon walked in and we all started talking about how moody/tired/****** off that we were, he said, "Yeah, I don't want to be here either. But I sure as hell would rather be here working than laying in that bed getting ready to have a drill put into my skull." Ummm....ok. Thanks for that reality check, Doc! I won't complain now!

Perspective is a breath of fresh air. I am thankful of the hospice nurse that took care of Mom, and the neurosurgeon that took care of this trauma patient. It gave me a very real view of life. It has made all the difference.

I am proud to call myself a nurse. I can't imagine doing anything else but nursing.

havehope · Jul 9, 2011

This is a great thread. I am now a senior in high school, so I am in the same situation you are in. Canesdukegirl, your post brought tears to my eyes...how touching. :heartbeat

beckster_01, BSN, RN · Jul 9, 2011

Haha I used to try and spend equal time with each of my stuffed animals so none of them would feel "forgotten." Inspired by Toy Story of course.

I've always thought my journey to nursing was a little unique. When I was a senior in high school all I knew was that I wanted to be in a profession where I could work with people and help them, but I actually laughed when someone suggested nursing, I just didn't think it was for me. I was planning on doing OT, but when I looked at the program it required three physics courses, and I hated physics, I just didn't see the practical use of calculating how far a football would land if you threw it from 30 feet with x amount of force. So I thought about what my favorite subjects were in school. Absolutely loved Biology and had already taken intro to A&P. I enjoyed Chemistry but wasn't particularly great at it. Passable in math, but didn't love it. Loved English but realistically, what kind of career could I have in that? Apparently I am a very realistic person...despite thinking that stuffed animals had feelings as a child. Anyhow, rating my favorite subjects like that plus my desire to work with people led me straight to nursing. I wasn't convinced until my sophomore year, when i started clinicals and began working in a hospital.

I wouldn't suggest choosing nursing because it seems like a logical choice, but I truly cannot imagine myself in any other position, regardless of the number of times I have fantasized about how nice it would be to have a job that allowed me to sit for more than 10 minutes at a time

OhioRN2011 · Jul 9, 2011

I've known I wanted to be a nurse since I was 5. My mom had a friend who was a RN and worked in surgery. I thought that was the coolest thing ever! I also always had my barbies in the 'hospital' and took care of my 'patients'. I didn't go to college right after high school; I got married and started a family. The time wasn't right for me. I finally decided I could either keep on taking jobs I hated or buckle down and go for a degree in nursing. Every time I went to clinical all I could think was "Wow! Somebody is actually gonna pay me to do what I absolutely love doing!" I graduated in May, passed Nclex in June, and I start my new job on Tuesday. Good luck with whatever you decide to do!!!

breezy7, BSN, RN · Jul 9, 2011

I was all set to graduate in December with a BA in Anthropology. Paid my graduation fees and everything, just had a semester left of classes.

It hit me. I'd been taking medical anthropology classes and thinking about public health for grad school, but what did I actually want to do? Work in the field as a nurse. Apply what I'd learned through anthropology and combine it. I immediately postponed my graduation indefinitely and added on another major - pre-nursing. In three years, I'll graduate with both degrees!