Why do I do these things to myself?????

Hey be proud of all you have done and achieved this far. Take it one day at a time and enjoy all of the new opportunities that open up for you. I am 37 with a large family and trying to go back to school to become a nurse is not easy but I am determined! Best of luck to you! joymama

Deep breath...Deep breath.

I do feel for you as I smoke, and I am about to try to quit. I am afraid of chantix, but will be using the patch, and gum. I keep putting it off because its the beginning of the semester, the middle of the semester, the end of the semester, my break, etc etc etc. I think you did the right thing by just quitting. Give it time it will get better, and you will be a healthier non smoker. You can do this !!!!!

I think you should take stocking in the things you have accomplished. I am 39 and will be 40 this fall, and I am just starting down the path to be an RN.

It's hard not to let the age thing jump at you, but I will tell you this in talking to my close friend who has been an RN for 25 years our age is pretty much the norm....so don't sweat that too much.

When people asking me, "What are you doing going back to school after being out for 18 years (graduated college in 1990)" I say, "I have finally decided what I want to be when I grow up." Most responde, "Yeah, I am hoping to figure that out soon too."

When people asking me, "What are you doing going back to school after being out for 18 years (graduated college in 1990)" I say, "I have finally decided what I want to be when I grow up." Most responde, "Yeah, I am hoping to figure that out soon too."

Too funny . This is the third time in my life that I have considered nursing and the furthest I have gone toward becoming a nurse. I have taken the attitude of 1 semester at a time, then I am only committed to the semester I am in, hence 1 semester at a time. Now we will see how well this attitude works once I have started actual nursing courses .

I am 37 (almost 38) and making a career change so I am a bit stressed about not having done this sooner, should I wait a little longer until both my kids are in school full-time, yada, yada, yada. I am also a little stressed that I am taking my last pre-req and I currently have an "A" in the lab portion of the course and a "C" in the lecture portion. I am frustrated at my "C" b/c I know it is due to the fact that I do not make enough time to study. This is beginning to concern me b/c I need at least a "C" in this class to be able to take A&P next year. I am well aware that A&P will require more dedication from me in order for me to do well, so I am stressed about being able to get away from DH and the kids enough next year so I can study for A&P.

And to top it off, I quit smoking and am feeling very stressed. I am taking Chantix which has helped me this far but this is the first (o.k. second) day without any cigarettes at all and my doc lowered the dose this month and this is the last month for me to take the med. So lower dose and no cigarettes is making me very stressed.......Why do I do these things to myself??? Why did I have to take a night class this semester for the first time in a long time and quit smoking half way through the semester??? Wouldn't it have been better for me to quit smoking completely once I realized the meds were really helping me to cut way down?? I do know that part of me was leary of quitting since DH smokes and I was afraid I would cave and smoke (since he is the one who really wanted US to quit and hasn't even tried yet ) Wouldn't it have been easier if I just stuck my finger in a light socket?

O.K., I'm done with my meltdown........for now . I feel better now having vented so if you made it this far.......thank you .

I smoke too ummm this is very selfish of me not to address your stress first but how does Chantix make you feel physically? My NP gave me my yearly lecture on what I plan to do my vice and mentioned chantix. I was ready to go for it until I read the side effects and got scared.

I took night classes too and felt all stressed out until I took day classes then I sorely missed those night classes. There is a different level of maturity in the night classes. I don't have kids to get worried about but I find I get worried about everyone else's kids, my friends, relatives, etc.

I came to the realization that I am just a natural born worry wart as are many other people and once I accepted that I felt less stressed out. I also pick half a day that is just mine. Usually Saturday evenings. I don't study anything for that half a day and I leave my house and go out to eat no matter what even if I don't feel like it and it's nothing fancy either. It gives me something to look forward to then some endless circle of studying, working, stressing, and crying.

Everyone around me is happier for it.

I smoke too ummm this is very selfish of me not to address your stress first but how does Chantix make you feel physically? My NP gave me my yearly lecture on what I plan to do my vice and mentioned chantix. I was ready to go for it until I read the side effects and got scared.

GO FOR IT!!! It has not been easy but smoking is a very strong habit BUT the Chantix has made it much easier than I had expected. I should have dropped the smokes a long time ago, before the doc lowered my dose officially. Did I suffer side effects? YES!!! and terrible ones at that, I suffered terrible nightmares, they got so scarey that I called the doc and said HELP!!! It also made me very sleepy in the beginning and it took a couple of weeks until my body got used to it, then I started waking up at night and couldn't get back to sleep. So if a nightmare didn't wake me up then my body did. It was kinda nutty. But the important thing is to get the dosing right for you and then it is absolutely the best thing to ever happen!!! I did see something that said it could cause previous mental disorders to reappear but since I don't have a history of mental illness I was a great candidate. I would say it took about a month before I got the dosing good for me and now that I am seriously trying to finish smokes completely (I guess I thought the "miracle" pills would just make me stop w/o any effort on my part, YEAH RIGHT), I am struggling a little but not nearly as much as I expected. It is harder for me at home then anywhere else and I think that is b/c DH smokes. But seriously, smoking really is quite nasty smelling and you would be surprised at how nasty it really smells once you begin even making the effort to quit. I am somewhat turned off by cigarettes now, reformed smoker I guess is what I am and I will try my darndest not to be the typical reformed smoker, but more compassionate towards people trying to quit since I now know what it is like.