Why are you REALLY going into nursing? Honest answers please.

klone, MSN, RN · May 21, 2004

I need a job, and a steady income. Seriously. Anyone who says different isn't telling the whole truth.

But I don't think that's true. As I said above, I already have a steady, well-paying job. I just don't like it, and I know that nursing/lactation consulting is what I really WANT to do.

Right now I'm making $20-25/hr as an editor/proofreader (which is about $5/hr more than what I'll make as a nurse, at least starting out). I work at home, I have the most flexibility I've ever had in a job (I can take as much or as little work as I want) and my bosses are wonderful. But it's not satisfying, and I think I would kill myself if I thought I'd have to do it for the rest of my life. Money isn't everything.

Sheri257 · May 21, 2004

Because I want to help women breastfeed. To me, it most definitely is a "calling." It's what I want to do for the rest of my life.

I'm assuming you're a male student?

:lol2:

klone, MSN, RN · May 21, 2004

Ok, so if you weren't paid for that, would you still do it? Seriously.
:uhoh21:

Yep. Like I said, I'm going into nursing in order to help women breastfeed. I've already been doing it on a volunteer basis already for the last five years.

klone, MSN, RN · May 21, 2004

I'm assuming you're a male student?

No, a mother of two. :)

missnurse01, MSN, RN · May 21, 2004

For me, I had reoccuring dreams of disasters where I was the only one standing and everyone was lying on the floor hurt! And I didn't know the first thing to do to help! I was in california and was always terrified of earthquakes. It took me years to even find and do a first aid and cpr class and that helped. I can honestly say it wasn't the money for me, after 3 years of trying to get into the second a&p class the school req i was accepted into lvn and here i am-years later hoping to finish up the rest soon. The dreams did go away by the way!:rotfl:

nurseunderwater · May 21, 2004

Ok, so if you weren't paid for that, would you still do it? Seriously.
:uhoh21:

if i was independently wealthy....yes

GracefulRN · May 21, 2004

[

QUOTE=llg]That may be true for you, but it is not true for me. Most of my educational choices have been based on what I wanted to learn rather than what I thought would be most marketable. I had many opportunities to pursue education that would lead to higher paying, more prestigious jobs, but I chose nursing voluntarily -- not because I had no other options. I am not the kind of person who wants to spend my life working in a job "primarily for the money." If I don't believe in what I am doing, I tend to get very grouchy -- to the point where I do not perform. I could believe in nursing -- believe that it is a good use of my talents.
I got my PhD just because I wanted to, not with any specific job in mind. After 5 years in a PhD program, I ended up in a job that only required a Master's -- almost identical to the one I left to go back to school -- and I have never regreted it. I make the same amount of money today as I would had I not gone back to school again for that 3rd nursing degree.
For me, learning and growing as a person is just a way of life. I wouldn't want to live any other way. If I won the lottery, I would probably drop down to part time -- but only to give myself time to take some classes just for fun.
llg

WoW, you're edumucated huh?

Sounds like me, except my main draw to higher education is that I am a bit of an intellectual snob. I like being the smartest one in the room.

AmyLiz · May 21, 2004

Job security. A decent job where I feel like I make a difference in peoples lives...not just a "worker bee" for some very rich executives. Plus, I always wanted to be either a nurse or a doctor while I was growing up. Always had a keen interest in medicine. So there ya go.

Saved_by_Grace · May 21, 2004

i am going in to nursing for several reasons. one being i had a good job and then got layed off..(lots of people have i know) :crying2:

i have 3 kids to feed and clothe and a husband who works but makes a little above minimum wage. i always wanted to go to college but didn't have the resources but now i do thanks to financial aid and all of my dependents! :lol2: so money is a factor, i won't lie. and it's one of the quickest programs to get through and start making some decent money! second, i truly want to help others and want a profession that i can be proud of and for my kids to be proud of me! i want to utilize my brain ..lol what little i have left, and hope to make some small yet significant differences in the lives of others. and on a more personal level i want to be a nurse in honor of my mom, who died of melanoma when i was 10. she wanted to be a nurse with all her heart and soul and never had the chance. i kinda feel like this is a way to make that happen for her through me. and as others have stated the flexibility nurses have, working only 3-4 days per week if you choose, job security, and moving anywhere and having a job! those are my reasons! :chuckle

Hellllllo Nurse, BSN, RN · May 21, 2004

Job security. A decent job where I feel like I make a difference in peoples lives...not just a "worker bee" for some very rich executives.

Funny- As a nurse, I have often felt exactly like a "worker bee for very rich executives"!

AmyLiz · May 21, 2004

Funny- As a nurse, I have often felt exactly like a "worker bee for very rich executives"!

Granted. I thought about that after I posted. But at least as a nurse you do make a difference in other people's lives in ADDITION to working your butt off for very rich executives! :chuckle

Star Trek Nerd · May 21, 2004

Ok, I'm a bit frustrated with all of these posts telling us that we shouldn't go into nursing because we need a job and steady income. Sure, I do like to help people, but I need a steady job even more. So, I decided to post a poll to see if we can get some honest answers.

I love my job that I have right now. I literally mean that I am happy to go to work everyday....but the problem is, I work for a cruise line. Every hour of my day is spent making sure our guests get what they want: green grapes instead of purple every morning, caviar every evening, a table in the dining room that doesn't have any noise, a cabin that will not move in rough seas (yeah right), a pink carpet instead of blue, free upgrades left and right upon demand, etc etc.

1) So as much as a love my job, I can't help but be internally unhappy that I am doing very little to make a difference in this world. All I do is keep rich people happy. Sometimes their demands make me want to say "How can you be so upset about something so minor when there are people suffering and dying and being abused or tortured at this very moment?":crying2:

2) When my family members are sick I take care of them because I want to.

3) Also, another defining moment was when we had our infamous Northridge earthquake in 1994, I found it astounding that I was the only person on the entire block that kept my cool and didn't run around like a headless chicken. I was the one knocking down doors and going in to search for people in their apartments to make sure everyone was okay. I was the one gathering up their cats and dogs and taking them to safety. Everyone else, all 100 of them or so, didn't know what to do, even the doctor down the street was panicking. They were all asking me what to do, and counting on me to keep them safe during the aftershocks. Later, I was commended by the local fire station for my actions.

I was only 16 years old at the time.

**