Why did you take up nursing? What's your story?

Every nurse has their own story to tell about how or why they chose to enter the nursing profession. Some may have been inspired by a personal experience with healthcare, while others may have been drawn to the idea of caring for others. Some may have stumbled upon nursing by chance, while others knew from a young age that it was their calling. Whatever the reason, each nurse has a unique narrative that led them to become a caregiver. These stories are a testament to the diversity and passion within the nursing community and the profound impact that healthcare can have on our lives.

Please be as detailed or as short as you wish. It'll be interesting to hear everyone's stories.

My family insisted that I go to nursing school :studyowl: instead of flying back to Dubai for an Administrative position at an HR in a multinational company ( i was actually promoted from an Admin Asst to PA of the HR Manager). To make the long story short, I readily accept the offer:roll , earned the degree in two years :mortarboard: since my first degree carried some subjects that were all credited to my nursing school. I am now in Vancouver , preparing for my CRNE:sleep: . I am crossing my fingers off that all will fall accordingly in God's time for me and the family that i care so much about at present. I never find nursing difficult, instead I find it challenging and exciting. Challenging in the sense that I had to hurdle some tasks I was so afraid to do in the past (bloody stuff et al) and exciting because the experience taught me a lot of things which I will carry in my heart forever. Nursing made me open my eyes to see both sides of the world:yelclap: ......it made me stronger :pumpiron: and more compassionate:loveya: .

The reason why I'm becoming a nurse is because I want a career that is in high demand and offers steady employment.

I'm still a nursing student, still sweating over my pharmacology exam mark! But I guess I'll share something.

As a kid, I wanted to be a doctor. But learning how long it would take for me to finish medicine, and how expensive it would be, I soon shifted my interest to other things... such as the arts. Actually, right before I finished high school I had made up my mind to become a teacher, but my parents firmly discouraged it. So, confused, i just went along with my other friends who were all submitting entrance exam results to the college of nursing. Just to see if I could get in, I submitted mine too. And I got in. And because I did not submit my results to any other colleges, I figured that I might as well get along with it.

So as expected, I took my first two years rather easily and I guess I barely gave that much effort. However, now in my third year, i've been bombarded with all sorts of requirements and hospital duties that i've grown so stressed, i decided to take things seriously. Recently, also, I've fallen in love with psychiatric nursing (among other things) and I'm planning to pursue this interest.

One day I was visiting someone who told me "why dont you take up nursing, a lot of peolple here wanted to become a nurse so that they can work abroad, I will provide you with scholarship grant". So here I am a RN. Well, I enjoy it really, some cases can tickle your brain to its best.

Specializes in OB, Education, Clinical Informatics.

hi everyone...new to the forum, not new to nursing! i came to find answers, but couldn't pass up this opportunity to tell everyone why i became a nurse.

i got married as a baby (18 yrs. old...thought i was so mature, and no i wasn't pregnant!), and on my honeymoon, my new husband had an allergic reaction to a medication he was taking. at the time, i was sooo young and naive...didn't have a clue what was going on. after calling our family physician in hysterics, he directed me to "get him to the nearest hospital, now!" so rush we did on the first night of our trip in sunny florida! when we arrived at the hospital, the triage nurse took one look at my husband...hives and all, along with his 104.5 temp. and promptly declared, "i think he has the measles!" and quarantined him in a closet-sized room. then we waited...and waited...and waited some more. finally, it got to the point where he was starting to anaphylax (of course, at the time i didn't realize what was going on...only that he was frothing at the mouth and could barely breathe!) i ran out of the room screaming for them to help my husband. the doctor came in, saw the shape my poor guy was in, hollared, "good god! you're having an allergic reaction to something!" and then began to shout orders...epi! benadryl! iv! i was fascinated by the hustle and bustle of it all. thankfully, everything ended up being fine, although all the poor guy could do for the rest of the week was lie on the bed naked and moan about how bad he felt. needless to say, there wasn't a lot of honeymoon action! oh well, 17 years later, we're still together and laugh about our "honeymoon from hell!" it was during that time, however, that i realized that i wanted to join in the frenzy of medicine. and i have not regretted it since!

Hi Z ,

Do you Stay awake all the time ?

or are you night owl like me ?

Want to share this with all the other night owls. It's from http://www.modrnnurse.com.

If you are a "night owl," nights is the shift for you.

The up side is that the pace might be a little slower, you might have more time to interact with your patients, most doctors will be home asleep so there won't be a lot of new orders, and you will miss most of the "daytime drama" of the earlier hours. Your coworkers will most likely be motivated much as you are - to work during the night so you can get home to your "real life," usually meaning your family and friends.

The downside is that the food in the hospital cafeteria (if there is any) will not be quite as tasty (or fresh), the doctors will not be close by if you need them, and you might have a major "sinking spell" at some point during your shift. And, the family you are rushing home to will probably be gone for the day by the time you get there.

Hi Z ,

Do you Stay awake all the time ?

or are you night owl like me ?

Want to share this with all the other night owls. It's from http://www.modrnnurse.com.

If you are a "night owl," nights is the shift for you.

The up side is that the pace might be a little slower, you might have more time to interact with your patients, most doctors will be home asleep so there won't be a lot of new orders, and you will miss most of the "daytime drama" of the earlier hours. Your coworkers will most likely be motivated much as you are - to work during the night so you can get home to your "real life," usually meaning your family and friends.

The downside is that the food in the hospital cafeteria (if there is any) will not be quite as tasty (or fresh), the doctors will not be close by if you need them, and you might have a major "sinking spell" at some point during your shift. And, the family you are rushing home to will probably be gone for the day by the time you get there.

Specializes in OR,ICU,Oncology,Case mgmt/UR.

I got into nursing after taking care of my mother when I was 17 years old. She died from lung cancer a month before I graduated from high school. I was the youngest of five kids, and previously had no life-experience in care-taking, not even baby-sitting. After floundering for a few lost years after she died, I entered nursing school, never expecting to finish.

Somehow, I "grew up", finished school and boards, and have never stopped being amazed at the diverse opportunities I have found in nursing, and still marvel at the compassion and maturity I had buried away from that early exposure to illness.

I was in the Army Reserves when my unit was being disbanned and a new medical unit was coming in. I had to get a medical MOS (job) so I decided to try nursing. I went to LPN school. I figured if I hate it, it's just a year out of my life. Well, luckily I loved nursing. I have been a LPN for 11 years now and am currently getting my ASN. I have no idea what I would be if I wasn't a nurse.

I've been a go go dancer for 14 years and obviously GETTING TOO OLD!!! I had to think of a second career and nurses/pharmacists ran in my family (mother, aunts). I have never worked 5 days a week in my life, and wanted something similar, with killer benefits and an opportunity to help people on a daily basis. My only complaint with my present occupation has been that I have always felt useless to society, even though its been excellent financially, flexible, and I've been lucky with wonderful management/customers since I've been in the same place 14 yrs.(kinda like Cheers). I am able to study when I am off stage which has been a blessing and will be officially "retired" in dec. as I am taking off my last semester before graduating as an RN in may 2007. (I will be continuing my education as a masters is my goal.) I couldn't be happier with the challenge and my decision...a former dancer/friend now has her BSN and has been working as a nurse for a year now...and there are 2 other girls at my job starting the program. We kind of "stick together" and support eachother which is great to have...I cant wait to start my new career!:nurse:

I wanted a job with a lot of flexibility and nursing seemed like the ticket. I could work double shifts a few days a week and have the rest of the week off if I chose to. If I had to do it all over I would have been a plumber.

Specializes in CT ,ICU,CCU,Tele,ED,Hospice.
From the time I can remember I wanted to be a doctor. Then, in high school, having never even been in a hospital. I realized that I wanted to "take care" of people..

Nursing is an art. I think it is a calling. I love all of the aspects. I used to be so disgusted when a doctor would say to me "but you're so smart, you could be a doctor"...like I would rather do that than be a nurse. Doctors make big decisions and walk out of the room, they break terrible news and the nurse is there to help pick up the pieces. We are the ones who put it all together. If it wasn't for the nurses there would be no hospitals

i couldn't have said it better hayati.my story is not that exciting but i always wanted to be a pediatrician becuase i loved kids.i was also good with math and science .so when i garduated from highschool i went to a college who had premed program .it was 1st time i was away from home i liked and did ok with school i was out for summmer and looking to going back for 2nd year and i realized i wdidn't want to go to school for 8yrs do residency etc and have thousands of dollars in loans and bills.also at this time i was working ft at a nursing home as cna i had a wonderful nurse as a boss.she was fab would answer any and all of my questions and she waas great with the residents .i realized then that the reason i wanted to be a dr was to help people and i am a people person but its the nurse not the dr that spends time with pt .i realized then i wanted to be a nurse .i was fortunate to find a nursing program in my area that would take my credits and i wouldn't stay a freshman thay had summer school in eves that i could take my 2 prereq nsg classes and be a sophomore when i started in fall they even allowed me to take A and P concurrently .i did well grad with my bsn and have never regretted my decision i can't imagine being anything else.my father had also been very sick for 4 yrs in and out hospitals i was born being a caretaker.my parents thought it was great it would come naturally to me and i would always have a job.that was 20 yrs ago .i have worked open heart tele icu/ccu pacu dialysis and er .i am very good nurse and i loe what i do.(most days)

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