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.

I'm 20 and a fresh nursing grad from Manila, Philippines. Honestly I took up nursing because it's in demand and one of the jobs with good compensation abroad. This has been my reason for taking up nursing until one day while in my internship training in a Mental Health Center, I felt that responding to the needs and performing nursing activities for the patients gave me a strong sense of fulfillment that I have never felt before. Since then, I understood that nursing, more than just earning money, is a calling wherein I can fulfill my purpose in life according to His plans. :saint:

Specializes in Emergency, Cardiac Cath.

Lol, I woke up one morning and said, "huh, maybe I'll go to nursing school". No kidding! I just finished my LPN and have 2 more semesters till I earn my RN. Watch out Masters degree, here I come!:yeah:

Lol, I woke up one morning and said, "huh, maybe I'll go to nursing school". No kidding! I just finished my LPN and have 2 more semesters till I earn my RN. Watch out Masters degree, here I come!:yeah:

That's wonderful! That's pretty much what I did -- but after a few negative job experiences and many many years later than you! :D. I am supposed to start nursing school in the fall. I'm taking A & P this summer which so far has been a really difficult class for me! Hopefully, I'll pass it so I can continue on in the fall as planned.

By the way, I used to live in Phx for many years over 20 and loved Pinetop!

Good luck with your continuation of school!:up:

Specializes in Hospice, Palliative Care, OB/GYN, Peds,.

After reading your stories, I'm afraid mine is boring. I decided to become a nurse when I was 10 years old, many,many years ago. I should say that God decided that I would become a nurse and let me know His will for me. See I had saved my brother from being badly burned and was visiting hime in the hospital and all of those adorable kids wanted to show me their boo-boos. Remember that I was only 10, and as I was leaving hte hospital a voice informed me that I was to be a nurse. I have been a nurse for 41 years so I guess it was supposed to be for me. I have never wanted to do anything else,and now am a Hospice nurse until I retire (?).

Specializes in Emergency, Cardiac Cath.

Nurse2B....thats so funny. Sometimes I feel a little guilty because so many people have these wonderful stories of wanting to help people....we just woke up one day and said "eh why not?" Lol. good for us!

Dont worry about A&P, it was a bummer for me too, but as long as you get the basics down, there isnt too much detail that really helped in nursing school. Do get the basics though!

Too funny that were in Phx for so long. How did you finally escape the evil, evil heat?

Nurse2B....thats so funny. Sometimes I feel a little guilty because so many people have these wonderful stories of wanting to help people....we just woke up one day and said "eh why not?" Lol. good for us!

Dont worry about A&P, it was a bummer for me too, but as long as you get the basics down, there isnt too much detail that really helped in nursing school. Do get the basics though!

Too funny that were in Phx for so long. How did you finally escape the evil, evil heat?

I escaped the heat by falling in love with a wonderful man from the northeast! And, of course, I moved! But the frustrating thing is my children (who are grown and on their own now) are still in AZ and so is my granddaughter and I have another one on the way in Oct. So, I sure miss the children and grandchildren! I usually fly out a couple of times a year.

Back to nursing -- I just found out I didn't pass my last A & P exam! :( I am so bummed. I studied so **** hard for that stupid test. It was on the skin, bones and joints. I am only 6.5 pts away from a C in the class right now. ARRRGH!!! I don't like C's. I am an A B type of person. I am just hoping if I don't pass the course for the summer that I will still be able to attend the nursing program in the fall. I didn't have to take A & P in the summer. I opted to. It's actually part of the first and second semester of the nursing program starting in the fall.

Thanks for listening. I needed to vent!!!:no::banghead:

After reading your stories, I'm afraid mine is boring. I decided to become a nurse when I was 10 years old, many,many years ago. I should say that God decided that I would become a nurse and let me know His will for me. See I had saved my brother from being badly burned and was visiting hime in the hospital and all of those adorable kids wanted to show me their boo-boos. Remember that I was only 10, and as I was leaving hte hospital a voice informed me that I was to be a nurse. I have been a nurse for 41 years so I guess it was supposed to be for me. I have never wanted to do anything else,and now am a Hospice nurse until I retire (?).

How wonderful shrinky that you have been a nurse for all these years! I am sure you have been a great mentor to many nurses throughout the years. I'm hoping that my experience in nursing once I finish school and start working will be just as rewarding and I find someone to preceptor me with your kindness and knowledge. :heartbeat

Specializes in Nursing Home and Assisted Living.

I got a ticket for underage smoking, at fourteen, and needed a job to pay for it. My mom, an LPN, and one of her friends, a CNA, got to take the CNA classes. I have been doing that for five years now and start college this fall, now nineteen, to become a RN.

Specializes in ICU.

I became a nurse because I had some really bad nurses and it p***ed me off. It was when I had my first daughter. The first nurse had been assessing my progress all night and had me start pushing when I was 10cm dilated. The OB came in 10 minutes later, took two seconds to realize that my baby was butt first and I ended up having to have an emergency c-section. The next nurse clamped my foley and left it clamped for several hours until my bladder was so full I was crying from the pain of it (and I don't cry about pain). 1600 cc out when it was finally unclamped. Another nurse spent an hour trying to convince me my baby had heart problems because she was "blue" and ordered EKGs and other tests that I ended up having to pay out of pocket for--my daughter and I both have very visible veins and she is very fair. This same nurse discharged me with a lovely story about how she saw a decapitated baby once caused by a car airbag. They didn't get me up out of the bed until the 4th day, I was never bathed in that time and felt horrible, and I wasn't given breastfeeding education. I was so mad about my experiences that I decided to be an L&D nurse so that someone else wouldn't have to go through what I did. I ended up hating L&D in school (I think partly because I was pregnant at the time and seeing babies born brought back all the memories of pain and horror my labor-induced amnesia had suppressed). Loved ICU, love it still and I am very grateful to those nurses who with their mistakes helped me to find a career I could love (accounting really didn't do it for me). BTW, I did have some very good nurses who cared for me as well, like the one who, instead of just giving me the pain medicine I was begging for, checked me for the cause and discovered the clamped foley.

Specializes in LTC.

Hi All, I Always Heard People Say That Nurse Was Good,the Nurse Was Bad Or I Have To Hang Up The Nurse Is In The Room . I Always Loved The Way The Nurse Was Never Forgotten (except For Her Name) I Was On The Waiting List To Enter School And When My Number Came Up I Was Married Raising My Stepsons So I Put Off What I Wanted. Later I Found Out I Would Need Ivf To Have A Child Of My Own So I Did. I Became Pregnant And Five To Six Weeks In To The Pregnancy I Started Having Small Pains And Very Light Bleeding After Doing Avag Ultrasound The Doc Could Find Nothing Wrong But Said If The Symptoms Persist To Call Him. One Week Later It Started Again I Called And Spoke To The Nurse And Was Quickly Dismissed By Her. I Called Her Again The Next Day And Was Told Take Two Apap And Dont Worry! The Next Day I Was Sceduled For Another Ultrasound To Hear The Heartbeat (still Hurting And Popping Apap) During The Exam The Docter Turned 3 Shadeds Of Blue When He Saw It Was A Tube Pregancy And What Was In The Uterus Was A False Sac. He Scolded Me Asking Why I Did Not Call With Such Important S/s I Told Him If What Happened And He Sent Me Off To Surgery. The Next Day He Informed Me That Nursewas No Longer Employed There However, It Lit Something In Me B/c Less Than 6 Mths Later I Was Enrolled In Nsg Class And I Vowed To Never Dismiss A Pt C/o And Always Keep The Md Informed. I Love Being A Nurse. Some Pt S Even Remember My Name!haha!!!

Specializes in Home Care, Hospice, OB.

well, as a horse-crazed little girl, i wanted to be a vet. when i found out what vets got paid, i started college as a pre-med major at age 16. when i realized how long med school was, versus my then bf, now dh of 30 years, i switched to a business degree to get commissioned in the us army, then got married.

as a mommy, i found out that if i went to the dispensary and told them than my little guy had a temp and was pulling at his ears, i was told he had a virus and sent home with tylenol. if i said "my child is febrile and has all the signs of recurrent otitis media" they looked at his ears and treated appropriatley.

so....i became a nurse because everyone kept asking if i was one.:D

Specializes in ob/gyn.

can't remember now why it was the third grade that I decided to become a nurse and then I was one....I do remember somewhere in high school that my mom said how important it was for women to have a career they could fall back on in case they needed to support themselves...must have been psychic......sure was glad after divorcing after 18 years of marriage...of course, I had been working all along...

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