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How is being a registered nurse different from what you learned in school?
What is something you wish you knew before getting into the medical field?
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Nicole’s Answer
The knowledge you receive provides a great foundation for what you will do when you start working as a nurse, but the experience is completely different! Not bad, just different. If you find a good school to attend, then you will be prepared for the work. You will learn how to deal with different people (staff, patients, families) on the job. Each job provides a different experience. Jump in - if you love nursing, you will more than likely enjoy your job!
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Marlena’s Answer
Nursing school teaches you the perfect world, real life is messy! It definitely prepares you knowledge and necessary skills wise, but when face to face with reality, it's way different!
I've dabbled in a little of all areas but my passion is the youngest and the oldest age groups. I LOVED labor and delivery, post Parfums, and the newborn nursery. I love my older adult population. You do experience death in both but in the older adult population, while it hurts your heart and soul, you cry, grieve, you know they have lived life, no matter how hard or great it was. I just could NOT get over the bad vs the good in labor and delivery. When that new mom dies, when you delivery that baby on your own because after they pass in the womb, the timetable isn't exact, neither is regular labor, but when the body kicks in, rarely can you get that doctor there in time. But when you delivery a baby that has already passed, mom and dad intend on dressing the baby, wrapping him or her, and taking pictures, then you deliver that baby, it's deformed, and they won't even look at him or her, your heart breaks and while you can't do it in front of mom and dad, after taking the baby out of the room, I wrapped her and held her. I cried horribly. I knew why the baby had died, I could wrap my head and heart around that, but it certainly broke my soul. When the baby dies at birth, when we can't save him, or we do but have no idea the long term effects the lack of oxygen will have later on. When that mom keeps coming into the unit, delivers, walks out within a few hours to get a "hit" and abandons baby after baby. Yes, will go to a much better family hopefully, but you stop and think of what this does to a child as they get older, that initial bonding that never occurs. I can't tell you how many babies I wanted to take home because mom was doing drugs during labor. For me, the good was so beautiful, the emotions in the room, I always cried, every delivery because of the emotions that could be felt in the room. But the bad stuck with me so strongly, it outweighed all the good for me. For a lot, it's not like that, and the good outweighs the bad, but for me, it hurt my heart too much. Find your spot in nursing, your passion, where you don't grow hard, but compassionate, but can hold composure in front of others, cry and grieve later. Have that person you can talk to, without violating privacy, because sometimes you've just gotta let it out then you feel better. Be strong, keep going, because no matter how much bad happens...the lives you touch, the smiles you create, the shoulders you give, the care you provide, the compassion you provide, the support you give, is so very much worth it!
Labor and delivery
Long term care
Emergency nursing
Clinic nursing
OR nursing
I've dabbled in a little of all areas but my passion is the youngest and the oldest age groups. I LOVED labor and delivery, post Parfums, and the newborn nursery. I love my older adult population. You do experience death in both but in the older adult population, while it hurts your heart and soul, you cry, grieve, you know they have lived life, no matter how hard or great it was. I just could NOT get over the bad vs the good in labor and delivery. When that new mom dies, when you delivery that baby on your own because after they pass in the womb, the timetable isn't exact, neither is regular labor, but when the body kicks in, rarely can you get that doctor there in time. But when you delivery a baby that has already passed, mom and dad intend on dressing the baby, wrapping him or her, and taking pictures, then you deliver that baby, it's deformed, and they won't even look at him or her, your heart breaks and while you can't do it in front of mom and dad, after taking the baby out of the room, I wrapped her and held her. I cried horribly. I knew why the baby had died, I could wrap my head and heart around that, but it certainly broke my soul. When the baby dies at birth, when we can't save him, or we do but have no idea the long term effects the lack of oxygen will have later on. When that mom keeps coming into the unit, delivers, walks out within a few hours to get a "hit" and abandons baby after baby. Yes, will go to a much better family hopefully, but you stop and think of what this does to a child as they get older, that initial bonding that never occurs. I can't tell you how many babies I wanted to take home because mom was doing drugs during labor. For me, the good was so beautiful, the emotions in the room, I always cried, every delivery because of the emotions that could be felt in the room. But the bad stuck with me so strongly, it outweighed all the good for me. For a lot, it's not like that, and the good outweighs the bad, but for me, it hurt my heart too much. Find your spot in nursing, your passion, where you don't grow hard, but compassionate, but can hold composure in front of others, cry and grieve later. Have that person you can talk to, without violating privacy, because sometimes you've just gotta let it out then you feel better. Be strong, keep going, because no matter how much bad happens...the lives you touch, the smiles you create, the shoulders you give, the care you provide, the compassion you provide, the support you give, is so very much worth it!
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Just to clarify, it sounds like nursing classes didn't prepare you for the complicated emotions you might feel as a nurse. Am I understanding that correctly?
Gurpreet Lally, Admin
I knew it would be hard and emotional. I knew I wanted to be a nurse, but had no idea the realm of emotions I'd feel. But no amount of schooling can prepare you for how you may or may not feel. Only the experience itself will show you. Others can only share their thoughts, experiences, give you an idea, but you never know until faced with the actual experience, will you know how you will feel, react. Clinicals give you an idea but until it's all your patient, all your care, all on you, will you get the full effect, only the experience of doing it can give you that.
Marlena Bushway