Any Nurses Out There

I absolutely love nuring. I'm a single mom, I work full time nights, 7p-7a. I get my son on the bus and sleep while he's at school, or keep to working weekends because that is the time he is with his dad. I have many friends that work all weekends, or a weekend option (work 2 weekend days/nights and get a bonus or increase in pay so it equals 3 days). You can find units that have options where you don't do holidays and such but often you have to be there for so long before they make these available to you. Dialisis treatment centers for example work regular 8 hour shifts, 5 days a week, no weekends, no holidays but they do not hire you until you have 2 years experience.
The school can be rough, it was hard on me because I felt that I had to spend more time studying and reading and that it took away time from my son. Many other mom's that I went with felt the same thing (but there were 5 of us in the class of 20 and we all successfully completed the program, so it can be done!)
I love my job, and don't think I could be happier doing something else. It's got very sad days, hard days, trying days but they are followed by rewarding days. Our unit works very well together, and that helps a lot too. My schedule allows me to be home to do my sons homework, volunteer at picture day at school and keep the house clean while still working full time. I do not miss holidays, but I work night shift, so sometimes I'm REALLY sleepy but I'm there. I get home before he wakes up on christmas morning, and can schedule to work 3 days, take 8 day vacation and work another 3 without having to take paid time off. :) Therefore saving that time for weeks my son may be sick.
I hope this helps! Best of luck on your search for a careerer.
My mom works in the schools...she loves that schedule also, she has summers off for vacations and works the exact same schedule as my baby brother (he's 18 lol). She gets off for every holiday, starts school the same time as him and gets off the same time. Little kids all day long would ware me out but she LOVES it.

My mother finish her nursing school while my brother and sister and I were growing up, I remember not seeing her a lot, but I also remember that when we did see her she made up for it. We would do full day sort of family things like go to the beach or take a long drive someplace. She made sure that we knew why she was so busy and how important it was for us to be good for her. Dad helped a lot and we were older so we were able to do things for ourselves. We really didn't NEED mom that much so she was able to study and such.

I hope this helps.

Hello J. :)
I'm attending school right now to go into the medical assisting field. Like the other ladies said, I have heard that also, that working in hospitals is more demanding compared to working in a doctor's office. The good thing about medical assistants is that they do get more flexible hours, holidays off, ect.. The better thing about nurses is that they make better pay starting out. I feel like the MA field will be the best choice for me though :) Good luck to you on figuring out what you would like to do!

Nursing is a great field. The beauty of a Nursing Degree is the wide variety of specialties you can do. You can work in any of the departments you listed as interests. It is an intense commitment to get your degree but it really pays off. You can apply for positions that meet YOUR needs. Most clinics and Dr's offices are no weekend/no holiday work. If you work in a hospital setting, most departments are open 24/7. That's where your weekend and Holiday obligations are included. I have been working in the Hospital for the last eighteen years. That time has included being a Hospital Assistant while going to school to get my degree. I work every 3rd weekend and some holidays. I work mostly nights (12 hour shifts). Not the most popular shift for most, but it works very well for my family. Let me now if you have anymore questions about Nursing. It may be the right thing for you:)

J.,
I am/was a nurse. I worked as a nurse full-time until the birth of my son. I decided to stay home with him for many reasons. The good thing about nursing is that there are so many options for you. If you want to spend time with your family and this is a priority for you, then you can make it happen. I wouldn't limit yourself to just thinking that you want pre/post-op or cancer. There are many possibilities that you may not even be aware of yet. Keep an open mind. Although working in a hospital gives you many options, it can also be the most demanding. People don't stop getting sick on weekends and holidays:)
For example, I worked in the operating room and I loved it. It was a level one trauma center, so we had to have coverage 24/7. This allowed nurses to work only on the weekends and spend the entire week with their family. However, other nurses liked having the weekends/holidays off for family, but were forced to cover these shifts at times as well.
Although I am glad I went through nursing school, I cannot say that I would want to do it again. It was very demanding, time consuming, and flat out hard at times (and I was just out of high school still living with mom and dad so school was my only focus).
I do not regret doing it and I know that I can always find a good job. I am proud to say I am a nurse and I would recommend it to anyone. Just be prepared to put the hard work in. In the end, it WILL be worth it. You will have the ability to work your family into your schedule if that is your goal. There are so many different types of nursing jobs out there that make this possible.

Once you become a nurse, the scheduling can be a dream. I am an oddball and think third shift would be perfect so I can be there for my kids when they get off the bus, help with homework etc. My problem is this....getting there! I started working on my nursing degree in 2004(I joke that I'm on the ten year plan!) I became pregnant in the second quarter and decided to take some time off. The director of our program stresses that school has to be your top priority and this is something that I can't commit too, my family and 3 children will always be my top priority. I went back to the program in 2007 and it was rather grueling(studying, laundry, cooking, cleaning, getting everyone to everywhere they needed to be)and it all became too much. I know people can do it(work fulltime, go to school fulltime, clinicals until 11pm at night, and take care of family) but I'm not ashamed to admit that I couldn't do it at the time. I don't mean to scare you but it is a challenge. It is an amazing career field to get into and I can't think of a better way to serve the Lord. I wish you the best of luck in your decision. Good luck!

Hi J.! I am not a nurse. However, I have friends who are. I've also worked with a lot of them. Have you thought about working in a field other than medical? I have worked in the social services/mental health field most of my life and nurses have a place there also. I have worked for companies that provide services to developmentally disabled individuals such as group homes, supported living in community apartments, and sheltered work shops. These type companies hire nurses to teach medicine administration courses, review resident medicines and health records as well as other things. They typically work M-F day time hours with no holidays. When I was a state case manager in NC wee had a nurse who worked in our office. She was in charge of making sure our clients had the appropriate services to meet their health needs as well as monitoring how their medications were working. Again this was a M-F office job though she did do home visits. I just thought I'd mention that there are options open that aren't in a hospital, nursing home, or doctor office.

I have an aunt that just finisher her LPN and is now doing her RN schooling. It is VERY demanding! She took her courses over 2 years instead of one, and that helped cut down on some of the school work. I think, like with any job, the first few years are the hardest. You'll be low on the totem pole at work and may have to sacrifice weekends and a holidays. I have a friend that does nursing and she works nights so she can be home during the day. It is an incredibly rewarding career though. My SIL is an LPN and was lucky enough to get a job in a doctor's office. Go to the school and talk to some of the professors and students. That may give you a better idea of what it's like.

I am a nurse, working in a busy hospital. I work 7p-7a three shifts a week. I am lucky and my manager gave me a fixed schedule so my son will only be in daycare part-time. I love nursing and the medical field. There is so much diversity and flexibility with nursing that you can find whatever job suits your needs.

Nursing school is very tough. It is a lot of studying, clinicals, stress and fatigue. Taking care of a family will be tough but the end result will probably be worth it.

I am a registered nurse. I have been working on my floor in a hospital for almost 7 years. For the past three years, I have worked weekend days, that's 2 12 hour shifts, sat/sun. I do this so I can stay home with my kids, I'm kind of like a SAHM during the week, and then my husband watches them on the weekend. This saves us money on childcare and I get to be home with my kids. I do miss out on family events that occur on the weekend (like showers, birthday), and I miss out on some weekend events (craft shows), etc. Holidays do occasionally fall on the weekend, and then we just celebrate some after work, and on alternate days. I feel privileged to be able to work, but spend most of my time with my kids. I will probably go back to work three weekdays of 12 hours once my kids are in school.
I do enjoy the flexibility, and the difference you can make being a nurse.