Is it what you thought?

I am starting my program in August and wanted to get new and seasoned nurse opinions on your experience.

If you are a new nurse, is nursing what you had envisioned in your head? Is it better or worse? What do you love about your job?

If you are a seasoned nurse, same questions. Is nursing what you had envisioned? Is it better or worse? What do you love about your job? Would you do it all over again?

Also, do you feel like you get burnt out with nursing?

Thanks!
It's much more challenging than I thought it would be, but I love it more than I ever imagined! I love being there for pt's and families when they are in their most desperate situations. It is definitely stressful, but I haven't gotten burnt out. Taking care of yourself is VERY important!! You can't take care of your pt's if you have nothing in your tank.

I was disallusioned my first year as I did not realize how hard nursing really is. After many years I now believe this is the best career I ever could have

Currently in the new grad disillusioned stage, but it's getting better. The nursing career is more stressful than nursing school was IMO.

Totally different than what I expected. I have to rely on my critical thinking skills to make decisions more than I ever thought I would and school was a lot harder than I thought it would be.But I do love my job.

I didn't know what to expect until my very last semester when I did my internship. No clinical instructors around, just me and a preceptor. I would do it again. Nursing is very interesting, once a nurse always a nurse! I love the opportunities it has given me. And the people I have met. It's changed me for the better.

After a short period in which I was really hating my job, I have grown to really like nursing. The things I never expected were how mean patients could be, how demanding they could be, and how clueless all patients are about our time constraints. Nothing could have prepared me for that.

Different now than when I was a student, in that students are only exposed to the types of nursing that they see in clinicals, and my job as it exists today did not exist when I was in college. Actually, every job I have ever had except two didn't exist when I was in college, and those two were in units that I never saw as a student. So no, I didn't have a good idea of what nursing was all about. ALL is a big word. Keep your mind open and your attitudes ready to change, and you will discover a world of nifty alternatives and options in nursing. Enjoy the ride!

I also didn't realize just how hard nursing can be....and how many "gray areas" can exist. In nursing school they make it seem like you have all of the time in the world and everything is black or white. In reality, that isn't the case.

Nursing is what I envisioned; my motto is "Anything and EVERYTHING can happen." I live for objectivity.Now, that doesn't mean I don't get frustrated, dumbfounded, or shocked, it just makes it easier to cope.

Quote from FutureRN2013If you are a seasoned nurse, same questions. Is nursing what you had envisioned? Is it better or worse? What do you love about your job? Would you do it all over again?Also, do you feel like you get burnt out with nursing?Thanks!

We all get burnt out no matter what career. Even computer people and business executives.

This is a tough question to answer, because the work is so fluid. I have had great years, and years where the word "nurse" was a dirty word to my ears. Much of what it boils down to is politics, economy, environment, and management. All it takes is a power shift in management/executives, and what was one day the best career choice ever, becomes a nightmare on the next day. Our attitude is at least 50% of the equation, but our livelihoods and career are at the mercy of the culture and environment set by those who make the rules. And since healthcare is an ever changing, fluctuating field, things can rapidly deteriorate (or vice versa). I would choose differently had I the option to do it all over.