The Life of a Nurse

Being a nurse is a tough job. I have always heard that nurses are overworked and underpaid, but until you become one, you have NO idea. 

"Yes! I got to eat lunch today!"

Myth # 1: "It must be so nice to only work 3 days a week." 

REALLY? Because I put more into my 3 days a week at work than most people put into 5!

OK, I'm not saying that if you have a Monday-Friday, 9-5 job that you are lazy or don't work hard. And yes, it is nice (and necessary) to have several days off to get things done around the house and maybe relax a little. My 3 days a week still add up to 40 hours per week-it's just crammed in to 3 days instead of 5.

Which brings me to Myth # 2: OK-no real title for this one, but basically...

When I'm at work, I'm at work. It's a complete disconnect from the outside world-I have no clue what is going on. Most people look forward to the weekend and plan accordingly, and I often miss out when I'm working. Yesterday, I got home from work, and Ben asks me, "Hey...did you get a chance to get your direct deposit set up?" All I can do is glare, and manage to respond, "Well not exactly. See, I had time to pee ONCE all day. I inhaled my lunch while standing up in the break room and got 3 phone calls from patients in 20 minutes. No, I didn't have time to get any personal business done today at work." You know what I think about that?! Oh, it must be so nice to get a whole hour to eat lunch!"

Myth # 3: "Wow, you are so lucky that you get to play with babies all day!" HA! I wish! No, as a mother/baby nurse, I get to take care of no less than 8-10 patients (4-5 moms and 4-5 babies) including full assessments, meds, labs, educating, changing diapers, charting, and BREASTFEEDING. I spend about half my day helping Moms breastfeed. I wish I had time to sit and "play" with babies!

Myth # 4: (Not really in regards to being a nurse, but...) breastfeeding is not an automatic thing. Time for my public service announcement regarding breastfeeding: I love it, I am all about it, and willing to spend *lots* of time helping. But I wish more Moms prepared themselves for hard work. Newborn babies don't just latch on like you would think. They have to be taught how to latch and it takes a lot of practice. It's a lot of work at first, but pays off in the end. There is a reason why my hospital staffs 60 lactation nurses- there is a whole career dedicated to helping Moms breastfeed!

I have been seriously considering going back to school <soon> to become a Nurse Practitioner. There are so many areas I could work in, and I'm trying to weigh the pros and cons of each. I think that has prompted me to think about the myths of being a nurse. I do love my job, and it is truly rewarding, but it is not for the weak-minded!