I just want to love being a nurse again
I was ready to quit
I can still remember standing in the woods near the church we were attending at the time. As tears streamed down my face, I looked to the sky and yelled these exact words, “I just want to love being a nurse again.”
I had been a nurse for 19 years and had always loved it. But, I didn’t anymore.
It wasn’t nursing I hated
Looking back, I can see that I still loved nursing, but what I didn’t love was the place I worked or the way I was treated there. Still, I was ready to leave nursing completely. If I had any idea of how to support my family in similar way to how I was able to as a nurse, I probably would have left nursing.
Now that a few years have passed, I’m glad I didn’t leave.
I determined that I would build a life I loved
From this moment, under the trees, I began a journey to build a life I loved.
This started with getting out of the terrible job I was in and finding something that better suited me. Taking time to look back on my career I realized that I had always been teaching. This was true not only in my job but also in many of the things I did outside of work. Not only had I always been teaching, but looking back, I realized that I loved doing it and that I was really good at it.
This started a journey that took me to complete my BSN, and then go on to get my MSN-Ed and spend the years since then working as a nurse educator in hospitals and universities.
It’s not just about work
This story starts with me wanting to leave nursing. I know that many nurses have felt the same way. I found that changing my specialty and where I worked was enough to reignite the passion for nursing that I thought was gone forever.
If you’re considering leaving nursing, I’d encourage you to consider changing where you work, the specialty you work in, or some other change before you leave completely. It may be time to leave, but a change of scenery could change everything for you.
In a recent Podcast episode, I discuss this very topic:
Is it Time for You to Leave Nursing?
If you need someone to talk to, my inbox is always open and I promise, I will not try to sell you anything.
Matt Norman
P.S. The Companion Workbook for my book, The Restored Nurse, is now available on Amazon.
