Contrary to popular belief, nursing is the most challenging, yet most rewarding career path out there (sorry I'm biased). Being a nurse is more than wearing scrubs, showing up to work, punching in and out of the time clock, and going home-- so what does being a nurse really entail?

Long Hours

Being a nurse generally means working day or night shifts, possibly 12 hours at a time or longer. We also work every other weekend and every other holiday, but we don't complain because we love our jobs and we love helping people. We signed up for this.

Stress

You never know what you are walking into, and you usually do not get the same patients you had the day before (bummer). The beginning of the shift is hectic, with trying to get reports, assess your new patients, and come up with the game plan for the shift. Mind you, your patients may be going for a procedure or surgery when you come in and you have to do all the preparations before really wrapping your head around the work that lies ahead.

Learning

You graduate, pass your NCLEX, and get your first job-- Congrats! Just when you think you are done studying for a while, your employer informs you of the EKG classes, CPR classes, and Neuro/Cardiac/Critical Care classes that lie ahead of you. As a nurse, you are never done learning. There are advances in the medical field each and every day, which is why nurses and their knowledge are always evolving.

Challenging Yet Rewarding

There will be days that you hate your job and you run home crying, but there will also be days that you feel so appreciated and grateful to be a nurse. Being a nurse is hard work. We view our patients as individuals and strive to give the greatest care possible, but sometimes our best doesn't feel like it's enough to us. At the end of the day, we love our jobs and are blessed to be able to help as many people as we do.

Communication

Our job relies on good communication and teamwork. We work closely with several people on the health care team such as physicians, respiratory, occupational, physical and speech therapy, and several others. We rely on our patients to communicate their needs, worries, and questions to us. Essentially, communication is what our job is built on.

Compassion

We are nurses because our passion is helping people in need. If we didn't love what we do wholeheartedly, we wouldn't be doing it. If we can help even one person a day we did our job.

Being a nurse is more than your usual 9 to 5 job. We handle and deal with a lot of situations each shift, and no two situations are the same. Sick people count on us to help them and to be their advocate in their time of need each and every day. Being a nurse is the most rewarding job out there. I'm just blessed to able to call myself one.