Started nursing...dont want to be a nurse...

My sister did nursing and realised during one of her placements in the first year that it just wasn't what she wanted to do. She walked out and is the happier for it.

I think my parents were a bit disappointed, but we all love her even more for having the courage to do what it took to make herself happy.

I think that sometimes it's better to stick at something and finish it no matter how much you hate it.

I trained as a physio and was bullied during one of my placements. From that time I HATED going on placements and felt physically sick at the thought of going out on them.

It took a lot of pressure from my family to make me continue with the course and now that I'm finished it I'm glad that I stuck it out. If I'd walked away when I wanted to then it would have simply confirmed that I was completely useless and a waste of space and the sense of failure would have stuck with me for the rest of my life. Now I can say that despite everything I finished it!

I will probably never work as a physio so you could say it was a waste but I'm am working in the NHS in a completely different job which I love and I'm happy.

As for you OP, I think that you need to recognise that there are very few jobs that don't include working with people so unless you actually have a job a job in mind and the qualifications to do it then you may be better off staying where you are.

Just because you are a nurse it doesn't mean that you have to work as a nurse. My mum trained as a nurse, worked as a nurse for some time and then decided she wanted a change. She worked in a factory for a while and then trained as a teacher. One of the lecturers at university trained as nurse and then went on to be a physio and obviously now they are teaching so it's possible to just use the nursing as a springboard to something else.

Those who think that parents are evil for not wanting their kids to walk away from a course should recognise that it's not a good thinkg to have on your CV and that you will need to explain why you just gave up. It doesn't make you look good to an employer or someone who is offering you a training position. They may wonder if you have the capacity to stick at anything or whether you will just walk away if you get bored.

At the very minimum I would say get another job before quitting the course.

Physio seems a really good career! I see physio's and OT's on on the ward and they are way more laid back than nurses and their workload seems a lot less stressful. I may be wrong its just what ive experienced, can I ask apart from the bullying what is it about physio that you didnt like? Do you think they would let me on with a nursing degree? I only got an E in A level biology which i guess holds me back but yea it seems a much better career than nursing.

I know what you mean about quiting looking bad on a CV but then again i worry that if i finish it will look odd to employers that i just got qualified and want to change career already. Im worried they will think i just did it for the bursary or whatever.

There was nothing about physio that I disliked and I would have loved to keep working in that area. It was purely the bullying that made me walk away.

But don't get fooled by thinking that the grass is greener on the other side. Physio and OTs have just as stressful lives as nurses and just as many demands. And they have much less chance of getting the job that they want at the end of training than a nurse does because there are fewer vacancies.

With regard to applying to be a physio then you need to be aware that they are reducing the numbers being trained which makes it very important that your qualifications stand out. i would definitely do something about improving the Biology grade, perhaps resitting it or alternatively doing an open university human biology course. and obviously coming out with a good degree can only help.

So far as employers looing askance at you walking away from nursing then I can only give my own experience. I was asked at interview why I wasn't continuing with physio and simply quoted the lack of jobs and mentioned the bullying and the fact that I didn't want to stay in that situation. I was still offered four out of four jobs that I interviewed for.

Ok I thanks, I did an open uni human biology course lol and got the lowest grade - grade 4. I did well on my assignments some were in the 80's and 90's but because I didnt get over a certain mark on my exam (only got 55) it reduced my score to the lowest grade. I thought they would have taken an average of everything but thats not how they work. Oh well perhaps the grades say it all.

Im half way through a 3 year metal health nursing diploma and dont really want to be a nurse. On all my placements i just wanted the time to pass so i could be back in uni again. I sort of enjoyed one placement and that was working on a dementia ward I liked the physical side to it.. checking bp's and blood sugars, learning about defibs etc I wished id have done general nursing but then i hate the responsibility that qualifieds have.

Everytime i mention that i wat to quit though my family start screaming at me saying that im an idiot throwing away a bursary and career at a time when people are scraping for jobs. I say that i dont want to be nurse but they say just get the qualification then you can do what you want. I cant imagine what Id do with a mental health nursing diploma other than nursing, im happy to carry on with the course i'l just grin and bear the placements but whats the point? My mums a general nurse and doesnt seem to understand how little motvation i have for nursing.

I started it as im very into psychology, health and thought i might like it but its made me realise that i dont really want to work with people Im a introvert and would prefere a quiet, simple low key job.

Any ideas/advice? Would the qualification help towards other jobs/careers do you think?

Hi, I am currently a student nurse who is feeling exactly like this! I was just wondering how you got on and if you carried on with nursing?

you are not the only one battling with this. i am too in this position the only difference is, i am 4 weeks from qualifying and i really don't know whether it is for me my parents are like get a nursing job and see how it goes but the thing is though we all know what it is like because we have being doing it throughout our degree. the issue with any type of degree is that people who have never experienced doing one assumes that because you started it you have to finish it and it will be worth it in the long run, yes it may be true but the only person who actually can make a decision is you. i know it's hard to think about what your parents have said or the disappointment you supposedly gave them but that will pass it's your career and your decision. this degree is so hard in the sense were three years were juggling placements, assignments exams getting everything uni gives us signed by mentors who either are really kind and helpful or those who just don't want to help and aren't willing to sign it. i just say you just need to do what's right for you.