Well, it’s been a little over two months since I checked in from the nurses’ station and things are definitely different for this RN.
Good news: I started a new job on a different labor and delivery unit at a completely different hospital.
Bad news: I quit 😳
I had only been there for 2.5 weeks. It wasn’t a bad job; it was actually very nice. The nurses were great. It’s way slower than my original L&D unit. It seemed as though it was going to be a lot less stressful.
So why did I leave?
Because you know, I’m just not interested anymore. The whole point of me switching jobs was to see if I didn’t like labor at all or if I just didn’t enjoy it at my original hospital. The truth is – it’s neither of those reasons. The work is still the same. Labor will always be labor. The doctors are different and the policies are different, but the core of patient care in L&D will never change.
After almost 2.5 years as a labor nurse, I’ve learned some things about myself and nursing in general:
- I don’t always want to have the same patient all day long and labor can be a looonnngggggg process (this was also an issue I had as a psych nurse)
- I like to talk to my patients, educate them, and send them on their way
- Bedside nursing isn’t for everyone and that’s okay, but bedside nursing doesn’t look the same in every specialty
- Better to have a nurse who loves their job but isn’t as good at it than to have a nurse who’s good at it but doesn’t love it. One will work their ass off to become better and the other will end up sacrificing adequate patient care for the sake of getting the job done faster. (Guilty of both honestly 🤦🏽♀️)
- I am not a night shift person anymore. I used to be able to work it all, but now I’m more convinced than ever that I need to be awake when the rest of the world is awake and sleeping when everyone else is sleeping
So, what now?
Honestly guys, I don’t even know. Luckily I’m still employed PRN at my OG L&D unit and even though it is the craziest place ever, I still enjoy it most times. So I think I will ride that out until I find something a little bit more to my liking. There’s also the possibility and likelihood of going back to school to get my next degree. I’m just unsure right now. It’s scary really – to go from having everything planned out to wondering what next week is going to look like. I’ll have to keep you guys posted.
Xoxo,
Ash, RN