NC as this is very outing!! I suspect Im one of the few who have done both. There totally different jobs and I'm unconvinced one makes you a good candidate for the other.
Nursing is much harder whilst your actually at work most of us work 12/13 for shifts often with no break all day that includedsnothing to drink in 12 13 hours, yesterday for example I didn't go to the loo all day as I was too busy but as I hadn't drunk since 6 am then I didn't need to go anyway, I average 15000 steps a shift, I work in a very stressful environment and we are very understaffed which is worrying when lives are in your hands. We are constantly being verbally abused by our patients and their families, people are very aggressive, its now a weekly occurrence and people are just bloody rude many seem to think that we are trying to be difficult when in fact we have their relatives best interests at heart and we are in a system that has totally collapsed and waiting very long periods to see a nurse/doctor/physio or get medication to take home is the norm and not me being difficult. Ive been threatened by guns knives glass, been pushed punched spat at and chased, had furniture thrown at me and have regularly hidden behind desks etc waiting for security. No hour is the same as the last we go from busy to hectic, with increasingly only very occasional episodes where we're quieter for 10-15 minutes. Im regularly part of medical team working together to save lives. More and more is expected of nurses we no longer do bed baths and mop brows we are a essential part of a a medical team making clinical decisions. We are working in a system where increasingly money (or in the case of the NHS lack of it) is effecting clinical decisions and care (this is affecting you your children your parents etc) and will affect their outcomes this is hard to live and work with everyone I work in believes in the NHS free health care to all regardless of who you are. IME everyone is pulling the same direction all I work with care about the patients above everything else many work extra hour/stay after our 13 hours is up to care for the dying, and their for families we view as am humour and privilege that we can reach out a hand and help people. We work Xmas Easter nights including days and nights in the same week so many have permanent "jet lag" and there are serious health implication around working nights; early onset of cancer and dementia coronary heart disease etc like teachers and many other occupations nurses miss assemblies nativity plays etc We get approx 8 weeks holiday a year (if you work BH"s) which is better than many and you'll never find it hard to find a job because we are heading for staffing crisis of gargantuen proportions. Interview processes are nothing like teaching usually just a one easy welcoming interview and when would you like to start (hopefully now)? We're getting so desperate we'll almost take anyone now a days and there are so many different areas to work in most people can find something that suits their personality I personally thrive on front line stuff others like wards or the community or specialities etc. When I finish work I rarely take things home, although now I have a senior position I do it a bot more than I used too but it really isn't encouraged. Its stressful and when I was teaching most teachers said they didn't know how I did it.
Teaching is definitely less hard work when your actually doing the job but you take loads of crap home, lesson preparations marking etc, there seemed to be endless pointless meeting etc after school which we're described as voluntary but weren't. There is to my min an odd atmosphere in teaching I just didn't get the impression you were all pulling in the same direction. I felt there was less of an "we're all in this together" and definitely less job satisfaction. All the teachers I knew moaned about the job, the SLT, the hours etc we moan in the NHS but not in the same way I can't quite put my finger on it, Im going to be lynched for this but I also found teachers were very image conscious "be professional" and being seen as a professional was very important to them, I no longer hear this being said in the NHS ( maybe its given?).
If I was youOP what would I advise? If youre serious thinking about nursing's do a stint as an HCA you easily get work through you local hospital bank, get a feel for what nursing is all about. Its bloody hard work and as I said technically very demanding but most days I come home thinking I have actually made a difference.