Career change - Nursing?

[Surfermummytobe]

Hi everyone,

Im currently 31 weeks pregnant with my first wee boy. My partner and I both work in the Oil and Gas industry and he works on a 4 on-4 off rotation. I've been in my current role for 2 years now and have hated it since the first month I started, but due to covid etc I decided to stay and just save save save. The maternity benefits etc are brilliant and its 9-5. However being stuck in a job I hate with an unsupportive manager and being the only petrophysicist on the team, has been super difficult. I was meant to get a promotion back in 2019 but my manager "Forgot" to send it through.

I spent a lot of time in ICU with my twin brother when he had a traumatic head injury and unfortunately passed away when I was in my second year at uni. This experience definitely changed me as a person and I've worked as a surf instructor, swimming teacher, lifeguard and did lots of first aid through my experiences. I bloody love it! I'm thinking about doing a second degree in nursing ( which is free in Scotland thankfully) and have a really strong gut feeling about doing it.

Has anyone did a change to nursing with young children? It will be great when my partner is home because he will be home for the 4 weeks, I'm just worried about childcare when he's away. I haven't submitted an application yet but I'm thinking about doing it in the next few weeks while I'm at work.

Is this a crazy idea? Or does anyone have any stories/ advice which could help? I've tried to view this job as just a "job" and I do a lot of surfing/ water sports which help me forget about my job. However I feel like there should be something about a job I enjoy. Its got to the point where I've struggled to get out of bed in the mornings ( even before pregnancy) and I've become a shadow of my former self.. Its horrible! I want to be in something more enjoyable for the sake of my partner and my baby.

It's not a crazy idea, but you do need to think about childcare that will work with long shifts, unsocial hours - nights and weekends etc as these will definitely be required during training, even if you get a more 9-5 job when you qualify.

Honestly, it's a lot of work for not enough money but also very rewarding in its own way. Have you thought of other healthcare careers? Radiography, OT, Physio, SLT - i retrained as a nurse in my early 30's and quite honestly I wish I'd thought more about it and done something else! AHP's start at band 6 I think - I'm only now top of band 5 after 7 years.

Cant speak from personal experience, only that of family members who are nurses. The course is full on for a uni course - you are on shift a lot as obviously training on the job so doing 35hr weeks etc, often unsociable hours. Could be tough with a little one with coursework too. Is it worth waiting until your child is at school perhaps? They also moan about their jobs too, but definitely find it rewarding at times. If it's something you really want to do, then go for it.

I don't have experience of nursing but I do support nursing students at uni. They are some of the hardest working students I support. The course is really full on with lots of placements on top of academic work.

On placement, you work the shift pattern of your practice mentor so that could mean weeks of unsociable hours. You don't get much warning about placement either, so arranging childcare could be very challenging.

I'd think it was only doable with a strong support network around you, willing to do childcare at very little notice including overnight stays.

I work in oil and gas too OP and can’t say I enjoy my job. I’ve dreamed of working in a career that’s more people focussed and feels more purposeful than that I do. I’ve really considered a career change. I’ve thought a lot about it and really want to make the move to teaching but I hear so many people complain about this too and equally I feel trapped by my salary as I’d never make this much as a teacher...

I live in hope for early retirement but I’m still a good 30 years away from that and working in a career you don’t enjoy for so long sounds miserable?!

Aaaanyway. Sorry I’ve made this about me but just to let you know you’re not alone! I also have a toddler so everything just seems totally up achievable right now. I do think I’ll change at some point in the future and in the meantime I’ve found it easier to reframe my thoughts about work - instead of it being a job I don’t enjoy I look at it as a job that allows us to have the lifestyle we want, to live in a nice place and provides us with the means to enjoy new experiences.

@SisterA

I work in oil and gas too OP and can’t say I enjoy my job. I’ve dreamed of working in a career that’s more people focussed and feels more purposeful than that I do. I’ve really considered a career change. I’ve thought a lot about it and really want to make the move to teaching but I hear so many people complain about this too and equally I feel trapped by my salary as I’d never make this much as a teacher...

I live in hope for early retirement but I’m still a good 30 years away from that and working in a career you don’t enjoy for so long sounds miserable?!

Aaaanyway. Sorry I’ve made this about me but just to let you know you’re not alone! I also have a toddler so everything just seems totally up achievable right now. I do think I’ll change at some point in the future and in the meantime I’ve found it easier to reframe my thoughts about work - instead of it being a job I don’t enjoy I look at it as a job that allows us to have the lifestyle we want, to live in a nice place and provides us with the means to enjoy new experiences.

Hey lass,

Thanks for the reply!! Are we the same person? 🤣 I'm so glad that I can relate to someone else about this. I've done the exact same as you, I've looked into teaching and nursing and a lot of people have told me not to go into teaching especially because of x,y,z... I thought about that during second year at uni but I was just so much in shock I didn't have any time to think about anything else, just finish that geology degree.

I totally understand you with the thinking of waiting until retirement .. I definitely couldn't I would honestly end up like squidward. The money trap is definitely real, I do honesty hardly anything at work right now and I find it's worse being constantly bored and feel my brain go to mush, than being overworked / stressed. I did surf life saving and surf instructing every summer at uni and although it was a few months every year, it was brilliant. It was scary, stressful and so rewarding. Part of me is wishing I can be laid off after maternity leave so I have no option and just dive straight into it.

My mums a care worker and dad works in a distillery and they are both always on their feet and are interacting with people most days and both seem fulfilled with it. I'm so stuck !! I preferred washing toilets and having a laugh with the other lifeguards when I was a pool lifeguard , cycling to my work and just enjoying people. Now I'm so used to this money it's like .. shit !!

@Atla

It's not a crazy idea, but you do need to think about childcare that will work with long shifts, unsocial hours - nights and weekends etc as these will definitely be required during training, even if you get a more 9-5 job when you qualify.

Honestly, it's a lot of work for not enough money but also very rewarding in its own way. Have you thought of other healthcare careers? Radiography, OT, Physio, SLT - i retrained as a nurse in my early 30's and quite honestly I wish I'd thought more about it and done something else! AHP's start at band 6 I think - I'm only now top of band 5 after 7 years.

Hi there!

Thanks for the reply. That's great you went back at 30, did you do a degree before this too?

I'm 23 at the moment and I've done a degree in geology/ petroleum geology, thinking I'd hopefully get something more hands on/ actually doing interpretations on the data. I work as a helpdesk support instead , which is basically just clients shouting at you over the phone because of a bug in the software...a few other colleagues have complained at the lack of training but what can you do, it's hard times out there and foke are much, much worse off. I feel selfish but it makes me feel guilty getting paid lots whilst I've got friends / my parents working their asses off and not getting paid enough. Yet they seem so much more content.

I've had a look into other things like radiography and paramedic science. However my gut is going towards nursing. I need some more experience before applying just to be sure , I'm sure that will come along with caring for a wee baby 24/7 and maybe try get a job as a carer / healthcare assistant first.

I know childcare is going to be a tough one to figure out, my dad is thinking of finishing up at the distillery and would be willing to do childcare, he suggested it recently. However they are about 45 mins away so not sure how that would work as he drives my mum to work too. My partners parents - one of them is a carer too and his dad has retired but he smokes in their house and I don't want him baby sitting with all that smoke!

I guess it's just a matter of taking things day by day and seeing how we can work things out .. maybe it would be better to wait until he's at school. And try find a more enjoyable job in the mean time ..

@Bridget83

Cant speak from personal experience, only that of family members who are nurses. The course is full on for a uni course - you are on shift a lot as obviously training on the job so doing 35hr weeks etc, often unsociable hours. Could be tough with a little one with coursework too. Is it worth waiting until your child is at school perhaps? They also moan about their jobs too, but definitely find it rewarding at times. If it's something you really want to do, then go for it.

Hi there!

Thanks for the reply:) I can imagine it's full on, I've got friends who are nurses and they do complain at the shifts and long hours, but overall seem that they love their job and constantly tell me how they couldn't do my job sitting down all day.

I do think getting settled into being a new mum and taking a few years to maybe just find a more enjoyable job/ hopefully get part time hours with this current role and then try and apply when he's at school !

So many decisions but it's a good feeling to have a sort of goal to aim for , I've got an applicant evening tonight so maybe worth asking all this stuff in the call!

I’m a nurse who would love a career change 🤣. I think it would be fine to be a nurse with young children. Definitely consider community nursing which is what I do. It’s more like 9-5 hours and a lot less stressful than the hospital. I’m a bit like you in that I knew pretty early on that I was in the wrong career but I feel trapped now as I’m in decent money and couldn’t take the pay cut to retain. I might try to retain as a health visitor when I return to work

Woah @Surfermummytobe yes indeed I think we may be the same person?! I did look into teaching when at uni too (I actually was interested in midwifery too but felt like I’d missed the boat as never did biology at school) but lack of confidence? Anxiety? I just didn’t have the backbone at the time to take the leap. I’d been told by so many people to “aim higher” and even when I started working Ive always done school outreach stuff to try and keep my PVG up and have current experience and a couple of times I’ve mentioned an interest in teaching and the teachers have told me not to because of this or that...

Sometimes you’re right it does help if the decision is taken out of your hands and you’re forced into it.

I really hope you do go for it though... it’s hard isn’t it? Keep being told “at least you have a job” but... doesn’t make it any easier being miserable day in day out.

WOW I really need a career change... promised myself I would do another survival course which will be due in 3 years time but quite sure I said that 5 years ago too so..

Tbh if I could go back in time and be 23 again my advice to myself would be do it now. The salary only gets higher and you feel more and more trapped as time goes on and then you’ll end up being me 7 years later still wondering what would have happened if I’d just gone with my gut at the time?!

Whatever you decide I truly wish you the best of luck!!