I'm thinking of attempting something I'd be terrible at

[freedomclub]

I think I would be a terrible nurse. I'm not comfortable with being touched or touching people. I'm afraid to hold babies. I'm not great at small talk. But I still find myself thinking about this a lot. Maybe throwing myself head first into something WAY out of my league is a good idea? I'm kind of a chicken ****.

Also it's something I think I'd be terrible at BUT it's in the same category of work I want to get into, which is mental health. I'd get my BSN & RN and then get a M.S in mental health nursing. I don't think I'd be terrible at the mental health part, just the..hands on nursing.

So I guess I posted this to find out if anyone else has ever dove headfirst into something they think they'd be awful at, and if so how did it go?

[pianoperformer]

I never have. But are you good at biology and such? If not, I think it might be a very bad choice, or else a very bad several years to get the education.

[freedomclub]

I already have my B.S in Applied Biology. My plan would be an accelerated BSN program. The material is interesting, it's more the approach that gets me. I've always considered myself a "scientist" but I've also always been miserable. I'm thinking of just shaking things up. A whole new approach to working.

[Ecce Homo]

Originally Posted by freedomclub

I think I would be a terrible nurse. I'm not comfortable with being touched or touching people. I'm afraid to hold babies. I'm not great at small talk. But I still find myself thinking about this a lot. Maybe throwing myself head first into something WAY out of my league is a good idea? I'm kind of a chicken ****.

Also it's something I think I'd be terrible at BUT it's in the same category of work I want to get into, which is mental health. I'd get my BSN & RN and then get a M.S in mental health nursing. I don't think I'd be terrible at the mental health part, just the..hands on nursing.

So I guess I posted this to find out if anyone else has ever dove headfirst into something they think they'd be awful at, and if so how did it go?

Why would you put yourself through that? Is there no other way to get to what you love than through misery? Believe me, if you already know you suck at this thing you're about to embark on, then you will continue to be miserable. Is that what you really want?

Or maybe my understanding of your post is completely wrong!

[Parthon]

It sounds more like you are scared of it than would be bad at it. Either way there can be three good outcomes.

1) You suck at nursing after all, you throw yourself into it for a few years, you do really badly and make a complete mess. You leave the field knowing a lot more about yourself and what you want out of life.

2) You are good at nursing but find it boring, unfulfilling and repetative. It doesn't make you happy like you thought it would, so after a few years of disappointment you get the courage up and walk away. Of course during this time you have learnt a lot more about yourself and what you want out of life.

3) You love nursing and are really good at it. You wake up in the morning feeling inspired and you love going to work to help those in need. You've found your fulfilling career and it's what you want to spend the next decade doing. Of course at the same time you learn a lot more about yourself and what you want out of life.

There are plenty worse outcomes, like being too scared to take it on and wondering what if, or taking it on and thinking you might have missed something else along the way, or getting stuck in the career you don't like or are bad at and not having the courage to get the hell out again. But if you are courageous, you won't get stuck in these. I think the best advice is to look at life as a journey rather than a destination, that the emphasis is on living and being instead of having and doing, and that every moment is just as important as any other. All in all, I think nursing would be an interesting experience at the very least.

[Gewyne]

Originally Posted by freedomclub

I think I would be a terrible nurse. I'm not comfortable with being touched or touching people. I'm afraid to hold babies. I'm not great at small talk. But I still find myself thinking about this a lot. Maybe throwing myself head first into something WAY out of my league is a good idea? I'm kind of a chicken ****.

Also it's something I think I'd be terrible at BUT it's in the same category of work I want to get into, which is mental health. I'd get my BSN & RN and then get a M.S in mental health nursing. I don't think I'd be terrible at the mental health part, just the..hands on nursing.

So I guess I posted this to find out if anyone else has ever dove headfirst into something they think they'd be awful at, and if so how did it go?

My mother and sister are both nurses and my aunt a care assistant for a home for the elderly. One thing I can gurantee is that you will be required to make body contact (including aiding the patients urination/defecation). The profession requires you to like and get along with people. If you find those types of things difficult I cannot see how you will enjoy the job.

Have you thought of helping out at a Home or hospital in some role to see if it is something you feel may suit you ?

[Remiel]

Thats one thing about being human though. We can reprogram ourselves. I used to suck at discipline, fitness, and eating healthy. I hated health foods. Guess what? I'm now actively working on discipline, I've hired a personal trainer and I'm enjoying working out more and more, and I'm eating healthier and healthier with each passing week.

I would take a moment to ask yourself why you don't like it. What is it about touching someone else that causes that dislike? Was it a past experience? Is there a fear involved with it?

If you can identify the cause of the problem I'll bet you can adress the underlying concern and realize that it isn't a problem.

Actually here's something I've changed that has been core to myself. I have aspergers. I became very self conscious of it in junior high when I was told I had it. Since that point I got worse and worse and worse with my communication skills and being comfortable having a conversation with other people. I've been able to identify my fear when I talk with people, I was afraid that people would reject me if they knew me. So it was easier to not talk with people or when I did talk to distract them from finding out about me. That identified the problem but my communication skills were lacking from disuse. What do I do now? I talk with everyone. I talk to random strangers and strike up conversations. I share who I am with anyone and everyone depending on the time I have. By sharing who I am I mean I don't hold back. I talk from my heart instead of my head. My fear of talking has rapidly disappated.

The 2 questions I would pose to you are:
1. Why don't you like touching other people. What is the fear there.
and 2. Do you WANT to overcome that?

If you want to do it just practice giving other people hugs. Maybe give your spouse or significant other a backrub. Practice touching other people. Give people firm handshakes. Etc.

Good luck with your quest.

[Tuumble]

Originally Posted by freedomclub

I think I would be a terrible nurse. I'm not comfortable with being touched or touching people. I'm afraid to hold babies. I'm not great at small talk. But I still find myself thinking about this a lot. Maybe throwing myself head first into something WAY out of my league is a good idea? I'm kind of a chicken ****.

Also it's something I think I'd be terrible at BUT it's in the same category of work I want to get into, which is mental health. I'd get my BSN & RN and then get a M.S in mental health nursing. I don't think I'd be terrible at the mental health part, just the..hands on nursing.

So I guess I posted this to find out if anyone else has ever dove headfirst into something they think they'd be awful at, and if so how did it go?

This doesn't relate exactly to what you are talking about but a friend of mine works on a psychiatric ward.

He wasn't academic at school and was often in trouble with the police and ended up going into bricklaying. Apart from the time where the roof on a garage he built collapsed he was actually very good at it...honest!

After a few years he met a nurse which inspired him in the direction of a career in the medical profession. He did the training and now regularly runs the ward in charge of a dozen or so staff.

To go from bricklaying to psychiatric nursing in one go took some resolve but now he's thriving. I say go for it but just do one thing for me...

DON'T SAY THAT YOU WILL BE TERRIBLE AT IT!

How do you know? At best you are giving yourself an excuse if it doesn't work out. Statements like that are a self-fulfilling phrophecy.

[ahimel]

You'll grow a lot more from failing at something you're terrible at than from succeeding at something that's easy.

A few years ago I got a job as a salesperson. I sucked, and after 6 months my boss fired me. And by the time I got my stuff out of my desk and to my house, I was grinning - I was SO happy to be out of that job.

And I was terrible at it, no doubt. But I grew more in that 6 months than I have in the 4 years since then.

As Parthon says, what can possibly happen? Worst case scenario, you're terrible, grow and learn, and leave. Best case scenario, it's better than you ever dreamed.

I say go for it.

[Stormcaller]

If you are interested in the Metal Health aspect, and not at all in the hands on physical part of nursing... Then what would be wrong with becoming a counselor? Then you could address and help people the way you want to help them.

If you get into the Nursing System you are going to be asked to do things all day long that aren't helping people the way you want to help them. My friend became a nurse because she wanted to help people, and now she is quitting because after a few years it has become evident how cold the hospital nursing system is (at least where we live). She is asked to do round and rounds without ever having time to talk to or comfort the people she tends to. She just makes their bed and feeds them prescription drugs and cleans them up and she all this with a full nursing degree. Any attempt to sit down and comfort people is met with a "hurry up and get on to the next patient" attitude.

If it is mental health you wish to deal with, I don't see why you shouldn't at least look into counseling or psychology rather than hospital nursing.

[Stormcaller]

Oh but by the way...


Your soul would rather try and fail at it's own dream, that suceed in the life meant for someone else.

[freedomclub]

Hey thanks everyone. The reply about getting a sales job really struck a chord with me. I think I'd be terrible at sales as well, so at least people have done what I was thinking about.

But in the end of it I think I'm going to head down the path of the last reply, which was the route of counselor. There are a variety of PsyD programs around me and I think that might be a better fit.

[Evan]

Pay attention to what the attraction is. Maybe it's a genuine calling to your true self, maybe it's a false desire to measure up to some ludicrous ideal: but knowing what the desire is seems to me to be very important.