WHY I QUIT NURSING?! GRWM & CAREER UPDATE | Andy and Michelle

Girl I applaud you for having the guts to go on a new path! Don’t give up your RN license though because nursing is much more than bedside nursing. I am and RN who got into IT and I can tell you there are so much you can do. I’m now in bioinformatics and I love it! My RN background is equally important as my CS skills. RNs rock in bioinformatics, clinical research, pharmaceutical IT, medical IT, the insurance industry and much much more. You are not just any IT professional, you are an IT professional with a specialty. And that’s so powerful in the IT field! I used to think my 4 years of undergraduate nursing education went to waste but no, it’s the foundation of my bioinformatics career!

Can’t express how true this is all is. I Just changed my career path to real estate after 20+ years of nursing and my family thinks I’m having a midlife crises. It’s just not for me any more. I did nursing for money, the passion I once had is gone after dealing with what comes with nursing. The stress, the disrespect, the work overload, the hours. Just not worth it to me. Good for you❤❤❤

Being an Asian, I totally agree with what you mentioned. People including our parents always tell us to be a doctor, engineer, scientist and so on.

My story is SO SIMILAR to yours! And I know you made this almost 2 years ago, but I want you, it means SO MUCH to me that you had SUCH a similar experience to me, and that I’m truly NOT ALONE. I am not the only person (despite my googling and youtubing) to not get their license, or use their nursing degree right after graduating. I graduated in 2019, and long story short, a lot happened leading up to getting into nursing school and during those first few months that set me up to have a hard time, and it was definitely a huge challenge. I loved parts of it, but hated a lot of it. I almost quit the summer between my first and last year of nursing school, but a peer tried to convince me, and I tried to convince myself, “nursing school is the hard part, it gets easier after this”, I watched youtube videos of people pushing through, and just convinced myself tonstick it out, get to graduation because I spent so much time and energy just trying to GET IN, its what I had been working towards my whole college career. I was worried I would regret quitting when I had already come so far. So I tried to push through and stuck it out. But like you, I had crappy experiences, and I think it just weighed me down. There were parts I loved, and I worked with TONS of great nurses, and honestly if not for them I probably would’ve dropped out. But I also worked with some not so great ones, some of my clinical professors were so harsh (I could see how it worked for some, but it just didnt for me), I HATED most of my hospital clinicals (My local university only had 1 hospital on that side of the island and it is not large, so some clinicals we had to make do in other ways, like PEDS or mental health. though I was lucky enough to get to experience one of the other Hospitals on the island that was SO MUCH kinder),I absolutely DREADED them. I had SO MUCH anxiety, and I was exhausted and depressed, and I just didn’t love it anymore. But I did it. I finished (miraculously! I literally wasn’t sure I was going to graduate til the DAY BEFORE PINNING). I took my sweet ass time getting around to doing my NCLEX and failed the first time. 2020 rolls around, I just moved back home to the otherside of the island and BOOM covid. Made doing my NCLEX SO MUCH harder. It didnt help that I STILL was not motivated for it anymore, but I promised myself I’d at least try, and see what I could do that wasn’t in the hospital. I liked aspects of my schooling, and wanted to do something either outpatient, maybe school nursing, or something to do with health education. I got a job as an RBT (registered behavior therapist/technician, I work with kids with ASD, its not perfect, and not my permanent place but I like it much more). I tried my NCLEX 2 more times. I failed both. In Hawaii (my home state, and where I had intended to work), you can fail 3 times, but after that, if you want to retest, you HAVE to take a remediation course, including clinical hours. I had a full on panic/anxiety attack in my car the second I read that. And that’s when I knew I had been deceiving myself. I finally was SURE that I ABSOLUTELY did not want to be a nurse anymore. It was both liberating and disheartening. I felt (sometimes still do) feel like a failure, like a loser. I have avoided using/posting on my social media for the past couple years because I didn’t want to deal with the questions I might get, or having to see my classmates post about their flourishing careers (don’t get me wrong, I’m immensely proud of them, and so happy for many of them, but I just couldn’t help but compare). My family tried to be supportive, but they were also kinda pushy in a way, questioning why I didn’t pursue it, “at least put it to good use”. It didnt help that at the time I really couldn’t answer the “why” questions, and I absolutely had no idea what I was gonna do (still don’t btw, currently just making due). It’s gotten better since then, and I’m slowly but surely learning to accept that this journey is mine, and its not supposed to look like anyone else’s. It’s ok that I’m almost 30 with no plan or career prospects, and I’m still single living with my parents (thankful however that I have a family that doesn’t judge that). It’s ok hat plan A didn’t work out. I’m right where I need to be for now. I regret not listening to my gut sooner, but I also don’t regret going through with it all at all, I’m where I am because of it, and one day it’ll all make sense why.

This was my ling winded way of saying thank you so much for sharing your story, and allowing me to also share mine and have someone to connect to about it. To anyone who might be going through a similar experience, know that you’re not alone, and there are other people who understand. Just do what’s right for you.

This is how I felt when I didn’t want to become a nurse. My mom is an ICU nurse since she was 18 and she’s very passionate about it. She was very disappointed to hear and watch me pursue a different path, but I’m glad I did. Always do what feels right and is best for you! ❤ Good luck. 😊

As a student nurse and a PCT. I will be forever thankful to the nurses and supportive staffs on my unit. It honestly feel good to go into work knowing that as an aid I am viewed as part of the team. But I do see what other units are like when I transfer my patients onto the floor and it is just so sad. Honestly, by the time I graduate i will be in nursing school for 5 years and i really hope this new generation of nurses graduating will make nursing a much more tolerable field in a prespective where no one will feel alone and have anxiety before coming to work

freshman nursing major here. it’s scary to know the horrors i might face in a clinical setting, and i hope that i still have a medical passion after my 4 years. but it’s good to know that there were others that went on a different path than me, even though we started off on the same beginning. Sometimes things do happen for a reason

It's so refreshing to hear you talk more about yourself as I've always watched those short clips of you and Andy, so I feel that I got to know more about you from this video. My sister is a nurse and I hear all about the stress involved with the profession. I'm not a nurse, but I also work in healthcare and although I love my job, the hospital setting is not fun. I'm lucky to work with good colleagues in my clinic, but admin and mgt is a pain. I left my day job early this year and opened my own practice which was super scary because I grew up in an Asian household where there's a lot of emphasis on having a secured, stable job. No mention of being a business owner. But I'm glad I made that decision because it's so liberating to have my freedom while continuing to do what I love without all the stress from a hospital system. I'm glad you made a choice that makes you happy because if you wake up feeling dreadful to go to work....that's definitely going to affect the quality of your life. Also glad Andy is your great source of support! Thanks for sharing!

This is so legit. I've been working as a registered nurse for almost 7 years now and her experience is really true. It's sad but that's the reality.

Hi Michelle, I am a physician who works in a hospital with many nurses everyday. What you have said is sadly very true, and I sympathize with your struggles during nursing training. I see nurses as indispensable allies in health care with skillsets that complements physicians'. A good nurse is easily worth his/her weight in gold. I always stand up for my nurses when I feel that a patient is being rude or abusive. Kudos to nurses, especially ones working in hospital.

Thank you for posting this, I went through a nearly identical experience with becoming an educator and I am currently trying to find my new path. Your words were very validating and comforting. I’d love to hear more about why you chose tech, what that’s like and how you got to where you are now with career!

Michelle, great work. I definitely will say it takes a lot of will and courage to accept that things need to change. So really well done. I too am going through a career change with me doing almost 8 years in banking and now I too am studying IT all over again as an undergraduate. One thing I will say is when I look back from when I first got a degree I had no passion for now a degree I have an immense passion for, is that the work is so much more easier. The time you want to provide to study and learning more when you are passionate is not seen as something being given away begrudgingly but rather I now take it as a lot of fun. Kudos to you mate.

Also g'day from down under! Hope you and Andy come down to Australia one day!

I have had very similar experience, where I was so passionate when i began nursing school but after i graduate I just felt like it wasn’t for me. And just like you I was worried about my mental health. the stress that came with my decision to not pursue my nursing career. I am currently just exploring other option and seeing you make similar decision gives me hope.

Girl, same.
By the time i got my degree (graduated with honors) i was already in programming bootcamp.
I worked in hospital while studying During covid for 2 years.
I can identify with all the things you said. And i also always loved computers and gaming so i started learning how to code on my own. Got accepted to a great bootcamp program and quit my job. I am so happy i did that.
Good on you for facing this hard choice and staying true to yourself!
Its awesome to fing someone with similar experience to mine :)

I am also a Nurse. This is one of the channels that gave me the courage to start my YouTube channel 7 months ago about self development. Now I have 702 subs and > 200 hours of watch time. I know it’s not comparable with others but I’m still proud I started because I’ve been learning so many lessons that I could haven’t learned without getting started in the 1st place.




This channel also inspired me to upload my recent videos to share my opinions about the main things that truly impacted the way I live. They're a couple of my most vulnerable videos that I've been hesitant to post for many months because of the fear of being misunderstood but I finally decided to overcome that fear so others can learn from my experience so we can all grow together. They're packed with valuable information about the relationship between a job and happiness.

Aweeee so inspiring, brought me to tears! I’m happy you realized what’s good for your mental health ❤❤❤ good luck in all your future endeavors Michelle!

Proud of you, Michelle!! Hope you find something you enjoy within IT! You're also right about nursing not being for the weak. My boyfriend is a nurse and he tells me all the stuff he goes through, and it's honestly really sad that they're not appreciated and compensated enough for what they do.

Michelle you are gorgeous😊 Also my mom tried to pressure me into law. She actually tried to site my “negative traits” as reasons why I should be a lawyer. She wasn’t the best mom tbh. But I fell into IT because I took a job at the Apple Store at 19. I’m now 34 and I am an IT analyst at one of the best universities in the world and I live quite comfortably. The funny thing is I am studying East Asian studies an working to get my PhD. No degree is required for this stuff. Just experience and/or certifications.

I'm currently in nursing having multiple jobs prior. Honestly, there is no perfect job out there. You'll always find co-workers and management that make life hell. Hopefully, IT and youtube work out for you.

Thank you so much for this. I also come from an Asian household and share similar reasons why I wanted to become a nurse. Starting nursing school in a week, and I know in my gut I’m dreading it. There are so many doubts that I have and I feel like I am one of the weak ones. Not sure what to do because I literally have no passions for what else I want to do. Tried other things but I feel like I’m not good enough or would get bored of it later on.