How I Became One of the Night Shift Nurses

When I was in nursing school I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to find a day shift job. I didn’t want to be one of those night shift nurses. I wanted to be in the action. I wanted to be at home with my family and alert during the day time. I was convinced night shift was not for me.

Becoming of the Night Shift Nurses

My entry into the night shift was not joyful. It was forced upon me by a manager who felt that my previous work group was not a good match. The only alternative, in her mind, was to move me to the night shift. In short, got to nights or hit the road jack. At the time I felt like I had gotten the shaft, but after I reflect upon it now (years later) it was a blessing in disguise.

Just for fun, here’s what I thought about it when I was forced to go to night shift:

Well, I got the shaft; but what does not kill us can only make us stronger. We will see where this whole thing goes. It isn’t over yet. I can’t have done all of this in vain. Surely I did not suffer for no reason.

I’m working nights now. This is something I never imagined I would do, and am very disappointed to have been forced into it. The ladies on nights have been fantastic. They are so helpful, funny, and sympathetic to my plight. It has been nice to have their compassion and sincerity. But I still cannot help to be bitter at the whole situation.

It is so hard to fight the good fight. This thing has really made the question what is right and wrong. What is worth fighting for? What is a noble cause and what is not? I do not know if I can trust my judgment in issues of the heart. I suppose issues of the heart are never about judgment anyways, but rather about gut. So how do I know if I can trust my gut?

I think nights is going to make me irritable. I defiantly don’t need anything that can exacerbate my ability to be annoyed. I am already annoyed quite easily.

I really wish that people could step back from a situation and take an honest look at it. Would they still the same about it? If they could just break away any attachment they have, would they do something different?

I don’t know.

I don’t know about alot of things right now. But my idealistic thought that people will ultimately do the right thing has defiantly been chiseled away at.

How very disappointing it is to find one more person in this world who has no interest in doing the right thing. The easy way is always much more opportune, it seems.

Fighting the Good Fight

I spent so much time trying to get leadership and many other nurses to help me reveal the nurse that was bullying me so that others could see her true colors. I had it in my head that I had to fight back against her because she was going to keep doing it to others. I had seen her do it to several other nurses over the months I had worked with her. But looking back, I’m not sure if it was a fight worth fighting. I didn’t have any real impact on how she treated others in the long run. The boss still saw her as the holy grail of nurses because she’d work 70 hours a week without complaints.

Discovering Night Shift Nurses Are Awesome

In the end, the major benefit for my fight, really my struggle, was that I became a strong person that could become an advocate against nurse bullying on a larger scale. I also got to learn how awesome night shift nursing is. I met some of the most compassionate, funny, and devoted nurses possible. If it hadn’t been for my bad new nurse experience, I wouldn’t have been able to discover how awesome night shift nurses are, and that would have been a real shame.

 

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4 thoughts on “How I Became One of the Night Shift Nurses”

  1. As I look back on old blog posts and reflect where my experiences have brought me, I wonder if I would be in the same position now if I didn’t experience that bullying. It broke me down so I had to be built back up stronger.
    I’d never wish bullying on anyone, but I wonder if I was meant to experience it.

  2. Welcome to Nursing!!

    I used to fight for what I felt was right, but I "cut off my nose to spite my face", as the old cliche goes…….

    It has been my experience that you shall better in the long run if you just take what you can get, and keep looking for what suits you best. Superiors taking the easy route instead of doing what is right…..is the norm in this profession.

    Never thought I'd ever advise anyone to not make waves. Sadly, that is what experience has firmly taught me.

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