Upon reflection of my nursing journey thus far, I have taken some time to consider what led up to the opportunities and challenges that I have experienced academically and professionally. When I think of where my nursing journey began, it was in my childhood and as mentioned previously, my mother has been a Registered Nurse in Canada for twenty-one years. My mother specializes in Hemodialysis, in areas such as, inpatient, outpatient and critical care. Although I admire my mother’s commitment and dedication in her career, I did not anticipate that I would have the same aspirations as she did to become a Registered Nurse. Throughout most of my life until my early twenties, I did not have the desire to become a nurse and I initially, did not believe I was called to this profession. After trial and error in another career path, I decided to take a break from schooling and essentially experience a ‘gap’ year to reflect on the direction of where I wanted my life to go. In 2018, I was working at Starbucks with some amazing people who were studying for the licensing exam and after helping them and seeing what they were reviewing, it was then that I had contemplated if nursing was the direction I was meant to take professionally. In the fall of 2018, I was enrolled in the Pre-Health Sciences program at George Brown College

to increase my average and prepare me for nursing school. I successfully completed this program and then began the Practical Nursing program in the spring of 2019, and graduated in 2021. After experiencing burnout from school and the licensing exam, I decided to take the ‘summer’ to work a part-time job and then began my nursing career at Lakeridge Health in January 2022. I was hired onto a Post-Acute Rehabilitation Unit that had temporarily been operating as an Acute Medicine Unit since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. In my nursing education experience, I had graduated with my only experience being in long-term care and had been quite anxious to build my knowledge and skills to ensure that I was providing adequate patient-centred care. Throughout this career experience of nearly three years, I have worked in rehabilitation, medicine (both inpatient and outpatient) and in palliative care. These experiences have guided my decisions in further pursuing my education in obtaining a Bachelor’s Science of Nursing degree. Although I am not entirely sure where my future lies in the profession of nursing, in two to five years, areas that I am interested in possibly pursuing are neonatal intensive care, post-anesthesia care, health promotion and there is a part of that will always desire acute medicine.

In my experience as a Registered Practical Nurse thus far, I have learned the significance of mental health and ensuring positive support systems and practices to navigate the healthcare system, especially in a world after the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Smith et. al. (2022), “the COVID-19 pandemic has placed a significant psychological strain on nurses working on the clinical front line” (p.33). The healthcare system was devastated by the pandemic and in the beginning of my career, I experienced the aftermath of the pandemic and how it affected current and oncoming healthcare workers. After suffering from burnout, I wanted to ensure that I had set myself up for success to support my mental health. Certain practices that I have included in my routine include journaling, therapy and meditation. Although I have established practices, routines and hobbies to support my mental health, in my career, I have noted that organizational support is necessary in ensuring “access to mental health services and providing a safe nursing work environment [which] will better support clinical nurses and promote their health and well-being” (Labrague, 2021). In my future as a Registered Nurse, I hope to continue advocating for nurses and our well-being, regardless of where the future leads me.