THE START OF MY JOURNEY

Although it is still early on in my learning journey, my story has already been anything but linear. Although I am in my first year of the nursing program, I am in my second year of university.  I had originally planned to be a teacher and started my journey at Trent in the Teacher Education Stream. I had always been stuck between nursing and teaching, and in grade 12, I finally decided to be a teacher.

While I did enjoy the program and the idea of being a teacher, there was always a thought in the back of my mind that maybe I was on the wrong path. From the time my brother was born when I was 7 years old, I felt a pull towards nursing. My brother was in the NICU for over a week as he was born incredibly prematurely.  This meant I was visiting him in the NICU and seeing how the nurses cared for him and other babies in the unit. I was instantly inspired.

I went several years sure that I would be a nurse working in the NICU, but the realities of the world swayed my decision. Family members who worked in healthcare discouraged me from entering any profession of this kind due to their burnout and emotional strain. After the advice from my family members, I decided I would go with the other of my two options and went with teaching. While in the teaching program, I felt like I was missing something. What was I missing, you might ask? Passion. I was missing the passion for teaching that I knew deep down I had for nursing. After this realization, I applied to transfer to the nursing program to which I was accepted.

Now, here I am, in the nursing program and excited for what the future holds.I hope to make strong connections with peers and network with professors. I also hope to learn the lens through which I will care for people as a nurse one day.  So buckle up to read about my journey through nursing school, the obstacles I am sure I will have to overcome, and what I’m learning in each step along the way!