Preparing For The Stresses of Nursing

Hi! I am a new member here and after exploring this community for the past few days I decided to join because it seems the people are very kind and intelligent here http://www.ultimatenurse.com/ubbthre...lins/smile.gif I am entering pre-nursing this fall and currently trying to prepare for the nursing entrance exam and other assorted things. My mom has been in nursing for about 33 years, after much thought I have decided to follow her footsteps. I am probably one of the youngest people on the board, and I promise I will listen to the "elder" nurses http://www.ultimatenurse.com/ubbthre...lins/laugh.gif

Anyways after reading extensively about nursing and talking to my mom and other nurses, I keep reading how nursing grads are dropping out, leaving the profession after one or two years and how even seasoned nursing are leaving. I was wondering what I can do to prepare myself and "have a thick skin" as one comment said on this site. Psychologically and physically I can withstand very high levels of stress....hopefully that will be some help. But I was wondering if there is anything else I need to know?

Hope everyone's weekend is going smoothly! And though I am not even in nursing quite yet, I picked my sn because I hope very much to be one within a few years http://www.ultimatenurse.com/ubbthre...lins/smile.gif

I think some of the new nurses get into it for the wrong reasons like thinking it's and easy job to make pretty good money at but then find there's much more work involved then there was in school when you took a patient or 2 and wrote papers and you deal with real co-workers, docs, families, central supply, dietary, pharmacy. When you're a student you can tell the charge nurse someone didn't get their tray, you don't have the supplies you need, someone else signs off orders and talks to docs on the phone.
Some older nurses just burn out from same thing different day, increased paperwork, government regulations, less patient care time, weekends and holidays and nights. (I had a boyfriend of pregnant woman ask me the other day if we were open in the evenings so they could come then for non-stress testing...wanted to hand him a sign and say nope the hospital is only open from 9-5 sorry)
Just remember there are many roads to take in nursing and you don't have to remain in one area if you don't like it or even remain at the same facility some are ran better then others.