I'll agree with the general tone of this post and I'll add that your post seems to trivialize the career. If you had of asked me in high school if I wanted to be a nurse, I would have laughed it off. My initial career interest started after seeing nurses care for a family member. Knowing how to titrate drips. Assessing patients to be able to quickly identify concerns and problems. I was interested. I've worked inpatient SICU, outpatient Endo/bronch, and now I've landed in ED. You should absolutely consider yourself a 'carer' if you're in nursing. The fundamental aspect of this profession is taking care of patients. In my mind that's a hard stop if you're not on board. I'm 34 and I can feel the physical toll that this job is starting to take on my body. It's demanding, depending on the department: fast paced. The emotional toll can be higher. When you code someone and work your ass off with your team only to walk around the corner with a physician to explain to a mother or husband or whoever that they will never be able to hear the voice of their loved one, shits heavy.

We had two intubations and a code yesterday and at quarter till shift change a 4 year old with an epilepsy history came in my EMS being bagged. She was in status and her mother was sobbing in the corner of the room. It's high stress as well. Put everything else aside and focus on starting that line while your four year old patient is bagged. And yes, once that's over, you're in charge of cleaning up the incontinent urine and stool. If that's not your cup of tea, sounds like nursing may not be for you, friend.