Can anyone help? Advice and info needed.

[TOONAFISH]

I have a dream of becoming a nurse.

I thought after i finished having my family i would do my training.

However ended up with a hopsital trip with pnd then again with 1st manic episode.

Questions i have are.

is it possible to take on a three year course which is quite hard going without bringing on a manic episode.

is it true that night shift is bad for bi polar and bringing it on

would i be within my rights to ask to only do early and backshifts under the disability side of things. or am i clutching at straws

i have just started working in a nursing home and i love it, and they said i dont have to do nights.

do i just settle or go for my dream.

bloody illness x

 

[nattyone]

i trained as a nurse when i was straight out of school ( undiagnosed at thsat time ).

my notes are based on my observations only so others may say differently. i really struggled . when i was depressed i couldnt do the work , could hardly get out of bed , had them on my back about missed sessions. when i was happy i did the work but it was never as good as i thought it was , i thought i knew all the work so just churned out assignments really fast . it wasnt upto the neccersary standard . paranoia wasa huge issue . its a very busy and fast paced environment people expect a lot of you , you never get a break and there is a heck of a lot of bitchiness, ive checked with other people and they say the places they worked were the same .

in terms of shift changes i would say that would be an important issue as apparantly changing when u go to bed can mess up even a regular person so would probably have a worse effect on somone with bipolar.

however i wasnt on meds at the time and was undiagnosed so i wasnt afforded any leeway because of illness.

hopefully someone will come fiorward who is doing the job just fine .

 

[DELATEXT]

It's great what you're doing, maybe best to get advice from your Doctor about effect of work patterns and possible stress??
I had a friend who did night shift and is bipolar she was on meds and managed with Doctors support,
Good luck hope you realise your dream!

 

[schiz01]

What sort of nurse...were you thinking of working withing the mental health sector.
What ever the case Id say go for it if you think you might be up to it.

 

[angrydad]

My Experience

I'd go along with most of what's been said so far. If you have good support and your meds are right, go for it, and I wish you the best.

My experience is this:

I have made five attempts at a degree and on every occasion I could not stop myself from going manic. My delusions were about my course (being a world authority on a course subject) and wrote awful, rambling essays. I would become severly depressed having fallen behind and then left the course.

However all this was done without treatment (meds or talking) and I was on my own, with no family or partner. Now I'm back in treatment I'm back on an OU course in Philosophy. I make mistakes, fall behind and have to work hard BUT, I'm making progress due to the level of support I get.

I would suggest that if you feel stable in treatment, your meds are Ok and you are well supported, DEFINATLY go for it. Nothing helps a person quite like a bit of success.

You have my best wishes

 

[TOONAFISH]

thanks guys. i did a bit of research and there is quite a bit of help for people with mental health difficulties. also the course can be spread over 5 years instead of 3 which would be a big help.

when im feeling really good i think yeh i could do it, but then early mornings when i still feel a bit rubbish i think what the hell am i on about lol

will do some more research tho

thank you xx

 

[angrydad]

Yeah, I know exactly what you mean. I still have days were I'm full of energy and others where I think "Who are you kidding?"

I keep going by not panicking about about having a low opinion of myself and read some of the comments I get on my essays which encourages me to keep going because, even if I don't think I'm up to it, my tutors think I am. And they are cleverer than I am!! So they must be right, not me!!

Small sucesses are a great antedote to negative thoughts.

 

[DELATEXT]

Great go for it, big time!!!

 

[kurtcobain]

Ambition & mentall illness.(for TOONAFISH!)

Hi Toonafish, I would like to mirror what everyone else has said in reply to your message about being a nurse, you go for it my friend - I wish you all the luck in the world. People with mental health issues can PARADOXICALLY be extremelly intelligent and high achievers, hence their sometimes MANIC instability!!! It's perhaps when all that creativity and AMBITION is stiffled by the Social security system, which SUCKS!!! bigtime, we become more unstable and ill. Just ask in my local DSS, I got so frustrated job hunting I wripped the computer terminal out (the ones which are bolted to the floor!) So I wish you all the best.