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I Wasn't Strong Like This When I Started Out: True Stories of Becoming a Nurse
This collection of true narratives reflects the dynamism and diversity of nurses, who provide the first vital line of patient care. Here, nurses remember their first “sticks,” first births, and first deaths, and reflect on what gets them though long, demanding shifts, and keeps them in the profession. The stories reveal many voices from nurses at different stages of their careers: One nurse-in-training longs to be trusted with more “important” procedures, while another questions her ability to care for nursing home residents. An efficient young emergency room nurse finds his life and career irrevocably changed by a car accident. A nurse practitioner wonders whether she has violated professional boundaries in her care for a homeless man with AIDS, and a home care case manager is the sole attendee at a funeral for one of her patients. What connects these stories is the passion and strength of the writers, who struggle against burnout and bureaucracy to serve their patients with skill, empathy, and strength.
320 pages, Paperback
First published February 25, 2013
425 people are currently reading
4779 people want to read
About the author
Lee Gutkind
106 books99 followersLee Gutkind has been recognized by Vanity Fair as “the godfather behind creative nonfiction.” A prolific writer, he has authored and edited over twenty-five books, and is the founder and editor of Creative Nonfiction, the first and largest literary magazine to publish only narrative nonfiction. Gutkind has received grants, honors, and awards from numerous organizations including the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Science Foundation. A man of many talents, Gutkind has been a motorcyclist, medical insider, sports expert, sailor, and college professor. He is currently distinguished writer in residence in the Consortium for Science, Policy, and Outcomes at Arizona State University and a professor in the Hugh Downs School of Human Communication.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 239 reviews
February 2, 2017
All of the essays in this book were written by nurses who are writers too, nonetheless the quality of the writing varies considerably. The stories illuminate both nursing as different from doctoring and the nurse's own experience.
Most of the nurses are very caring people who don't flinch from some of the nastier jobs of looking after people with horrible personalities and/or disgusting illnesses that involve nausea-inducing exudations, vomit, pus and all the rest. One or two of them are very entitled people who seem to think that if nurses were put on pedestals and paid as much as investment bankers (they surely deserve that) it wouldn't be enough, their feet should be licked clean by the masses.
And it is because the editor chose to include those people whose voices might be true and deserve inclusion but who leave a really bitter taste in your mouth, that it is a four star book. Without them it would have been a paean to self-sacrifice, all Mother Theresa before Christopher Hitchen's book by society's acknowledged angels. The salt of reality is a seasoning books benefit from.
Most of the nurses are very caring people who don't flinch from some of the nastier jobs of looking after people with horrible personalities and/or disgusting illnesses that involve nausea-inducing exudations, vomit, pus and all the rest. One or two of them are very entitled people who seem to think that if nurses were put on pedestals and paid as much as investment bankers (they surely deserve that) it wouldn't be enough, their feet should be licked clean by the masses.
And it is because the editor chose to include those people whose voices might be true and deserve inclusion but who leave a really bitter taste in your mouth, that it is a four star book. Without them it would have been a paean to self-sacrifice, all Mother Theresa before Christopher Hitchen's book by society's acknowledged angels. The salt of reality is a seasoning books benefit from.
May 18, 2020
'I Wasn't Strong Like This When I Started Out: True Stories of Becoming a Nurse' is a collection of memoir essays curated by Lee Gutkind. Given current times - the Covid-19 crisis - this book is almost essential reading for laymen if one desires to know and understand some of the people who are responding to the crisis.
First lesson: nurses are people too.
Second lesson: they undergo specialized training with rules they have to follow, passing nursing boards and classroom studies along with hands-on learning. They must be licensed.
Third lesson: nurses are overworked and have twelve-hour shifts - a single nurse may be responsible for up to twelve patients, although six-eight is more normal.
Fourth lesson: they often go unnoticed by everyone, like hotel maids, despite providing essential daily care.
Fifth lesson: if human emotion happens, it is often the nurse who provides needed comfort and emotional warmth, not the doctors or administration. Nurses often whisper the truth, despite HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 - supposedly a protection for confidentiality), sometimes career-ending acts.
The essays are:
-Hitting the Bone
-The Haunting
-Becoming a Nurse
-Next of Kin
-Healing Wang Jie's Bottom
-Zeitgeber
-A Long Night's Journey into Day
-Don't Ever Forget Me
-Heart Lessons
-Docking in Togo
-I See You
-Listening--and Other Lifesaving Measures
-Careening Toward Reunion
-Nurse Nora at Nineteen
-Four Sticks
-Messiah, --Not Otherwise Specified
-All Alone and Afraid --Becoming a Person through Nursing
-Individually Identifiable
-Approaching Death
-The Nurses Whispered
-Becoming
The stories are from nurses who work the extremely wide-angle possibilities of jobs available when one chooses to be a nurse. There are all of the 24/7 specialized jobs in hospitals to nursing homes to primitive clinics in impoverished foreign countries to psychiatric hospitals to Native-American reservations to home care and hospice represented in these stories. There are the unique religious-cultural circumstances of working for psychiatric hospitals in Israel, or of being "in the field" in Africa and China.
Amazing. Heartwarming. Sad. Getting real. The coming-of-age terror from being a novice to becoming an experienced nurse. Wonderous adventures of learning how to use a syringe and medical gear to talking to an anxious sick person or a tense family member. There is the obvious to the unexpected in human behavior.
I recommend this book. It is fascinating and educational, and always awesome.
First lesson: nurses are people too.
Second lesson: they undergo specialized training with rules they have to follow, passing nursing boards and classroom studies along with hands-on learning. They must be licensed.
Third lesson: nurses are overworked and have twelve-hour shifts - a single nurse may be responsible for up to twelve patients, although six-eight is more normal.
Fourth lesson: they often go unnoticed by everyone, like hotel maids, despite providing essential daily care.
Fifth lesson: if human emotion happens, it is often the nurse who provides needed comfort and emotional warmth, not the doctors or administration. Nurses often whisper the truth, despite HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 - supposedly a protection for confidentiality), sometimes career-ending acts.
The essays are:
-Hitting the Bone
-The Haunting
-Becoming a Nurse
-Next of Kin
-Healing Wang Jie's Bottom
-Zeitgeber
-A Long Night's Journey into Day
-Don't Ever Forget Me
-Heart Lessons
-Docking in Togo
-I See You
-Listening--and Other Lifesaving Measures
-Careening Toward Reunion
-Nurse Nora at Nineteen
-Four Sticks
-Messiah, --Not Otherwise Specified
-All Alone and Afraid --Becoming a Person through Nursing
-Individually Identifiable
-Approaching Death
-The Nurses Whispered
-Becoming
The stories are from nurses who work the extremely wide-angle possibilities of jobs available when one chooses to be a nurse. There are all of the 24/7 specialized jobs in hospitals to nursing homes to primitive clinics in impoverished foreign countries to psychiatric hospitals to Native-American reservations to home care and hospice represented in these stories. There are the unique religious-cultural circumstances of working for psychiatric hospitals in Israel, or of being "in the field" in Africa and China.
Amazing. Heartwarming. Sad. Getting real. The coming-of-age terror from being a novice to becoming an experienced nurse. Wonderous adventures of learning how to use a syringe and medical gear to talking to an anxious sick person or a tense family member. There is the obvious to the unexpected in human behavior.
I recommend this book. It is fascinating and educational, and always awesome.
July 12, 2013
Defiantly an interesting title. And reading this book it becomes very clear that nurses have to be strong.Nur sing is one of the most physically and emotionally challenging jobs out there and sadly their voices aren't always heard. This book is long over due. Doctors grab all the glory in the medical field and nurses are all to often the unsung heroes. This book sings their songs; loud & strong.
February 14, 2020
This audiobook made me laugh and made me cry. It struck such a deep chord in me as a nurse because it was pure, raw and true. It was therapy for my nurse soul. So glad to not just read but to have experienced this book.
July 6, 2017
It will be hard for me to feel that I am giving an unbiased review for this collection as I am a nurse myself, but I'm going to try. Lee Gutkind has interviewed nurses from the country, and asked for many other nurses to send in their stories. He chose the ones that resonated best with him for this collection. Some of the stories are extremely well written, poignant even, while others show a more average writing skill. Certain themes are universal though, and will resonate with all nurses...and those who love a nurse.
In a way, it's amazing to me that there are so many misconceptions surrounding the role of a nurse. According to the most recent survey, there are 3.1 million nurses in the US (or approximately 1 nurse for every 100 people). It's no wonder then, that most of us know at least one nurse. Often these acquaintance/family nurses are known as the person to call with random medical questions. We're asked to look at rashes, asked about medications, asked about vague symptoms, and asked to be present for discussions with doctors. Often though, families don't understand what a nurse actually does. TV shows rarely (if ever) showcase the nurse role properly. Typically doctors are doing jobs that fall to nurses. They hover over bedsides, answer call lights, reassure families, and come running down the hall to calls for help. In real life, nurses do all of the above. Lee Gutkind himself admits in the forward that he knows nurses provided care, but he can't remember what they looked like.
Perhaps this lack of remembering says the most--if a nurse is doing her job well patients are comfortable, their care is well-coordinated/organized, symptoms and side effects are recognized early, outcomes are measured and adjusted for, doctors are notified of unusual findings before they blossom into a bigger issue, and ultimately the patient is restored to the highest possible function. But all this happens quietly, in the periphery. The patient may not know that many of these things were occurring. Hence the need for books like this one--they showcase, in memories, the contributions that each of these nurses have made.
Sometimes, as in "Becoming a Nurse", we have to force families and patients to learn to live without us--teach them to care for themselves despite all their objections that they can't. "It's not in the glossary of any guide to nursing interventions, but it's as important as any other skill. A good nurse must know how to attack". Sometimes, as in "Next of Kin", we are the sole source of support to patients who (through their own fault, or no fault of their own) have alienated or lost all their family. We sit and hold hands, we listen, we share humor, we honor memories, we attend funerals. "Healthcare providers are supposed to maintain a healthy emotional distance: a distance that prevents us from becoming so overwhelmed by our emotions that our provision of proper healthcare is crippled: a distance that prevents the professional burnout to which nurses are prone. It sounds good in theory, but there's no way to teach the location of that boundary to someone else, or to know where it is for yourself. There's no Berlin Wall or Rubicon River to clearly mark the divide. The business of nursing brings us into the messy swampland of human suffering, illness, and death. it is impossible to erect walls or channel rivers within a swamp."
Bottom line: Read this book if you are a new nurse and want to see testimonials from those that have been doing this awhile. Read this if you are a seasoned nurse, and want a reminder of why you have been doing this awhile (and get inspiration to keep doing it). Read this if you love a nurse, and want to know why she/he can't think or feel, or sometimes communicate after a 12 hour shift. Read this if you want to know why your loved one sometimes bubbles over like a volcano and vents events that happened during their shift because it's impossible to bottle up the emotions any longer. Read this if you have been a patient, and learn that your nurse loves what they do, and would chose the career over again in a heartbeat. Given 4 stars or a rating of "excellent".
As it turns out, I haven't saved the world. I've had a hand in saving some lives and have, I hope, made small differences in the lives of many. Occasionally, patients express their gratitude. some send us cards, some leave us chocolate. But external validation, the adoration and accolades of others, can't sufficiently make my job feel worth it. My job is worth it because I go home, on most days, with the feeling that I've at least broken even--I've put back at least as much as I've withdrawn from the karmic bank. It's a blessing in my life that I've been given the opportunity to be useful in my corner of the world. Today, that's enough for me.
In a way, it's amazing to me that there are so many misconceptions surrounding the role of a nurse. According to the most recent survey, there are 3.1 million nurses in the US (or approximately 1 nurse for every 100 people). It's no wonder then, that most of us know at least one nurse. Often these acquaintance/family nurses are known as the person to call with random medical questions. We're asked to look at rashes, asked about medications, asked about vague symptoms, and asked to be present for discussions with doctors. Often though, families don't understand what a nurse actually does. TV shows rarely (if ever) showcase the nurse role properly. Typically doctors are doing jobs that fall to nurses. They hover over bedsides, answer call lights, reassure families, and come running down the hall to calls for help. In real life, nurses do all of the above. Lee Gutkind himself admits in the forward that he knows nurses provided care, but he can't remember what they looked like.
Perhaps this lack of remembering says the most--if a nurse is doing her job well patients are comfortable, their care is well-coordinated/organized, symptoms and side effects are recognized early, outcomes are measured and adjusted for, doctors are notified of unusual findings before they blossom into a bigger issue, and ultimately the patient is restored to the highest possible function. But all this happens quietly, in the periphery. The patient may not know that many of these things were occurring. Hence the need for books like this one--they showcase, in memories, the contributions that each of these nurses have made.
Sometimes, as in "Becoming a Nurse", we have to force families and patients to learn to live without us--teach them to care for themselves despite all their objections that they can't. "It's not in the glossary of any guide to nursing interventions, but it's as important as any other skill. A good nurse must know how to attack". Sometimes, as in "Next of Kin", we are the sole source of support to patients who (through their own fault, or no fault of their own) have alienated or lost all their family. We sit and hold hands, we listen, we share humor, we honor memories, we attend funerals. "Healthcare providers are supposed to maintain a healthy emotional distance: a distance that prevents us from becoming so overwhelmed by our emotions that our provision of proper healthcare is crippled: a distance that prevents the professional burnout to which nurses are prone. It sounds good in theory, but there's no way to teach the location of that boundary to someone else, or to know where it is for yourself. There's no Berlin Wall or Rubicon River to clearly mark the divide. The business of nursing brings us into the messy swampland of human suffering, illness, and death. it is impossible to erect walls or channel rivers within a swamp."
Bottom line: Read this book if you are a new nurse and want to see testimonials from those that have been doing this awhile. Read this if you are a seasoned nurse, and want a reminder of why you have been doing this awhile (and get inspiration to keep doing it). Read this if you love a nurse, and want to know why she/he can't think or feel, or sometimes communicate after a 12 hour shift. Read this if you want to know why your loved one sometimes bubbles over like a volcano and vents events that happened during their shift because it's impossible to bottle up the emotions any longer. Read this if you have been a patient, and learn that your nurse loves what they do, and would chose the career over again in a heartbeat. Given 4 stars or a rating of "excellent".
As it turns out, I haven't saved the world. I've had a hand in saving some lives and have, I hope, made small differences in the lives of many. Occasionally, patients express their gratitude. some send us cards, some leave us chocolate. But external validation, the adoration and accolades of others, can't sufficiently make my job feel worth it. My job is worth it because I go home, on most days, with the feeling that I've at least broken even--I've put back at least as much as I've withdrawn from the karmic bank. It's a blessing in my life that I've been given the opportunity to be useful in my corner of the world. Today, that's enough for me.
January 27, 2018
I am always drawn to medical memoirs, and have long thought if I had to do it again, I would definitely be in the field of medicine in some capacity. This particular book is a collection of stories written by nurses. They tell how they came to be in the medical field, share their memories, both good and bad, and speak to what it really takes to be a good nurse. Although they are forced to hide their emotions much of the time, they are human and cannot help but be touched by what they witness every day. They see people at their worst and at their best, facing death, and witnessing miracles. With a son who has an extremely rare condition, I can attest to the fact that a good nurse makes all the difference in the world. I greatly enjoyed reading this book.
June 14, 2013
This book was a compilation, so some of the essays were better than others. It was an interesting look at the emotional strain of being a nurse and an inside view into the world of nursing. Reading it gave me an even greater respect for people who choose to go into nursing. It is not a career for the fainthearted.
December 20, 2021
*Overdrive app *
Narration: Tavia Gilbert- 5 stars 🌟 she was amazing 👏 ✨️
Content: 5 stars 🌟
----
Nurses.are.amazing 👏
Reading these medical memoirs over the years has been enlightening..seeing behind the curtain and learning what the nurses go through/have to put up with *lets out a breath*
It gives me more respect for them, definitely not a career for the faint-hearted.
A few stories touched me more than others but all of them were very compelling.
Narration: Tavia Gilbert- 5 stars 🌟 she was amazing 👏 ✨️
Content: 5 stars 🌟
----
Nurses.are.amazing 👏
Reading these medical memoirs over the years has been enlightening..seeing behind the curtain and learning what the nurses go through/have to put up with *lets out a breath*
It gives me more respect for them, definitely not a career for the faint-hearted.
A few stories touched me more than others but all of them were very compelling.
May 25, 2020
In honor of the nurses on the frontlines right now, one of the Goodreads book clubs I’m in chose I Wasn’t Strong Like This When I Started Out; True Stories of Becoming A Nurse.
It’s an excellent collection of essays from nurses all over the world, and I wish the cover reflected that diversity. I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Tavia Gilbert, and while she does great accents for the other people each character interacts with, their voice is always her default American voice, which makes some of the essays a little confusing/disorienting, as there are stories from nurses of all genders and a numbers of countries. I would have liked it more if they’d had alternating narrators, but she still does a good job.
Some of these essays require a strong stomach; there’s death, illness, disease, trauma, blood, mucous and viscera. My mom is a nurse, and we’ve always had interesting dinner conversations about anatomy and health, so I was prepared, but this is not a book for the faint of heart. It is inspiring and heartbreaking and illustrates the realities nurses deal with everyday, with strength, intelligence and compassion. I was particularly struck by an essay by a male nurse who works with AIDS/HIV patients. I’m old enough to remember when AIDS was the epidemic terrifying everyone, and I lost people to AIDS before the health advances of the 90’s and the new Millennium. It disturbs me that we don’t hear about AIDS much anymore anymore, the miracle drugs extend and improve people’s lives but there is still no cure.
This book makes me appreciate nurses even more and feel even more strongly that we need to be strengthening our healthcare system, not breaking it down.
It’s an excellent collection of essays from nurses all over the world, and I wish the cover reflected that diversity. I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Tavia Gilbert, and while she does great accents for the other people each character interacts with, their voice is always her default American voice, which makes some of the essays a little confusing/disorienting, as there are stories from nurses of all genders and a numbers of countries. I would have liked it more if they’d had alternating narrators, but she still does a good job.
Some of these essays require a strong stomach; there’s death, illness, disease, trauma, blood, mucous and viscera. My mom is a nurse, and we’ve always had interesting dinner conversations about anatomy and health, so I was prepared, but this is not a book for the faint of heart. It is inspiring and heartbreaking and illustrates the realities nurses deal with everyday, with strength, intelligence and compassion. I was particularly struck by an essay by a male nurse who works with AIDS/HIV patients. I’m old enough to remember when AIDS was the epidemic terrifying everyone, and I lost people to AIDS before the health advances of the 90’s and the new Millennium. It disturbs me that we don’t hear about AIDS much anymore anymore, the miracle drugs extend and improve people’s lives but there is still no cure.
This book makes me appreciate nurses even more and feel even more strongly that we need to be strengthening our healthcare system, not breaking it down.
June 29, 2022
This book is a collection of essays from nurses just starting in the medical field. It includes nurses in all areas such as emergency nurses, floor nurses, student nurses, surgical nurses, etc. Each essay gives one nurse’s perspective. I imagine readers as nurses would appreciate this book. I was never a nurse and I valued this book because it gave me a great respect for what a nurse does and what they must deal with and it was much more than I ever expected.
I listened to this on audio and very much enjoyed the voice of Tavia Gilbert, the narrator.
I listened to this on audio and very much enjoyed the voice of Tavia Gilbert, the narrator.
February 7, 2017
No other career do I admire more than that of a nurse. This book only reinforces my admiration. A fabulous read!
August 16, 2024
So this was a solid 5 stars the first half of the book. The essays were a good honest look into the nursing profession and inspiring too. The there were just some essays in the second half that had me slightly turned off. Maybe they felt slightly... boastful? Self-centered? Idk, but it made the second half only worth 3 stars. Kinda wish I just stopped reading after the first half.
November 2, 2022
I’m not normally into essay or anthology books but this is an exception. The story’s are all extremely interesting and feature diverse perspectives. The quality of all of the stories is great. I also think the anthology nature addresses a common issue with personal books by medical professionals that they can only showcase the one author’s prospective on medicine when in truth many different kinds of people with different prospective make up medicine. It’s nice to be able to temper a jaded chapter with a bubbly hero complex.
June 11, 2019
4.5 stars .... Some of the stories I had a hard time following, but overall, I did enjoy this book
July 12, 2019
I laughed out loud and felt the camaraderie as well as sadness in the day-to-day, yet extraordinary experiences of a wide range of nursing roles. I think all nurses, regardless of how experienced or inexperienced, will enjoy and appreciate much of this book.
I especially enjoyed the story by Tilda Shalof, from whom the title of the book is drawn, as she reflected on her work in ICU. Pamela Baker’s story was painful to read as she describes her struggles with how HIPAA has inadvertently and unfortunately induced a great deal of internal compression on nurses while allowing for needed patient confidentiality. I appreciated reading the story by Patricia Nugent as she reflects on her parents’ deaths in a period of 18 months and how she juggled her life to be there for each of them, receiving invaluable support to do so from caring, attentive nurses.
I was disappointed with the choice of placing the story, “Becoming” at the very end. Yes, nurses have to endure so much stress with smiles on our faces, carry the same mundane, messy, annoying burdens from day to day, and we repeatedly hear the same remarks from patients and family, but the snarky, bitter tone of this chapter is a letdown as the last of an overall pleasant and honest collection of nurse stories.
I especially enjoyed the story by Tilda Shalof, from whom the title of the book is drawn, as she reflected on her work in ICU. Pamela Baker’s story was painful to read as she describes her struggles with how HIPAA has inadvertently and unfortunately induced a great deal of internal compression on nurses while allowing for needed patient confidentiality. I appreciated reading the story by Patricia Nugent as she reflects on her parents’ deaths in a period of 18 months and how she juggled her life to be there for each of them, receiving invaluable support to do so from caring, attentive nurses.
I was disappointed with the choice of placing the story, “Becoming” at the very end. Yes, nurses have to endure so much stress with smiles on our faces, carry the same mundane, messy, annoying burdens from day to day, and we repeatedly hear the same remarks from patients and family, but the snarky, bitter tone of this chapter is a letdown as the last of an overall pleasant and honest collection of nurse stories.
May 19, 2019
Five medically approved stars...but not for everyone.
If you are a nurse, this book will take you back in time to those both magical and frightening years of nursing school...not always pleasant memories.
These are individual real-life stories and memories of all the “firsts” that a student nurse is challenged with.
The first injection you give, the first naso-gastric tube you insert, the first catherization, the first birth you assist with, the first death you must witness. If you’ve been a nurse for a number of years, you’ll probably find yourself in every story or every page.
If you’ve never been a nurse, you will have new respect for the one’s you encounter in your life.
A great book!
If you are a nurse, this book will take you back in time to those both magical and frightening years of nursing school...not always pleasant memories.
These are individual real-life stories and memories of all the “firsts” that a student nurse is challenged with.
The first injection you give, the first naso-gastric tube you insert, the first catherization, the first birth you assist with, the first death you must witness. If you’ve been a nurse for a number of years, you’ll probably find yourself in every story or every page.
If you’ve never been a nurse, you will have new respect for the one’s you encounter in your life.
A great book!
January 24, 2015
I honestly think anyone could read this book and enjoy it. It was a great collection of real stories from nurses when they were starting out and anyone could appreciate them. As a current nursing student it was great to read about things I'm going through now in my clinical placement. Or to read about research processes and "nursing diagnoses" and know that what we've learned will actually be applicable down the road. I loved every story in here and both laughed and cried at what they had to say. I can't wait to relate to even more of the stories as I finish my program.
February 26, 2019
Considering nursing school and wanted some additional perspective. This is by and large a compilation of very compelling stories. The audiobook was well performed and engaging. It certainly gave me a better perspective of the emotional journey that nurses can travel with their patients. I would recommend a listen to broader audiences outside of the healthcare arena as well.
November 27, 2023
4 stars 🩺
“You don’t choose nursing, nursing chooses you.” 🖤
I cried several times while reading this book.
There is such an overwhelming feeling of reading experiences that you have lived through and feeling the exact same emotions as someone who doesn’t even live in the same city or country as you but you are connected through a profession.
You don’t feel so alone…
It’s almost unfathomable to think that nurses from decades ago all the way to new grad nurses are all experiencing the same emotions, fear, exhaustion, excitement, and worry that go into caring for other people.
Being a nurse forever links us together as a family, across cities, states, oceans, and continents. We can all relate to one another.
The downfall:
I was HOPING this book had more advice and tips for new grad nurses, or a lesson that they learned based on their story.
It was more of a collection of short stories written by nurses, patients, and family members and some of them felt jumbled and not necessary 🫤
“You don’t choose nursing, nursing chooses you.” 🖤
I cried several times while reading this book.
There is such an overwhelming feeling of reading experiences that you have lived through and feeling the exact same emotions as someone who doesn’t even live in the same city or country as you but you are connected through a profession.
You don’t feel so alone…
It’s almost unfathomable to think that nurses from decades ago all the way to new grad nurses are all experiencing the same emotions, fear, exhaustion, excitement, and worry that go into caring for other people.
Being a nurse forever links us together as a family, across cities, states, oceans, and continents. We can all relate to one another.
The downfall:
I was HOPING this book had more advice and tips for new grad nurses, or a lesson that they learned based on their story.
It was more of a collection of short stories written by nurses, patients, and family members and some of them felt jumbled and not necessary 🫤
November 30, 2021
This collection of essays by nurses with a literary bent was a good read, especially through the grid of Covid. Some made me gasp, and turn the page; some made me very throat-lumpy; others required wading.
Snippets that seized me:
• Caring isn't always about holding someone's hand. At the end of the day, I know I've done my job when my patient wants to let go of me.
• The bedsore and I got to know one another...
• ...the soul-destroying smackdown of general medicine.
• I have never been good with unconscious patients since my main asset, a sparkling personality, goes somewhat underappreciated.
• She wanted to be identified as a nurse, not just someone walking around in her pajamas.
Healing Wang Jie's Bottom by L. Darby-Zhao, the story of a pediatric nurse from Washington D.C. who traveled to rural China for charity health work, was my favorite.
Snippets that seized me:
• Caring isn't always about holding someone's hand. At the end of the day, I know I've done my job when my patient wants to let go of me.
• The bedsore and I got to know one another...
• ...the soul-destroying smackdown of general medicine.
• I have never been good with unconscious patients since my main asset, a sparkling personality, goes somewhat underappreciated.
• She wanted to be identified as a nurse, not just someone walking around in her pajamas.
Healing Wang Jie's Bottom by L. Darby-Zhao, the story of a pediatric nurse from Washington D.C. who traveled to rural China for charity health work, was my favorite.
August 3, 2022
I've always had an interest in nurses, starting with the candy striper stories in grade school books. I have no desire to be one, however.
This book is full of stories from different nurses and their work with patients. Recommended reading for those who may want to pursue that course.
This book is full of stories from different nurses and their work with patients. Recommended reading for those who may want to pursue that course.
December 21, 2023
Kindlasti selle aasta üks parimaid lugemisi. Nutsin ja naersin ja nutsin jälle. Imelised esseed inimestelt, kes teavad, mida meditsiin tegelikult tähendab - õdedelt. Väga, väga hästi kirjutatud esseed sealjuures.
August 4, 2022
DNFing for now. As a nurse, I can appreciate these nurse's stories, but at the moment, I'm finding it difficult to want to keep listening. I really enjoyed some stories... others, not so much.
July 2, 2018
Very well written , very real stories . I can't wait to write my own.
May 15, 2022
Typically work is the last thing I want to spend my free time thinking about, but the essays in this book were incredibly touching and interesting to read. In a time where nursing is so volatile, it was kind of cathartic to touch base to the reasons we do this job.
August 15, 2025
A beautiful and equally heartbreaking window into the profession of nursing.
March 10, 2020
So many heartwarming and poignant stories, I loved reading this. I thought it was nice that every chapter is by someone else so you get to hear a wide variety of voices sharing about a wide variety of experiences in many different types of settings. So exciting to be entering this profession!!
December 13, 2023
A bunch of short stories about being a nurse. I loved it so much it was very inspirational
May 18, 2016
"I Wasn't Strong Like This When I Started Out: True Stories of Becoming a Nurse{" is a collage of letters of whining nurses. I understand why my family doesn't like to talk about their professions and what goes on at the hospital. No one likes to listen to whiners and be reminded what went on a 16 hours shift. Most of the true stories that were presented in the book were very sappy.
There were very little clinical information on what it's like to be an RN, LVN, and CNA. This book is a diary of emotions. All of the letters were written by female nurses. There were no notes from any male nurse. Maybe because they don't get too attach to their jobs and have a life after they take off their scrubs?
Whatever the case, male registered nurses has more than tripled since 1970. Why wasn't there any personal essays from male nurses? This book wasn't balance at all. I can't see anyone that in the medical field reading this book. Who wants to be reminded of work?
There were very little clinical information on what it's like to be an RN, LVN, and CNA. This book is a diary of emotions. All of the letters were written by female nurses. There were no notes from any male nurse. Maybe because they don't get too attach to their jobs and have a life after they take off their scrubs?
Whatever the case, male registered nurses has more than tripled since 1970. Why wasn't there any personal essays from male nurses? This book wasn't balance at all. I can't see anyone that in the medical field reading this book. Who wants to be reminded of work?
July 28, 2021
Listened on audio.
What It's About:
This collection of true narratives reflects the dynamism and diversity of nurses, who provide the first vital line of patient care. Here, nurses remember their first “sticks,” first births, and first deaths, and reflect on what gets them though long, demanding shifts, and keeps them in the profession.
Why You Should Read It:
I've long been a fan of medical memoir, and this collection of essays by both practicing and retired nurses tells the good, the bad, and the ugly of their profession. It even made me cry -- and that's pretty hard to make me do while reading!
What Else You Should Read:
Critical Care by Theresa Brown
What It's About:
This collection of true narratives reflects the dynamism and diversity of nurses, who provide the first vital line of patient care. Here, nurses remember their first “sticks,” first births, and first deaths, and reflect on what gets them though long, demanding shifts, and keeps them in the profession.
Why You Should Read It:
I've long been a fan of medical memoir, and this collection of essays by both practicing and retired nurses tells the good, the bad, and the ugly of their profession. It even made me cry -- and that's pretty hard to make me do while reading!
What Else You Should Read:
Critical Care by Theresa Brown
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