I think.....maybe......I can go back to work!!??

Options
StaceySue2U
StaceySue2U Member Posts: 281
edited April 2016 in Employment, Insurance, and Other Financial Issues

My breast cancer diagnosis came at a bad time for me. I had just resigned from my job and we were in the process of moving back to where I'm from in the Kansas City area. So, I've been jobless and the financial situation is getting pretty tight.

I had my BMX with tissue expander placement on 2/25 and was going to wait to go back to work until reconstruction was finished, but recently had a tissue expander infection and had to be hospitalized for it. The antibiotics appear to be doing the trick. I've been home for a few days, no evidence of infection. Everything's looking great. My drains are out and I'm feeling pretty good. Better than I've felt since the BMX. I'll have to wait until I've been infection free for 3 months before I can have the tissue expanders exchanged so I think now is the time to start the job hunt.

I'm an RN and I clearly will not be able to go back to patient care any time soon. I don't know how long it will be before I could be lifting and turning patients. Honestly, I'm now at the point in my career where it's time to start thinking about doing something other than direct patient care anyway. I'm 46 and have 16 years of experience. So - I called a recruiter at KU Med Center, told her my situation, and should hear back from her tomorrow! Incidentally, she is a breast cancer survivor. She was diagnosed 8 years ago and treated at KU and agrees with me that the KU Cancer Center is the BEST.

I'm requesting prayers for career blessings from anybody out there willing to pray for me!

· Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Comments

  • Denise-G
    Denise-G Member Posts: 1,777
    edited April 2016

    Saying a prayer for you!  BEST of LUCK and blessings!!  Seems like you are on your way with a breast cancer survivor recruiter! 

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • pajim
    pajim Member Posts: 2,785
    edited April 2016

    Good luck! Nurses are in demand, even if you can't do direct patient care. I hope you find it easy to find a job you like.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • brandford37
    brandford37 Member Posts: 71
    edited April 2016

    StaceySue2U did you had Chemotherapy?

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • StaceySue2U
    StaceySue2U Member Posts: 281
    edited April 2016

    Nope - no chemo and no radiation. I'm taking letrozol. Never heard back from that recruiter, though :( I guess that's my sign that hospitals probably won't be interested in me until I'm 100%. I did find a private duty position that pays much less than I'd make at a hospital, but it helps.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • JoniB
    JoniB Member Posts: 346
    edited April 2016

    Good luck with your job hunt. Being at work this past week has been very helpful to me emotionally - keeps my mind off the cancer. Private duty may pay less but it will give you the flexible hours you need. I think when you are through with your reconstruction you will be in demand with cancer centers since it is so helpful for a cancer patient to speak with staff who truly understand what they are going through. I found that compassion with a patient navigator at my center which is a wonderful experience. Best of luck with your recovery and job search.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • StaceySue2U
    StaceySue2U Member Posts: 281
    edited April 2016

    Thank you, Joni. I think it will be helpful to be back at work. It will make me feel less like a patient. I was thinking about applying at the cancer center. I could definitely relate. I'd probably cry every time I saw a woman coming in crying right after diagnosis, though.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Claire_in_Seattle
    Claire_in_Seattle Member Posts: 4,570
    edited April 2016

    Let me get this straight. You just did a move, and then got diagnosed with cancer, went through treatment, and life isn't settled quite yet???? I don't think this is exactly surprising. I also think that you may need to give yourself a chance to rethink things a bit.

    Private duty is a wonderful interim solution as you get back into things and it will also give you some breathing room to explore while you have incoming coming in. Really important. Don't be surprised if what you want to do changes as you go out in time. The great thing is that you will have options. The cancer center is one of them.

    I now do a lot of my consulting work for an organization that advocates for brain cancer patients and connects them with top specialists. My way of giving back for my life having been spared. I never would have imagined myself doing this ten years ago. It's all very exciting.

    So let me suggest that this could all be a silver lining to do something really cool with your life and career. And no, you don't have to get there in the next month. My dear friend, who is no longer among us, used to look at me and tell me how I was constantly in the process of "becoming". And of course he was right.

    So it's all about the possibilities.....and then making them happen. You will get there and brava!!!! - Claire

    p.s. Your working as a private duty nurse counts as "working" and will be extremely useful for having that credential when the right opportunity comes along.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • StaceySue2U
    StaceySue2U Member Posts: 281
    edited April 2016

    Thank you so much, Claire! I'm not working private duty for an organization, I'm working directly for the patient. I don't know if that would really count toward work or credentials, as I'm pretty much just sitting. I've been doing a little range of motion with him but no skilled nursing.

    I'm so frustrated because I have a bachelors in biology and an associates degree in nursing. Where I was living before, it didn't really matter. Bachelors degree positions were few and far between. Here, you have to have a bachelors in nursing for just about anything except floor nursing. I know I'll eventually need to do it but going back to school at this point just seems like too much.

    Not only was I in the middle of a move when I got my breast cancer diagnosis....I was thrown from a horse and fractured my pelvis and sacrum in five places only weeks before I got my breast cancer diagnosis. They were nondisplaced fractures and I didn't need surgery but it was a pretty serious injury and I had lots of torn muscles. It's been unreal, the number of things that have happened in my life recently. I'm really hoping there's going to be a silver lining! Everything that happened pretty much forced me to make the move we'd already been planning on making, so I could come back home where there's an excellent cancer center. I moved away from home 23 years ago and I'm getting to know my family again. I had to come down here ahead of my husband, who had put in for retirement and is due to retire May 1. He's still back in Michigan and I'm living in our RV in my dad's yard. I need to come up with good income soon or we're going to be in serious trouble. The house is going up for sale and if it doesn't sell soon and I don't get a job it could get foreclosed on.

    I don't even know how to go about "exploring options". I've lived the past 23 years in such a rural location that options were extremely limited. Now I'm in an area where there are literally hundreds of nursing positions open within driving distance. It's overwhelming.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • cubsfan
    cubsfan Member Posts: 49
    edited April 2016

    Stacey I would try home health. After your orientation you can pretty much choose your hours. There are a lot of home health opportunities in the KC area. Pay is good too. Good luck

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Claire_in_Seattle
    Claire_in_Seattle Member Posts: 4,570
    edited April 2016

    Ouch!!! Double ouch!!! I am saying this from having landed on my tailbone about 20 years ago cross country skiing and then doing a cross-country flight the next day. Better than skiing over my friend's face.

    I don't know the healthcare field well enough to advise. I would suggest looking at a short term and longer term strategy. Bring in the dollars immediately, and then figure out what you want to do longer term. There is more than one counsellor out there in healthcare employment. You also need to do things like have your resume in order.

    As with other things in life, I think it might be time for more than one opinion.

    I also think you can spin what you are currently doing as "took on a private nursing assignment as I looked for opportunities in the KC area". Perfectly reasonable explanation and presents you as staying in the game as you relocated. A lot of people do this and it looks a lot better than "sulked at home".

    One thing to scout out is how many additional credits you really need for a BS in nursing. I would suspect that some of your credits are transferable, and potentially your experience counts. This could turn out to be one year or less as opposed to 2 years. I don't think I need to tell you to go with the place where you can get the credential with the least time investment. (Provided it's accredited.)

    You will get there. Just not a fun time. You would have had the finding a new job problem anyway. I think you will be just fine. But do take a moment to dream and look at an ideal future. That will give you direction.

    And then just believe that you will get there....and you will!!!! - Claire

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • StaceySue2U
    StaceySue2U Member Posts: 281
    edited April 2016

    Thank you so much for the support and encouragement.

    Cubsfan, you're right. I could do home health. My most recent job in Michigan was in home health so I'm well qualified for it and it really doesn't involve much lifting or turning. I kind of wanted to get out of it but maybe God has other plans for me.

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Claire_in_Seattle
    Claire_in_Seattle Member Posts: 4,570
    edited April 2016

    For the record, I have done more than one project since diagnosis which I was less than enthusiastic about. But it brought in $$.

    You don't have to do Home Health forever, but if it's something you could snag easily, then go for it!!! This will give you time to figure out the lay of the land, and also your next steps.

    Plus bring in the income you need. Not to mention flexibility to do all the other things that will be required once your husband joins you.

    I will admit that it's all a bit daunting, but you will get there. I can also see you in your dream job 5 years hence. You probably don't even know what it is yet, but you will get there by looking around, finishing your BS in nursing, and doing a stellar job.

    Hoping that your husband has some interesting things to do lined up. Because that will most likely be your bigger issue. YOU will be more than fine. - Claire


    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • StaceySue2U
    StaceySue2U Member Posts: 281
    edited April 2016

    You're right. Home Health wouldn't have to be forever.

    Thank you so much. Whenever anybody has asked me if I'm doing OK I've always answered "Health-wise I'm feeling OK. It's the worrying about getting a job part that's the hardest thing for me right now." They've always looked at me confused and asked "Well, why wouldn't you be able to get a job? Nurses are in such demand!" They just don't get it at all.


    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Categories