Leaving My Nursing Career To Follow My Writing Dream

What have I learned 1 year on?

Palliative care was my job and my passion for many years. By its very nature it sometimes brought tears and sadness, but mostly it brought me a huge amount of joy. The privilege of caring for a patient and their family when they are at their most vulnerable is a privilege I trust I never took lightly, and one I will always be thankful for.

Despite this, 12 months ago, after 26 years working as a nurse I decided to leave. I had talked of, and dreamed of having a ‘proper go’ at being a writer for a long time. I had been blogging for years, and more recently writing regular articles for a social care magazine. After yet another conversation with my husband where I talked of wanting to have more time to write, and he encouraged me yet again to “just do it”, I finally took the plunge. I was wrung out by nursing throughout the pandemic, and I decided it was now or never

Taking The Plunge

I left with no clear idea of how I was going to follow my writing dream. All the advice said ‘make sure you have a plan’ before making such a big change. Have spreadsheets, make lists, build up contacts etc etc. The truth was, that whilst at work, especially whilst the pandemic was still virulent, I did not have the headspace to think clearly or make constructive plans. Thankfully a much wiser person than me advised me to, just take the first step and worry about the other ones after that. This has continued to be good advice. I was fortunately in a financial position at the time which meant I could do that. Eighteen months of lockdowns, not going out and barely spending any money had helped. So I left my career with no spread sheets or to do lists and certainly no contacts, just a conviction I was doing the right thing.

Equipping Myself

Early on I took some writing courses which helped me begin to think of myself as a writer. I learned about sending pitches and how to write articles magazines might be interested in. Links were formed with others also seeking to become published writers

Around a month of so after I had left my job Helen Redfern formed The Confident Creative Club. I immediately knew I wanted to be part of this. Meeting on line with a group of other writers to encourage and support each other again helped me begin to think like a writer from the beginning.

The First Months

My mum would freely admit she is not the most adventurous of people but she has always instilled in me a ‘can do’ attitude. Her motto is say yes to whatever it is you are asked to do and worry and work out how you are going to do it afterwards.

Mostly this advice has stood me in good stead, and it has led me to do things I wouldn’t have imagined I could do. In the first few months, I said ‘yes’ when I was offered a regular slot writing for an online publication which I initially thought was way outside my sphere of knowledge. I also said yes when I was offered a job delivering online training to other health and social care professionals — something I had never done before but have gained so much from. In the early days saying yes gave me confidence to believe in myself. This was something I needed after leaving a job I was hugely familiar with and comfortable in.

Finding Balance

In a post I wrote on my blog this time last year I said “I suspect I may have a caring sized hole I will at some point need to fill”. This turned out to be true. As someone else had said to me, ‘once a nurse, always a nurse’. I’m still trying to decide if I agree with that. However, when the opportunity came along to apply for a very flexible job working in a nursing role, I jumped at the chance. This and another freelance job working with other health care professionals has filled that caring hole and given me guaranteed way of making some money each week. Financial independence is nother thing which I have come to realise is important to me.

Becoming A Home Worker

One of my concerns when leaving my job was how I would feel not being part of a defined team. Any good team will have a camaraderie. I cannot speak for other professions, but in health care, this sense camaraderie and pulling together is massive. Sharing the highs and lows of a difficult situation when feeling drained of everything was always something I was thankful for.

Now the majority of my work is on line or on my own, whether it’s telephone support work, delivering training or days spent writing. I don’t go into an office and have a conversation with others about my weekend or what the day ahead looks like. Mostly I walk to my desk, sit down and either log into a remote meeting at the beginning of the day or I don’t. Then I simply get on with my work. On my own.

Do I miss that close working relationship with others? The truth is, no, mostly I don’t. I still have some interactions and these seem to be enough for now. To all intents and purposes I am an introvert, which means I am happy being alone. I am happy with quiet, and I am mostly better at writing than talking

The Now

A couple of days a week, I have work I which I am employed to do and am committed to. These days are governed for me. The rest of the time I am mostly my own boss. This feels like a good balance for now. I plan my days according to what I want to achieve with my writing or any deadlines I have. I regularly join online communal writing sessions which give me some accountability and motivate me, and I have more time.

I do not miss the status of the navy blue uniform and a lanyard, and I continue to revel in opening my wardrobe and choosing to wear something I enjoy and which makes me feel happy.

I am so thankful for the joy this new way of working gives me. I love being able to go for a walk in the middle of the day to find clarity when I’m stuck with a piece of writing. I love having time to run before work and work in coffee shops, and I love having the flexibility to change my plans. But mostly I love being able to have days I can spend creating sentences and paragraphs and whole pieces of writing. I wouldn’t change any of that. One year on and the writing dream is very much alive and well and I will continue to follow it.