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Have you ever considered nursing as a career? There are several things you should know about the prpofession (and about yourself) before you invest the great amounts of time, effort and stress it takes to get into this busy area of healthcare.
First of all, the most obvious question you should ask yourself is "How squeamish am I?" This seems like a no-brainer, but it is something you seriously need to consider. Even if you do not plan on working in a hospital or office setting, you will still be exposed to many things during nursing school in the process of learning that will challenge the strength of your stomach. If you do plan on working in the hands-on setting of the hospital or physician's office, you need to be especially aware of your tolerance of the sight of bodily fluids, wounds and the like. The good news is that if you are a bit squeamish around these things at first, it helps the more you are exposed to them. It is like many things-the more you are around them, see them, hear them, smell them, etc., the more used to them you get. You can also learn little tricks to help you get through the more difficult of the situations in which you are exposed to nasty stuff. Most nurses will tell you that certain things bother them, and they have learned ways to deal with the times they come into contact with that thing.

Next, you need to consider whether or not you have the empathy/sympathy gene present in all quality nurses. This does not mean that you feel sorry for everyone in every situation, but that you are able to put yourself in their shoes. You need to be confident and knowledgeable so that you convey competency to your patients, but also have them feel like you truly want what's best for them, and care what is happening to them. No one wants to feel like a number when they are sick, having surgery or whatever the case may be.
Another thing (this is a biggie) that is a constant in nursing is stress. Are you able to perform well under pressure? Would you be able to multi-task to an extreme at times? Granted, I am coming at this from the perspective of a hospital nurse, but this is true at least sometimes, across the board for nurses. Your first experience with it will be nursing school. Most schools have stringent requirements for their students. There is usually a certain grade percentage needed to stay in a nursing program, and there are many projects, care plans and hands-on experiences in which you will be able watched like a hawk by your instructor.

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