If you’ve been with me for a while, you probably know that I didn’t always intend on becoming a nurse practitioner. I went through the normal phases of wanting to be either a teacher or a vet, and at one point, I even thought I wanted to be an astrophysicist. But when I got to high school though, I decided that science wasn’t for me. 

In high school, all my classes were on the honors track, except for science, and that felt like my message from the universe — I am just not good at science. I really internalized that message and just ruled out science, so when I got to college, I decided to study the things that I was best at, the things that felt safe. I was a huge orchestra nerd, and I applied to school with the intention of becoming a music teacher. It seemed like a logical next step. 

During undergrad, I did a dual-degree program and studied Italian, and during my junior year, I spent a semester in Italy. I had the time of my life! That was my first taste of independence, and it was incredible. I was figuring out how to navigate this place on my own and I had this great opportunity to examine my life. Having the opportunity to make decisions for myself and the space to really listen to myself was really bizarre for me — I was always the person that did what was expected, and living in Italy for the semester, that was the first time I got to decide what I really wanted to do. Remember that logical next step thing? I decided to throw that out the window. 

I kept coming back to the medical field. In high school and college, I was the one that friends came to to talk about bodies and periods and sex. I’d always felt comfortable talking to my mom, who was a nurse, about those things, and reproductive health became a passion of mine. 

So, as per my usual, I started researching — could I realistically go into the medical field? What does it take to become a midwife? Is it too late for me? Did I waste the last four years of school studying something I wasn’t going to pursue? 

It turns out that it wasn’t too late, and no time had been wasted. I had found the right path for myself all in the right time. That’s how this works, isn’t it? 

LINKS & RESOURCES MENTIONED TODAY: 

• Listen to episode two of Nurse Becoming here.
• Download my Nurse Practitioner Graduation Survival Guide for free here!

Listen to more episodes here!