The yappings of a Gen Z nurse

They’re letting the Gen Zs qualify, y’all. Stay healthy!😳

So, I’m a newly qualified nurse. Don’t know if it’s a good idea to admit it on here, but here I am-proud of it. No one really gets the paranoia that comes with this job, though. It’s like living with your pin-a tiny sequence of numbers that cost blood, sweat, and tuition to earn-dangling over your head by a thread. They tell you, over and over, how easily you can lose it. The whispers of "protect your pin" are constant and are engraved into my overthinking brain. For someone who runs on anxiety, it adds fuel to a fire that I’ve been trying to extinguish.

In most jobs, an innocent mistake might cost you your job. In nursing, it could cost someone their life. It could cost you your freedom. And yet, you keep going. The fear creeps into every corner: You can’t wear your uniform in public. You can’t post freely on social media. You can’t argue too loudly, dress too boldly, live too freely—because if you slip, that pin is gone. The fear isn't just about safety or professionalism; it’s a tool, a gag order, censorship keeping us quiet and compliant.

And for what? A paycheck that barely covers the rent. It’s hard not to feel bitter when the sacrifices feel so steep. To lose parts of yourself-your voice, your individuality-just to keep a career that barely sustains you? It’s a hard pill to swallow.

But still, I love this. Nursing, as complicated and chaotic as it is, feels like it was made for me. The complaining, the good, the bad, the downright gory—I love it all. It’s my safe space to be unapologetically kind and cringe, where my intentions are pure and unquestioned. It’s my outlet, my validation. Every shift is a lesson in humanity, a study of human behaviour, a front-row seat to how we break and heal, how we suffer and persevere. I like to say I’m here for research purposes. You see people fascinate and terrify me in equal measure, and nursing lets me observe them at their most rawest form but from a safe enough distance for my avoidant attachment style.

That said, I’ve got chronic back pain at the ripe age of 22. The NHS is crumbling, the pressure is indeed getting worser, and the cracks are widening. Some days, I hate it. The politics, the toxic culture, the feeling of being spread so thin that patients can’t get the care they deserve-it’s soul-crushing. And the worst part? The people. Stress is a monster that can turn the kindest person into someone bitter and cold. The ones who’ve lost their compassion, who’ve stayed too long and let the job harden them-they’re the ones who make it harder for the rest of us.

“Nurses eat their young” isn’t just a saying; it’s a reality. Some coworkers go out of their way to make your life miserable. And then there are the doctors, some of whom treat you like an inconvenience when you’re just trying to advocate for your patient. The eye rolls, the whispers, the dismissive tones—it’s exhausting.

But I’m staying as long as my body and mind can handle it. Not just for the patients, but for the ones coming after me. For the student nurses who need someone to look up to, someone to say, It doesn’t have to be like this. To show them that kindness and patience can survive here, even if it’s a fight.

Student nurses-get behind me!! We’ve got work to do. The toxic cycle ends with us.