I left with nothing but exhaustion and a terrifying idea. ER. ICU transport. Cath lab. Travel nursing. Med-surg. I did it all. For 13 years I showed up night shifts, 12-hour stretches, codes, trauma bays. I missed important birthdays, holidays and weekends. I gave everything I had to that work. And then one day my body just said no. I just felt numb. It felt like I was on autopilot. Burnout doesn't announce itself. It creeps in quietly until you're driving to a shift and realizing you have nothing left to give. That was me. Completely empty. The problem was I had no idea what came next. I wasn't a "tech person." I didn't have a computer science degree. I wasn't good at math in school. Every time I looked at data science I thought the same thing: "I'm not smart enough for this." I taught myself anyway. While terrified. While people around me thought I was making a mistake. I figured it out, one course, one concept, one late night at a time. I became a data scientist. Then I moved into AI. Today I work from home. I have the freedom to work and take care of my kids at the same time. I stopped paying for daycare. I have more flexibility. I don't work weekends! OR Holidays! Here's what I know now that I wish someone had told me then: everything nursing taught you — critical thinking, pattern recognition, working under pressure, communicating across teams — is exactly what tech companies are desperate for. You are not starting over. You are translating. That's what The Ex-Nurse Movement is about. I built the roadmap I wish existed when I was sitting in a hospital parking lot wondering if there was another way. There is. And you don't have to figure it out alone. Let's work together, hand in hand. One step at a time :)

If you've felt like you couldn't take one more shift, you are not imagining it — and you are far from alone. THE BURNOUT IS REAL (AND IT'S MEASURABLE) Recent workforce data paints a sobering picture of life at the bedside: - 43% of nurses say they are likely to leave the bedside within the next year, up from 38% the year before (Nurse.org, 2026). - - Roughly 40% of nurses report they plan to leave their position, with emotional exhaustion and heavy workloads cited as primary drivers (2024 National Nursing Workforce Survey, Journal of Nursing Regulation, 2025). - - Nearly 40% of RNs reported an intent to leave the workforce or retire within five years (NCSBN, 2025). - - New nurses are walking away early too — turnover within the first two years of practice runs as high as 33% (OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 2024). Understaffing, unsustainable patient loads, and chronic stress aren't personal failures. They're systemic — and your body and mind keeping score is a normal response to an abnormal environment. WHERE NURSES ARE GOING: AI & HEALTH TECH Here's the hopeful part. The same clinical judgment, pattern recognition, and patient empathy that made you a great nurse are in HIGH demand in the tech world — especially as AI reshapes healthcare: - Health information technologist roles are projected to grow 15% from 2024 to 2034, much faster than the average occupation (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025). - - Nursing informatics employment is projected to grow ~24% from 2022 to 2032, fueled by AI and electronic health records (Research.com, 2026). - - 60% of nurse informaticists now earn over $100,000 — up from 33% in 2017 (HIMSS Nursing Informatics Workforce Survey, 2022). - - AI is actively creating NEW roles in nursing informatics and clinical decision support, and nurses are uniquely positioned to fill them (PMC/NIH, Nashwan et al., 2025). WHY YOUR SKILLS TRANSFER Nurses already do the hard part: translating messy human reality into structured data, advocating for safety, and spotting what doesn't add up. Clinical informatics, healthcare data analytics, UX research, and AI-safety roles all need exactly that lens. Your license isn't the ceiling — it's the launchpad.

Let's get to know each other! Comment below sharing where you are in the world, a photo of your workspace, and something you like to do for fun. 😊hare and discover: 💻 Learning platforms (Codecademy, LeetCode, HackerRank, etc.) 📚 Free coding resources and tutorials 🎓 Course recommendations and bootcamps 🔧 Dev tools that make coding easier 📖 Books and blogs worth reading 🎥 YouTube channels and podcasts 💰 Free tier tools for developers 🌐 Communities and forums for support 🧠 Productivity and time management tools 🤖 AI tools that help with coding Let's build a curated list of resources that actually help! Share what's worked for you. 🌟

Let's get to know each other! Comment below sharing where you are in the world, a photo of your workspace, and something you like to do for fun. 😊ell our unique story of transitioning from nursing to tech. Share and discuss here: 📄 Resume templates and formatting tips 🎯 How to quantify your nursing achievements for tech roles ✨ LinkedIn headline and summary optimization 🔗 LinkedIn profile review and feedback 💼 Cover letter strategies 🏆 Talking points for career change narrative 📸 Professional photos and branding 🌐 Portfolio links and GitHub profiles Your unique perspective as a nurse MATTERS. Let's make sure it shines! 💡