What is nursing? In the beginning, I always thought it was just about helping people, which is one of the main reasons I wanted to become a nurse. But as I progressed through the nursing program and participated in clinical rotations, I found that it went much deeper than that. My personal nursing philosophy has evolved and changed to what it is today, which is that a nurse must possess these characteristics; compassion, knowledge, composure, critical thinking and patient advocacy. I believe these are the traits that make a well-rounded nurse capable of working in their chosen field. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essay When my father had to have back surgery for his pinched sciatic nerve, I was a complete mess because I had afraid that he would never be able to do it. walk properly again because of his pain. That he wouldn't be able to return to work and do the things he loves because of his pain. When we were at the hospital getting ready for surgery, the nurse who was with us preparing my father for surgery could sense my discomfort. She had asked me what I was worried about and once I told her she explained that she understood my point of view, but that it was a standard procedure and everything should be fine. She even gave my father some advice when he was experiencing pain and what types of exercises would help him after the surgery. That's when I discovered that nurses' job is not only to take care of patients, but also their families. She sensed my discomfort and helped me talk about how I felt about the surgery my father had to undergo. As a nurse, you must be able to notice nonverbal cues from the patient and family members. It's a special trait that allows nurses to be great and deal with whatever problems they face, which is why it's part of my nursing philosophy. Coming from a Brazilian family means our diet is definitely not the healthiest out there. . Our diet consists mainly of rice, beans and meat, with plates full for each member of the family. When I was a child, my diet consisted mainly of carbohydrates and red meat. While completing my nursing studies, I learned how important it is to have a healthy, balanced diet and lifestyle. This can help reduce the risk of many health conditions that I learned about throughout school. I try to teach my parents how to maintain a healthy and balanced diet so that they can improve their body and mind. My mother is much more accepting of this new routine, while my father is a little more difficult. He always wants to add more sugar to his drinks and a lot more salt to his food, but he is a very active man in his work and at home so I try to convince him to reduce it little by little. I plan to further educate my parents on the benefits of healthy eating and living a healthy lifestyle for their future. Having worked in many different hospitals, I have seen the different and dynamic work environments. I have seen terrible work environments where nurses don't even seem to want to be there let alone want to help patients. There are other work environments where nurses are.