Everyone’s journey to nursing looks different. While some discover their “why” through positive experiences, encouragement and inspiration, others find their calling during some of life’s most difficult moments. For these students, the challenges they’ve faced become part of what motivates them to turn their pain into purpose and create something meaningful from it.  

For Dominique Gaines, a BSN student at Galen College of Nursing’s Houston campus, nursing has been a part of her life for as long as she can remember. Her path to becoming a nurse, however, was anything but traditional. 

“I was raised by my great-grandparents, and when I was 10 years old, my grandfather had a stroke. We couldn’t afford healthcare, so I had to stay home from school and help take care of him,” she said.   

But the hardships didn’t just stop there for Gaines.  

“I also grew up experiencing abuse from my biological family and spent a lot of time in and out of hospitals. I was in an abusive marriage for about 12 years, and I spent a lot of time lying about my injuries,” she said.  

After experiencing serious injuries, including being stabbed, shot and having broken bones, Gaines became all too familiar with creating explanations to conceal the true causes of her injuries. For the most part, her nurses always believed her. 

 All but one.  

“One nurse finally stopped me. She questioned what I was saying and recognized that something wasn’t adding up.”  

Given that Gaines’ abuser was always in the room when being questioned, she was never able to tell the truth, and nurses never caught on to it. But if it weren’t for that nurse, she would never have been able to make it out of her abusive situation. The nurse’s skepticism hindered Gaines from being able to come up with more lies to hide her reality.  

That moment became a turning point for Gaines. 

 “That nurse was the person who made me realize that people notice, and that someone can actually advocate for you.”  

As a deeply empathetic person herself, the compassion and advocacy she experienced from that nurse inspired Dominique to pursue nursing and shaped the kind of nurse she is determined to be for her own patients.  

“That’s a big part of why I want to be a nurse. I’m a huge empath because of the way I grew up and the things I’ve experienced,” she said. “When I meet my patients and get to know them, I try to recognize when there’s a deficit, an emptiness, or something that makes them uncomfortable. I remember little things. Maybe they have a cat named Einstein. I’ll remember that because I want them to feel seen. I want them to feel like something more than a patient.”  

As Dominique began her journey at Galen College of Nursing, she gained more than clinical knowledge and nursing skills. With the support of her instructors, she discovered new things about herself and began to recognize the strength and resilience she hadn’t always given herself credit for. 

“My experience at Galen has also taught me a lot. I’ve had some amazing instructors that have been able to take the time to be like let me see what you’re doing. And I’ve had great preceptors on clinical sites,” she said. “It has allowed me to recognize myself and give myself more credit. When you’re living through things, you don’t always stop to give yourself credit because you just have to keep moving. Nursing school has helped me recognize what I bring to the table and the kind of nurse I want to be.” 

As Gaines continues her journey through nursing school, she never misses an opportunity to reflect on what brought her here and the lessons she has learned along the way. 

“Sometimes the lessons are hurtful. Sometimes you look back and think, “That was horrible.” But you can still use those experiences to learn and move forward,” said Gaines. “They teach you what you will and won’t allow in your life, what kind of person you want to be, and what situations you don’t want to find yourself in again.” 

While difficult experiences can make it easy to lose hope or develop a negative outlook, Gaines chooses to see them as opportunities for growth. Every person she has encountered — whether good or bad — has taught her something valuable. Rather than letting those experiences define her, she carries their lessons forward, using them to shape the nurse she wants to become and the positive future she is building for herself in nursing. 

“Without those experiences, how are you going to move forward?”