A wise person once said, “Meme your way through the apocalypse.”
Okay. Maybe it’s not the end of the world just yet, but it’s safe to say the past couple of years has put us all through the wringer. But even before the COVID-19 pandemic, nurses were well-acquainted with long, grueling shifts. If you’re a nurse, you know nothing can help pull you through stressful moments on the job like a little comic relief.
Sure, not all jokes land across the board, but who doesn’t love a good exhaustion meme?
Here’s a quick list of nurse memes to give you a chuckle during that next 12-hour shift.
Funny nurse memes that’ll make you laugh
Happy nurses week! Well, err, happy nurses week memes, we mean. When people throw their career weight around, who doesn’t want to pull up a chair to sit on the sidelines and watch?
@juliaj.nurse 30 years of bedside experience said “pardon me?” #nurse #nurselife #fyp #nursestiktok #nursetok #nursehumor #nursing #nurselifern #foryou #medsurg
Sometimes the grind of #nurselife becomes so hard that all you want is blissful, thoughtless, emptyheaded sleep. Seriously, just let a nurse take a nap. We’re not going to find one on this night shift.
Me, on shift 3/5: pic.twitter.com/SFSQtuS4XP
— 🦠CriticalCareBear🐻 (@ATLmurse) November 21, 2021
Tweets go out of style faster than you can type, but wait! We want to defend this one with a bit of nurse humor of our own. Meme: Old, boring. Predictable. Viral sensation: Technically true, double meaning. Potentially lethal, too.
when swabbing a patient for covid:
“this will feel a bit uncomfortable”
– boring and overused
– does not relax them
– it’s a lie“out demons!”
– exciting
– distracts from the pain
– may get you fired and not have to argue with patients about getting swabbed for covid anymore— Code Blue Memes (@codebluememes) December 7, 2021
At last, we’ve hit the jackpot: someone’s calling out this “wellness” false fad-diet. Not only is it unhealthy and primed for its lack of body positivity, but it’s false advertising.
Intermittent fasting doesn’t work!
I’ve been skipping lunch every shift during this whole pandemic and I’m still fat.
— 🦠CriticalCareBear🐻 (@ATLmurse) September 23, 2021
Never speak these forbidden words around other registered nurses. You’ve got too many tasks on your plate, but causing a workplace incident isn’t one of them.
@jonthenurse Happy nurses week #fyp #ernurse #nursestiktok #foryoupage @madelinemarie97
Say what you want about nurse quotes and their sensitivity to the pandemic. However, you’ve got to admit this primetime example has a point (LOL!).
Even if you’re fully vaccinated, the CDC still recommends not driving slow in the left lane.
— Ashley The Blonde RN 💁🏼♀️ (@TheBlondeRN) May 29, 2021
When we say we choked on our coffee, we mean it. Full-on comedic surprise:
i don’t usually brag about going to expensive places but i just left the hospital
— Code Blue Memes (@codebluememes) November 30, 2021
Night shifts are not for the weak. It’s not a time to wonder about ghosts, either.
@nurse.johnn Susan, not tonight. The other nurse is on break and I’m alone. #fyp #fypシ #foryoupage #greenscreen #nursingstudent #nursehumor #nurselife #nursingschool #cnalife #nurseproblems #cnastruggles #foryourpage #hospitallife #cnasoftiktok #cnalifebelike #nursesoftiktok #nursing #studentsbelike #dementia #ghost #patientsbelike #patientstories #medicalhumor #medicalstudent #medicaltiktok #emergencyroom #emergency
You bet your costly nursing degree it’s medicinal. How else do you expect us to survive a 12-hour shift? Perseverance alone might not cut it. It’s time to call in the cat pics.
— Nurse Humor 🤖👽👾😷 (@Nurse_Humor) September 1, 2021
We’d like to call out night shift nurses, day nurses, charge nurses, EMTs and paramedics for being bad at self-care in real life. It’s time to throw your sleep schedule in the oven for a roast.
my toxic trait is not taking any of my own medical advice
— Code Blue Memes (@codebluememes) October 29, 2021
Relatable memes for nurses
Technically, this brand of medical memes is relatable for everyone. But like, they’re extra relatable to nurses because you know what happens when you do the “going out” part during current events. You’ll end up in that ICU ward.
anyone else get simultaneous fomo (fear of missing out) and fogo (fear of going out)
— Adam (@adamgreattweet) November 21, 2021
When you witness the five stages of grief over a work shift.
@nurselindaa Never say easy or quiet 🙃 #registerednurse #nursesoftiktok #nightshiftnurse #MakeItMagical #StrikeAPosay #fyp #nursehumor #foryoupage
And they’re our fall plans. Our winter plans. Our spring plans, too. Don’t remind us that consistency in healthcare is not always crucial.
please stop asking me what my summer plans are, I will be getting Covid coughed into my face, same as last summer
— Code Blue Memes (@codebluememes) June 5, 2021
Listen. We’ve all been there at least once or twice. No, seriously, we swear we’ve already checked that spot. Where’s my car?
My favorite post-shift game is: “what level did I park my car on”
— 🦠CriticalCareBear🐻 (@ATLmurse) October 2, 2021
Is it too much to ask for a calm day where we can have five minutes to think? Maybe enough time to grab a fresh pair of scrubs? Oh, it is too much? Well, okay then. We trained for it.
Every single shift pic.twitter.com/hFSdCva4DV
— Nurse Memes (@nurse_kellie18) May 18, 2021
Funny nurse memes aside, it really is like this sometimes. Please, someone, cheer us up with a few nurse gifts.
My work routine:
1. Take report
2. Suffer— Code Blue Memes (@codebluememes) November 19, 2021
There’s always that one coworker who manages to maintain their cheerful facade through the entire workweek. Not all of us are perfect, though, and we need a little room to breathe. Let’s be honest for a second.
@nursetiffanyann
This is another Twitter copypaste that has come and gone, but it’s so good. Would you trust a workplace where the turnover rate is so high that your seniors are barely past their probationary period? We didn’t think so.
Most of the nurses have worked here less than 2 years
🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩— Ashley The Blonde RN 💁🏼♀️ (@TheBlondeRN) October 14, 2021
Deeply relatable. It’s us too.
Nurses really be out here arriving to work 20 minutes late, but also get mad when they can’t leave right at 7.
It’s me, I’m nurses
— 🦠CriticalCareBear🐻 (@ATLmurse) October 21, 2021
At Jaanuu, we try to keep things a little PG-13 to focus on fashion, not F-bombs. But we feel obligated to include this one because it’s so true: Some of you are absolutely not ready for this conversation!
“oh you work in the ER?! what’s the craziest thing you’ve seen?!”
bitch you are not ready for that conversation
— Code Blue Memes (@codebluememes) September 21, 2021
Nursing student memes
If you’re in nursing school, or you’ve already finished medical school, you’ll know it’s like this. Sometimes you just have to smile and nod your way through.
@aricares_ It be like that sometimes 😅 #nursingstudent #nursinghumor #nursingstudent101 #nursingschool #nursesoftiktok #nursetok
What’s wrong with a little overenthusiastic encouragement? Everyone needs a cheerleader on the squad, and today it will be the nursing student.
@almatgamez im *slightly* joking 🤭 #ShadowAndBone #fyp #nurse #nursingstudent #nursestiktok #nurseblake #nursingstudent101
Well, are they wrong?
Nursing school: fuck around
Being a nurse: find out
— Code Blue Memes (@codebluememes) December 12, 2021
Sometimes you’ve said something a little too bluntly, and you have to sit there with a few uncomfortable truths. Not that you shouldn’t be a nurse, by the way! But yeah, uh. Well. Ouch. That one has to hurt for nursing school memes.
@grace.em_ bc I’m a glutton for punishment idk #nursingschool #nursing #studentnurse #humor #fyp #foryou #fypシ #foryoupage #cna #pct #pca
Niche humor from the “I had to go to university during the pandemic and all they gave me was this lousy video” crowd.
[enrolling in nursing school]
hi yes I’d like to pay $60,000 to teach myself how to be a nurse using YouTube videos
— Code Blue Memes (@codebluememes) April 17, 2021
Relatable to nursing students and the people who supervise them. We can’t lie. We laughed pretty hard at this.
@mmmgud dear student, i promise it won’t be the last time.. #fyp #thebrooksfam #nursesoftiktok #nursehumor #nursingstudent #nurses #patientsbelike
That feeling when you’re a nursing student looking for a male nurse meme, and you have to roast your own. Everyone’s a bit nervous the first day on the job, okay?
@studentnursecayden inspired by @jessvalortiz 🥰 #nurse #bscn #rn #nurseextern #studentnurse #nursingschool #rnstudent #nursehumor
Some of us don’t learn well with textbooks. What can we say?
@aricares_ I guess we’ll never know 😅 #nursingstudent #nursinghumor #nursingstudent101 #nursesoftiktok #nursingschool
Be brave. Be fearless. Be a nursing student, willing to name and shame the dynamics of your school.
nursing schools:
we teach our nurses using cutting edge science & research to give them the critical thinking & clinical judgment skills needed in today’s healthcare environmentalso nursing schools:
everyone grab a cotton ball for your posterboard about documenting pain levels— Code Blue Memes (@codebluememes) May 24, 2021
Beyond the desire to help patients, that nice nurse paycheck is why many go into the field. But seriously, this first step? Even though it’s necessary, that “work for free” part has to hurt.
@viktapus There’s no bread to get 😔 #nursingstudent #clinical #nursingschool #nursesoftiktok #nursehumor
Looking for other ways to make it through nursing school, and humor ain’t cutting it? Use a Jaanuu student discount. Next, head on over to our nurse loungewear or sock collection, where you can put together an “I need comfort” scrub set worthy of a TikTok meme.