A resident of Pouso Alegre, in Minas Gerais, Dr. Juliana Morais Ferreira worked as a nurse for about 12 years at a local hospital, where she spent almost her entire career. But she changed direction by choosing Aesthetic Nursing
With a work schedule full of on-call shifts, she says she worked every morning and every weekend. Despite the exhaustion, it was only when she found out about her second pregnancy that she began to rethink her work routine.
She says it was hard to balance two kids, school and weekends. That was when she decided to look for another field.
“Since I always liked aesthetics as a patient, I thought: couldn’t I be on the other side? Be the professional who’s there? Working? That’s when I started looking for a postgraduate program and, through referrals, I found out about Nepuga and the Aesthetic Nursing course.”
Different Fields, Different Rewards
Dr. Juliana says that, since she worked in the ICU, nursing gave her a sense of satisfaction from relieving pain and supporting patients who are ill.
She chose the specialization in Aesthetic Nursing because she wanted to stay in the field, but in a different sphere, that of health and beauty. That’s because, according to her, beauty is nothing more than health. “It’s a whole: you have to be well with yourself, with your body, with your mind, and that gives you health. That’s how I see aesthetics and health.”
Juliana lives approximately 240 kilometers (about 150 miles) from where she studies. She says it isn’t easy to leave her children and husband at home and that it takes careful planning, done the day before, so she can leave and attend her postgraduate program.
But, despite everything, she considers the reward much greater than the fatigue. After all, besides the knowledge she gained for her new career, Juliana takes away experiences that will last her whole life.
“I went through rainy days… And besides that, I had never driven alone in a bigger city, but those obstacles are what make us grow. For me it was really good as a person, as a professional… It was immense growth achieved in one year.”
A Vision of the Future and Aesthetic Nursing
Currently, Dr. Juliana is preparing her office, although she is not practicing yet.
She says that before, she didn’t see herself as an entrepreneur, but that changed after she started the aesthetic nursing postgraduate program. She also notes that this choice of Aesthetics, besides giving her more awareness and practice in self-care, makes her feel more valued.
“I think entrepreneurship helps a lot, and I’m really enjoying being able to empower women, to feel empowered. I think that’s the word: empowerment. Aesthetics needs empowered people to be able to empower others.”
To her fellow nurses, she leaves a message: “don’t be afraid. Invest in studies, invest in courses. It’s an investment in yourself. Aesthetics changed my life a lot, you know? It really did. Today I feel more empowered, happier, entrepreneurial. I wish I could pass that on to people. I feel like a very different person today.”
Learn More About Aesthetic Nursing
Feeling more encouraged to keep chasing your dream? Tell us in the comments!
And take the chance to watch a series of videos on the topic of Aesthetic Nursing. One of them is from Simone Teixeira. She says: “My turning point for change was during the pandemic, because I came across difficult situations. Later, I saw that I could improve my quality of life and my self-esteem.”
Tasnim Khaled
NEPUGA content team — Núcleo de Especializações Ana Carolina Puga.
