u/Entire_Signature_839

I am a new grad nurse. I started working in 2025 in 2 different SNFs which obviously don’t pay as well as hospitals. I started working in August so I only worked from August to December. I live in San Diego and my rent is high. I share a 3 bedroom house it’s $3,400 a month. I pay for 1 room which is $1,200 a month. After my tax return came back the IRS still took $12,000 from me last year. That’s $3,000 a month. More than double my rent. I went to college for 6.5 years and worked so hard for my RN license so I could be financially independent. It’s really hard to save money with all these taxes, gas is $8 a gallon on top of bills. I am considering moving into a van instead of renewing my lease so I at least wouldn’t have rent and bills anymore and I could actually save for my future. It’s like impossible to save money and build success anymore. It’s making me feel like I wasted my time in school. Being an RN charge nurse in a SNF and getting 55 patients by myself for 8 hours. The stress of it all, working nights. It’s really taking a toll on my mental health. Part of me wishes I became something else less stressful like a farmer or a yoga instructor. Any nurses finding alternative ways to live to save money? How do you build success as a new grad in this economy?