TurboNurse

I figured I could use a page such as this where I can just write about what is going on with nursing school and how I'm surviving it. The intention of this page is not to gain friends or anything else. If that happens, great but if not, that's OK too. The purpose of this blog is to journal and just let things out about school.

To start off I was looking for a nice nurse related picture to put for the profile pic since I want to stay relatively anonymous on here. I couldn't beleive how many "sexy nurse" pictures I found with these women in nurse costumes with their boobs hanging out and their asses and vaginas (yes I said it!) showing!

I take pride in the fact that in just over a year I will be a registered nurse. This is a PROFESSIOAL job. Not something to joke at. Nurses have huge jobs, not just huge boobs. We're responsible for so much yet there are people mocking the profession. It makes me very sad.

So anyway, I'm about 4 weeks into my first semester and already the stress is really getting to me. I had my first breakdown last Friday. It wasn't strictly about school, it was about everything. Home life, trying to fit in exercise, school, and the general turning upside down of the life that comes with this transistion. I felt better after that but something happened and I feel like I'm going to burst again.

You see, I keep having these nightmares. They are about school but they're bad enough that they keep waking me up at night. I have them 2-3 times a week and only since nursing school has started. This really sucks.

So yes, I'm anxious about school because there is so much that they are throwing at us but then to add the nightmares (ie waking up in the middle of the night hyperventilating, heart racing, and diaphoretic) is not a good thing. A good night of sleep for me is one in which I don't have a nightmare or wake up an hour before my alarm clock goes off.

I can feel the stress in my chest. This is not a good thing. I know and am aware of this. I just wish there were something I could regularly do to combat this and return to a functioning normal. If only there were a yoga class that I could afford to go to. I think that would help.

So anyway, today was the first day in class that we were in full uniform. When I woke up in the morning it felt just like I was getting ready for another day at work as a tech but the uniform changed.

It's amazing how when something that should seem so insignificant can make such an impact on how you view things.

Today it felt official that I am a nursing student. Today I felt like the nurse and was proud to say that.

Of course today we are getting to the stuff I've been looking forward to which is doing our care plans.

Yeah I know a lot of students rant and rave about the care plans but I beleive in their purpose. I'm excited to finally get to learn potential complications (PC's) and what I as a nurse can do about them to help the patient stay in a state of well being.

I'm finally going to take charge and be the nurse.

Tomorrow we are doing full head to toe assessments on each other and we have to come up with a disease process for our partner to write a care plan on. We can chose a disease covered this semester or something that we have ourselves.

I am going to pick asthma because that is what I have. How exciting! We're going to do what we've been talking about all along.

I was just reviewing the material that will be on the next test and it's a lot. The next test will have Nursing Diagnosis, Skin (assessment and wound care), Fluids and Electrolytes, Care Planning, Growth and Development, and finally Culture! This is just one test! No wonder why my heart feels like it is constantly pounding in my chest!

We got our IPR's back today. This was a communication project we did where we went to the senior center, held a conversation with a senior, and then had to evaluate it.

The instructors are making us all do it over again. I think it's because they didn't explain it well enough. Almost everyone in class put down the wrong techniques because the instructors didn't clarify exactly what they were looking for.

I think this time it will be easier but I really find this whole idea rediculous! I don't understand why they are so intent on us learning these techniques. This is something that comes naturally after spending some time at the bedside. You learn through your mistakes and move on. For some stupid reason they just want us to put names to all the things we use when talking to someone.

So whatever. I'll redo it.

Tonight is going to suck because I really could use seeing my husband since I didn't see him last night but that won't happen. Last night I had to go somewhere and tonight he has school and will go straight there from work. I'll see him as a sleeping lump in the bed in the morning. That sucks so bad.

It's really hard with both of us being in school. He's in the early stages of his degree but is taking evening classes and I'm obviously in the busy part of mine with classes during the day and then commitments to other things at night. I've changed a few things so I can see him more often but it's still hard. This will be 48 hours in which we will have had all of about an hour to see and talk to each other before I have to go to bed.

Another good thing is that I'm getting to really know and connect with a lady in my clinical group. I really like her a lot. We were talking this morning and I found out that she goes to the sister of my church. Well, the church I go to actually is an offspring of her church. Either way we found something we really have in common. It was nice. I've felt kind of lost. Yeah I have some friends that I hang out with but I haven't really connected with them but now I've found a group I connect with. It made today a lot easier than days past. It's nice to know that you are not alone, that there are other people there with you.

Time for a run with non-nursing school friends (NNS friends). Hopefully I'll feel less stress after this.