TurboNurse

Yikes.  Just yikes.

This is the official start of my last week on orientation.  I can't believe how fast the time has gone!  It feels like I just started yesterday.  I still have so much to learn!  My favorite quote is still "The more I learn, the less I know."  I wish I could remember where I saw this at and credit the person.

Anyway, my time off these past few days has been quite productive.  On Saturday I went to a yoga class.  I hadn't been in quite a few years.  Unfortunately it wasn't the same instructor as before but it was still a good class.

Sunday I did Body Pump at 10am followed by a 25 mile bike ride for which I felt horrible on.  We stopped about halfway so I could refuel.  Guess if I do that again, I'm going to bring some real food with me.  Sport beans just didn't cut it that day.

Today I rested.  I was supposed to go up to Santa Fe and ride with the new riding group but after yesterday's fiasco, I opted out.  After yesterday's ride, my lungs felt like sandpaper and it continued until after I fell asleep.  Thank you asthma.

I'm still sore today and am walking like I'm 80.

I did some stretching this morning while watching Sherlock Holmes.  After the movie we went out and did errands.  I got the car cleaned, we got ice cream, then went to Sam's Club and Sunflower.

Here it is at 8:30 tonight and I'm still working on dinner.  I'm making spaghetti squash and ratattouie (or however you spell it).  Either way it's taking FOREVER so it must taste good.

My week coming up at work is going to be insane!  I take a STABLE certification on Thursday which is 10 hours and then I work Friday and Saturday, my last two days with my preceptor, and am then on my own on Sunday and Monday.

Scared doesn't even begin to describe how I'm feeling right now.  I am actually quite beside myself about the whole deal.  For one, working 5 days in a row is just insane when you work 12hr shifts, and two, I can't believe they are going to put me out there on my own!  Me!  I'm a brand spanking new nurse who has only been there 4 months and they trust me enough to put me out there on my own!  The thought just makes my heart race!

A part of me knows I can do it but the other part of me doesn't want to let go of what I'm used to.  It's really nice to have someone available to help you out when you back yourself into a corner.  It's also super nice to have someone there who is willing and has the time to answer your questions.

Just the other day at work, I had to change out fluids which can be quite the partaking in our little world.  After that, I had to re-zero the arterial line to make sure I was getting a good waveform and proper pulse and b/p readings.  I knew I had to hook up a syringe without the plunger in it but for the life of me could not remember which way to turn the stopcock to get it to read right!  I asked my pod partner and she told me to turn it off to baby.  Well as soon as she said it, I was like "duh!  that makes sense!  I KNEW that!  If I did it any other way, the baby would bleed to death!"  I felt like such a dummy.

Then I had another dumb moment as I was changing the fluids. I had all of my lines primed up to my transducer for the art line and then I got stuck.  We have these connectors that are like male/female connectors and when I got to my stuck point, I had two female connectors in my hand so I grabbed my preceptor and asked her what I did wrong in prepping the tubing.  Come to find out, everything was done correctly, I was just holding the end that was supposed to go to the baby!  Doh!  No wonder it wasn't fitting!  I had the wrong end of the transducer in my hand!!!  I laughed so hard at myself!!!

I have to note that these two situations were after my preceptor was already speaking good of me.  Then I go and do somethng brainless like that!  Gooooooooooooo me!!!!!!!!!!!

and they think I'm ready to be on my own.  ha!