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Thursday, November 24, 2011

I don't know about you...but for Thanksgiving I....

The hardest part about not having time to blog is that there's so much to catch up on once I finally find some time to write...so I hope you have some fluids, a snack, and if you need...make a quick run to the restroom! :) Ready or not...here we go...


Well, first things first, I took my 4th exam; which has always been rumored to be the worst, most dreadful, horrendous, gosh-darn-awful test that there ever was. The rumors proved to be true. It covered the cardiovascular system, cancer, autoimmune diseases, and addiction. Some of the questions seemed to have no right or wrong answer, it truly came down to, "which of these is the most correct answer". I'm proud to say that I passed the exam and got a pretty decent grade too!!! *Super happy and kinda freaky celebratory dance* Now I'm left with one more exam (HESI which is an exam to help us prepare for the NCLEX) and the final which will have 50% new material and 50% cumulative info. 


I'm filled with utter excitement and disbelief that this semester is almost over...each time a new semester begins I get this overwhelming feeling that it's never going to end and by the time I get close to finals I'm left scratching my head wondering how I ever got here! This week we have Thursday and Friday off for the Thanksgiving holiday and then next week we get to review/prep for the final and it will also be our last week of clinicals. So how does a nursing student enjoy school while at the same time not forgo ones studies? Well, I'm glad you asked because I figured out the perfect balance between enjoying my time off and taking advantage of the time I have to study...Well, I don't know about you, but for Thanksgiving I LOVE opening up the bag of giblets and getting my hands dirty (for educational purposes of course)...




That's right...I tore open that baggie full of glorious treasures and I made use of this lovely turkey that gave its life to feed us for our Thanksgiving dinner. It contained the lovely glorious gizzard, the heavenly heart, and the lustrous liver! So what did I do? Well, I taught my mother and brother how the blood travels through the body and into/through the heart. I taught them the different structures and their functions...and helped myself review for my fantastic final that I have coming up....okay enough of my annoying alliterations! :) Basically, I played around in some guts and had fun trying to identify the different structures of the heart and liver of the turkey! 



 Hey, sometimes you just have to have some fun with some freaking turkey giblets...that's all I'm saying!


It's really nice to have a break and be able to spend some time with the ones you love. I was having a particularly nice time with my mom. My mom has a friend who is a great cook along with her husband and on his blog he talks about brining the turkey before you cook it. I had never heard of it, but my mom had, and her friends husband had a blog post devoted to it. So we got the ingredients to brine ourselves a turkey...it was one of the most glorious, aromatic, delightful thing I've smelt it quite some time! 


So there. I'm learning to enjoy my time off from school and still reap the benefits of what free time I have to learn. 


Another quick thing...today after lecture I was walking to my car and all around me I realized I was surrounded by my fellow classmates. I just want to say how thankful I am for each and every one of them! There's something comforting about walking into a classroom filled with people that you've been going to school with and walking along with on this journey. I'm thankful that I have such amazing friends in this program...all that I can say is, "Look out world...you have a great batch of nurses headed your way"


So take some time to enjoy your family....and I don't just mean sitting chowing down on some turkey...I mean really take the time to be with your family and enjoy each person...one thing that you learn real quick in nursing school is that no one is guaranteed tomorrow. Regardless of your age, gender, health status etc. Until my next post...Happy Thanksgiving!

Monday, November 7, 2011

Time Flies When You're Having Fun!

Alrighty...so little time and so much has happened; so I'm going to try and get you all back up to speed! It's just that time in the semester where everything comes at you at the same time (e.g. exams, papers, case studies, preparing for clinicals etc.). I just feel like there is never any extra time to spare in the day...which in turn leaves me exhausted by the end of the day! 


First, I finally rocked an exam! I'm super happy and proud of myself! I got an 88 and the class average was an 82...so I was happy to be a few points above the average....however, that test is over and it's now time to start studying for the big one, aka, the Cardiovascular, Cancer, Addiction and Autoimmune test! :O Every time that I go into an exam, I try and think of it as a brand new page, a new chance, a clean slate...otherwise you get caught up on the past times that you wish you would've done better!


Second, I went to the OR (operating room) and I didn't pass out! (It's not uncommon for people to pass out the first time to the OR for those of you who may not know) There was a girl in the program, bless her heart, who just had the worst experience at the OR...essentially anything and everything went wrong for her. She passed out, they had to cut her scrub top off of her, her car was ticketed and booted...needless to say, I went into my OR day slightly terrified and just a little worried and I was thankful to come out with my dignity, clothes, and car/wallet all intact. I'm thankful for the girl who, unfortunately, had to be the guinea pig and go through that experience. She did, however, share with us..."don't lock your legs, look away if you need to, breath through your mouth"  I'm eternally grateful for her words of wisdom!


Third, I have the cure for constipation!!! :D I've been meaning to share this for a while, but whenever I sit down to write it always slips my mind...hahaha...no pun intended! So, at my clinical location they have this despicable concoction that they use for patients who are constipated. They make about an 8oz glass that has prune juice, MOM (milk of magnesia), they heat that up and then put a pat of butter on the top of the mixture so it then melts. They say the butter acts as a lubricant and helps things slip and slide a little easier! So...for those of you who may be suffering from the unthinkable...there's your cure! You may write your checks out to Margaret Rosecrans! ;) hehehe...


On the more serious note....today I had a bit of an "ah-ha" moment. I met up with my mother to have lunch with her and as I sat with her and "people watched" I realized that I was doing assessments on each person that I watched. I saw an older gentleman in the tripod position that looked like he should have an oxygen saturation of about 90%...I saw an older woman that was having difficulty feeding herself and I found myself keeping an eye on her to make sure she didn't aspirate as she swallowed. I saw a younger girl on crutches that was had the crutches right under her armpits and I couldn't help but cringe as I watched. While sitting I caught myself doing this assessments and thought to myself; regardless of how difficult, stressful, emotional/physically draining nursing school is, I know that I'm in the right field. Sometimes I feel like I'm not going to make a great nurse or that I just suck at my head-to-toe assessments...and somehow being able to make these quick observations of people was comforting. I can honestly say that I'm headed in the right direction!


Hahaha...I feel like this sometimes!


Fewsh...with all of that said...I register for level 3 sometime this week...I keep scratching my head wondering how on earth is it possible that I'm getting ready to register for the next level? Oh how time flies when you're having fun...which means I need to make the most of my time and get to studying! :D