Gingers have a soul

Snow!

Wed, 07 Dec 2011 20:07:15 -0500

It’s snowing!!!!

I got out of class early tonight since the roads are starting to ice up.

But, even if it blizzards, I still have to be up, dig my way out, and be at work and ready for report at 6:45

Snow Day my tush……

Clinical Vampire

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 14:35:00 -0500

I have barely 2 months left of my one class before I’ll have my licensure as a Phlebotomist…

Heck yeah!

One more milestone in passing on my Journey through Nursing school…

I took Phlebotomy because the Nursing program doesn’t really go too in depth on blood collection which is odd enough considering Nurses do collect blood specimens from time to time.

On a side note, my fingertips, inner elbows and wrists give me the appearance of a drug addict since we have to practice on each other.

To make it more appealing I give my victims a Snoopy Band-aid ;)

What are you hopes?

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 14:23:26 -0500

What are you hopes for your life? Tell me at least 3 of your goals :)

"In life, you will crap your pants, alot, And you need to decide if you’re going to pull up..."

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 14:07:36 -0500

““In life, you will crap your pants, alot, And you need to decide if you’re going to pull up your Huggies and deal with the squishyness or cry until someone cleans your tush, because only the strong, determined and willing will make it to potty training.””

- Myself :)

It comes around.

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 12:38:46 -0500

This isn’t just a job, it’s a way of life. Everything I do revolves around who I want to become and who I find myself growing into as a Nursing Student. I love every moment I’ve been given, to learn, seek, follow, and practice as an NA.

Yes, I do have times where I’m so overwhelmed I feel like there’s no end in sight, but there is always an end to everyday and a beginning to look forward to on the next.

It’s wonderful how patients can get you through a hard time, how they can ease your spirits, lift your soul and guide you to see clearer through the glass of life.

I’ve had those difficult ones, we all have. If you don’t learn anything from those patients at all, then you’re missing the point.

The mind is always willing

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 12:23:51 -0500

A conversation I had with one of the ladies residing in the Dementia/Alzheimer’s Unit I work in at around 3am, she never sleeps well and usually will entertain us at the Care Station with her never ending questions and humorous wit.

Her: “Honey, ain’t you married?”

Me: “No Ma’am, I’m only 20, I gotta finish school first”

Her: “Oh shit, well you find you a good man and make him work!”

Me: “Oh yeah? What do I do if I can’t find me a good man?”

Her: “You kick his ass ‘til he turns into one!”

I can’t help it, I love working with Dementia patients, you might get the dickens slapped and beat out of you from time to time, but moments like this and others when I find a resident able to remember something, even if it’s short-lived make me gracious to be in their presence. Their minds are so precious, and since they are losing them more and more each day it’s so important to spend time with them, talk to them, find out who they are, what their life was like…who knows it might change yours like it did mine.

Coming home to the Bagel just makes it all better.

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 12:13:39 -0500

Coming home to the Bagel just makes it all better.

That would be the view from school at 8am :) Refreshing in the...

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 12:11:56 -0500

That would be the view from school at 8am :) Refreshing in the morning.

Balancing...well... Life!

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 12:04:00 -0500

For almost a year now I have been conquering a vast plate of activities, I have two Nursing jobs, am in school and trying to find time for the rest of my life.

Recently though I became very ill and in the time that I was sick I realized that I CAN NOT take on the WHOLE world in an entire day.

I think when your fresh outta Nurse Aide school and onto Nursing School you feel rather invincible, like you can handle everything that people throw your way because your strong and you want to prove the point that you are able to meet the demands of this hectic, fast-moving career.

However, this doesn’t mean running yourself into the ground and putting your physical and especially your mental and emotional health at risk.

80 hour weeks while trying to cram for exams are not ideal, and so I’ve had to cut down on my part-time job and just go PRN.

Working 12-hour shifts at one job then going to your other job and doing an 8-hour night shift and then have class the next day is also very unidealistic, yet some part of me thought I could carry on forever like that.

So, my word of advice for all my fellow classmates out there and CNA’s…. Make time for yourself, the world will still be here tomorrow (we can only hope) and even though we all have bills piling up in this wretched economy, our rest and schoolwork is way more important, since our education today, fuels our future tomorrow.

Of course there aren’t many of us in Nursing School that still have time for our friends or even get to go out on the weekends when our heads aren’t jammed into our textbooks, but it’s the little things to refresh yourself that make a difference, sometimes a long day of dealing with difficult patients and having everyone needing 100% of you when you only can be one place at one time will wear you down.

Whether it be a movie, a cup of tea, catching up on the phone, sex…whatever keeps you in check to recharge and repeat the next day, go for it.

Wisdom of a CNA

Sat, 03 Dec 2011 06:53:28 -0500

1. If you do not have a good pen, your day is bound to be aggravating.

2. 5 Hour Energy is NOT a balanced meal.

3. Wearing vibrant patterned scrubs does well in hiding vomit stains.

4. You learn which medications affect a person’s bowel frequency, appearance and odor very fast.

5. Learn every pizza place within delivery distance and ALWAYS ask about their student specials.

6. Always have an extra pair of scrubs in your locker or car.

7. NPO because a patient has labs the next morning means they cannot have anything to eat or drink, EXCEPT water.

8. Calstat is a Godsend.

9. If you think Hand Sanitizer is just as good as washing your hands, then I suggest you Google “MRSA.”

10. If you borrow someone’s pen, please GIVE IT BACK!

11. Do not make plans for the Holidays unless you have it in writing that you will not be scheduled to work.

12. Do not come complaining to me about how your stomach hurts if you just changed a diaper and didn’t wash your hands before your pack of crackers.

13. You haven’t really seen anything until you’ve changed a patient with colostridium difficile.

14. Even if you have a million things going on that day that puts you in a bad mood, there is bound to be one patient that will smile and make it all dissolve away. :)

"A person who never made a mistake, never tried anything new"

Sat, 03 Dec 2011 04:44:52 -0500

““A person who never made a mistake, never tried anything new””

- Albert Einstein

WHAT MAKES YOU FEEL BETTER WHEN YOU ARE IN A BAD MOOD?

Sat, 03 Dec 2011 04:40:51 -0500

Counting my Blessings and realizing the future holds way more than the present!