- Spring Break came and went with me leaving the couch a maximum of three times. I cracked open a total of “0” books and watched possibly hundreds of trashy shows on TV. It was fantastic.
- I walked away from my first two nursing classes with A’s but did pretty bad on the final exams. 80 in one, 88 in another. While these are decent grades, they aren’t up to my standards and I was kicking myself for a while about them. I studied for those things like I have never studied before. The kicker is that it was 50% comprehension, and 50% application. I still didn’t make a decent grade and am scared about the next exams which I have heard are so much harder.
- We are now into the fun stuff in my skills class. Starting IV’s, and drawing blood. I never knew I would get so excited seeing that bright red flash when sticking a sharp object into a vein but man, that gives me a rush. (And HOLY CRAP! That 16g needle is evil!)
- A few of my classmates and I have grouped together quite nicely. I know NS isn’t about making friends but I am sure thankful for the ones I have made so far. They know what no one else around me can understand. That NS is an all consuming beast. That dreaming about NG tubes and enemas isn’t that abnormal, and that sometimes you just need to have a margarita (or two) and forget about school.
- Along with learning how to start IV’s, change a dressing, administer meds, I have also learned that NS is exactly like high school with all the childish drama attached. I hated high school. I really hope I can keep my low profile and get through it just like I did when I was a teenager.
- I have started running again and I feel great about it (other than my calves cramping like a SOB after I run). My NS buddies and I go to the gym after class most days, blow off steam, and completely kick each other’s asses into shape. I love it.
That pretty much sums up the last month. Just over one more month to go and first semester is over and I will be moving on to real people, in a real hospital setting. (YIKES!)
Woo hoo for you; I'm glad you enjoyed your spring break!
ReplyDeleteI'm thrilled and excited for you all at the same time when it comes to what you're learning.
So far I've had clinical in the long term setting and most recently the cardiology floor, but we've not touched needles or veins yet. Interesting isn't it??
We are swimming in an ocean of anti-aging creams and antioxidants with cosmetic surgeons at every dock. Looking younger is great, but being younger reaches beyond the transient and superficial and connects with eternity. To explain, in the midst of all of our freewheeling willy-nilly movements making sudden twists and turns moving between planned activity, being spontaneous and reacting to the unexpected, we plan, experience, reminisce and then jump off into the next plan; spiraling in circular motion. Then there is the aging process; that one group of DNA molecules in our genetic structures that sets the body off into a gradual self-destruct mode from its inception. This insidious companion buried deep in the subconscious of the young worms its way into one’s daily thoughts as time and gravity collect their tolls on the highway of life. We then become preoccupied with our mortality. Time itself seems to accelerate as days become hours and hours turn into minutes and we begin to wonder, “Where did it go? What is the point?” Suddenly it seems that all of the ambition and striving for success is futile begging the questions, “What have I accomplished? How will I be remembered?”
ReplyDeleteHowever, at any age, we are each an integral part of a perfectly designed and organized machine called the universe, which functions as one single unit, being the sum of its parts. This principle also applies to every living organism and inanimate object, each of which, in turn is a universe of smaller parts all functioning in perfect harmony and synchronization. Thus, we are all interdependently connected and attached to everything and everyone just as individual cells are to each other to form the organism and the entire created universe is connected and attached to its maker; utterly dependent upon and nullified to His Will. Given this revelation, we can exercise our free choice and decide to attach ourselves to the Divine. Consequently, even as we get older we can maintain that same youthful strive and ambition that brought us through competitions and hard times by adding new acts of kindness to our daily routines and perfecting how we perform the ones that we have already taken on. In so doing, we connect and attach ourselves to the infinite instead of clamoring for things that decay and crumble with time. Then we can look back on our golden years over a long life that has passed by in a fleeting moment, and realize that because of unifying ourselves with the eternal Will of our Creator, we have all the time in the world. Read more at http://moshesharon.wordpress.com
^^ That's some deep shit, right there.
ReplyDeleteThings I like about this post: being lazy, margaritas, running, making friends, dealing with REAL people in a REAL hospital!
Things that scare me about nursing school based on this post: Studying your arse off and getting B's, dreaming about enemas, sticking needles in people (only because the past couple weeks I've had this horrible fear that OMG I"M GONNA KILL SOMEONE when I become a nurse), high school drama (good things biatches know better than to bring me into it), and did I mention dreaming about enemas?
Marianne, trust me you'll have to not only get use to B's but learn to love them (coming from an A student in the past)!!
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