nightmares

Nursing Students CNA/MA

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So I was terminated a little over a week ago and well I have been haveing a lot of dreams about the LTC facility that I was terminated from. I dont really miss working there because it was awful I worked there for 8 months and it was pure misery. I stayed because I was getting paid 10.75 an hour, the staff I worked with were nice, and some of the residents I liked. and no I wasnt trying to get fired but I always told myself it wouldnt be the worst thing in the world if I did. And its been a relife getting terminated I no longer feel depressed because of the heavy work load that the other CNAs said was pure torture compared to other nursing homes and hospitals.

My dreams mostly consist of me being at the facility and Im taking care of one of my regulars and A) somthing goes bad or B) it all goes fine. or C) just somthing out of the ordinary happens. I dont think about this facility befroe I go to bed and I most definatly think about it when I get up from having one of those dreams. In many ways I have moved on. Im looking for another job I have applied for almost every CNA position I was qualafied for online and I have even applied for a house keeper and laundry aide position at my local hospital. I really want to get in to a factory right now and take a break from being an aide. So I have applied at a factory and a few minimum wage jobs too.

I myself feel that maybe if I get another job these dreams will become far and inbetween to not at all! Even when I worked there I had dreams about that place. Like when I worked my 3 days straight I had dreams between my shift then I had dreams on my first day off. dreams about some of the residents being noraml didnt have a thing wrong with them. like one who had ALS just got out of bed and started walking and dancing. But then on my last weekend working there (unknowingly of course) I had a dream about one of my residents dieing and then when I came in to work for my next shift I answered a call light on my way to give report and another resident not the one I dreamed about dieing told me he needed air put in or taken out of his cuff so that he could call his wife before he died and I was like holy beep if anyone dies tonight I swear to god Im never comming back its my last night for 4 nights and no one is dieing while Im here!

Then after I got terminated I had more death dreams mostly about my residents I used to take care of. Then there was one dream with me and two nurses I worked with. We were at a different facility working as newbies to this facility. and I got in to an elevator after having a humorous conversations about me cleaning the bed pans when I wasnt mad and how I did what ever I wanted when I wanted at this new facility that we worked at. I got in to the elevator and the doors wouldnt close I was thinking huh? this is wierd then the doors slammed shut and the elevator was shaking and the cable broke and the elevator went crashing to the ground and I died... so Im assuming.

I read on the internet that death dreams just symbolize an period of uncertanty in life... and boy am I there!!!

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The facility I am at I worked out for a year before. I quit and went to work at a hospital (a month into my employment at the hospital I had to have an emergency oophorectomy and couldn't work for 6-8 weeks so they "filled my position" because FMLA didn't cover me yet). After i quit the first time, I still had dreams about the facility for months. I never had nightmares though. I usually just had dreams about casually working. I used to work in retail and until a few months ago, I still would dream about the store I worked in (I haven't worked there in a year and a half).

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PTCNAD....post traumatic CNA disorder?

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Specializes in ICU.

I have dreams and nightmares about work all the time. They are especially prevalent when starting a new job or when a new grad. It is the mind processing the stress while you are asleep.

For example, it would be 10 or 11 hours into my shift and I would realize that I had a pt that I hadn't seen yet. They become less frequent with time, but will kick back up during periods of stress or transition.

Last night I had a dream about receiving a pt from the ER who was being coded. It was only me and two other people in the room (which NEVER happens during codes, lol). When I checked the pt's pulse, she woke up. Very unsettling..

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Specializes in med/surg, psych, public health.
PTCNAD....post traumatic CNA disorder?

:up:

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

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I read your previous post explaining why you were terminated. :( You seem to have a lot of hard feelings about the way it went down. The whole situation is probably upsetting to you and weighing heavily on your mind. Those thoughts are still with you when you are asleep. (a psychiatrist would have a field day disecting your dreams! Lol) With time the bad/hard feelings will subside. Best of luck finding a job that treats you better :)

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thanks for letting me know Im not the only one who has nightmares about working :) and PTCNAD sounds about right I am going to text that to some of my old CNA/nurse friends I used to work with they will get a kick out of that :rotfl:

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Hello,

I'm sorry that you were terminated. I'm in a different place and I want to share my story. I left nursing for good after approximatley eighteen years of working as a CNA. Today, I work as a caseworker and recently found myself trying to explain in interviews how you can easily get wrongfully accused of stuff and fired for no reason in nursing. This is after earning a masters degree and having successful experience working as a case worker, I'm still trying to explain when asked about my past. Thank God they saw past this and hired based on my ability to be a great caseworker. I always have to be haunted by my nursing past as I've tried to move past it. You seem to be at a crossroads and you strike me as a kind and caring person. My advise is if you love nursing and can find a good supportive workplace stick it out. On the other hand, if you find that you keep getting terminated before probation period ends it may just be the wrong line of work. I was never happy as a CNA but I love being a caseworker mabe you would like it too! There are all kinds of ways to help people and nursing is just one way. The true nightmare is being unhappy and being treated unfairly and then years later trying to explain and hoping that they will understand and see the truth. But, if you stay please wear your gloves for both you and your residents.:)

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Hello,

I'm sorry that you were terminated. I'm in a different place and I want to share my story. I left nursing for good after approximatley eighteen years of working as a CNA. Today, I work as a caseworker and recently found myself trying to explain in interviews how you can easily get wrongfully accused of stuff and fired for no reason in nursing. This is after earning a masters degree and having successful experience working as a case worker, I'm still trying to explain when asked about my past. Thank God they saw past this and hired based on my ability to be a great caseworker. I always have to be haunted by my nursing past as I've tried to move past it. You seem to be at a crossroads and you strike me as a kind and caring person. My advise is if you love nursing and can find a good supportive workplace stick it out. On the other hand, if you find that you keep getting terminated before probation period ends it may just be the wrong line of work. I was never happy as a CNA but I love being a caseworker mabe you would like it too! There are all kinds of ways to help people and nursing is just one way. The true nightmare is being unhappy and being treated unfairly and then years later trying to explain and hoping that they will understand and see the truth. But, if you stay please wear your gloves for both you and your residents.:)

Its not really that I was unhappy I loved every second of it and I loved the challenge it brought. I am now a cashier at a farm store in my home town in janurary I hope to start my general courses for the nursing program in my area. the DON from the nursing home and I had a chat on facebook she told me that since I didnt draw unemployment to just say I left there that it would look better it wasnt her that wanted me out it was the owner. I said in the interview for the farmstore that I had gotten terminated for breaking infection control. it wasnt the entire truth but it wasnt a lie either. so from now on I think thats what Im going to say is I just broke infection control and then if anything else is said Im just going to say I didnt know about that. and tell them I know what I did wrong and that I will do everything to prevent it. Im am however in 6 months Im going to do everything posible to get another aide job. I also dont think the facility I was working in was right for someone with no experience.

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I'm glad you are working. It appears that you really want to be a nurse so go for it.

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