question for all of you who made it

ZASHAGALKA, RN · May 29, 2006

For all of you that are now nurses, what is the one piece of advice you would tell students getting ready to start nursing school? Maybe something you wish some one had told you.

I recently posted some comments here:

https://allnurses.com/forums/f198/just-how-difficult-nursing-school-going-160135.html

~faith,

Timothy.

MIA-RN1, RN · May 30, 2006

For all of you that are now nurses, what is the one piece of advice you would tell students getting ready to start nursing school? Maybe something you wish some one had told you.

Plan your time---write it down, keep a calender posted on the fridge or in a central area.

Invest in pens that are comfortable to grip and write with.

Invest in a good pair of shoes.

Benadryl works wonders for sleep the night before an exam.

First semester in LTC smells the worst but its the best way to learn.

Organize everything you can think of before you start.

Don't stress the reading--get the main concepts and you will be fine.

Hogan review books are the best.

Get to clincal early so you can find a place to park, get to the bathroom, and find your meeting area.

Oxyclean gets just about anything out of white.

Most important thing tho---have fun. It is a trip and and experience and yes there is stress but you are doing it because you want to.

Treasure the time--it does go by fast no matter what it feels like at 3am before a 6am clinical when you are too nervous to sleep. You will come thru this education a different person. You will learn to think in a different way, you will learn that you have much more within you than you ever imagined. And you will make friends that you will have forever because you walked thru the fire together.

Nursing school is different than other degrees for sure, because you are learning human response and that can't always be neatly categorized into nice learning units and multiple choice tests.

Have faith in yourself, take a deep breath, and dive in.

UM Review RN, ASN, RN · May 30, 2006

Ignore anyone who dares to tell you that you're not good enough.

DONN · Jun 3, 2006

Form a study group of 4-5 people that really want to work hard and learn, sit up front in class IMO it shows that you are interested, tape lecture if you are allowed, seek out learning opportunities at every turn you have much to learn, keep the Taber's handy you will need it, Schedule some downtime for yourself even if its only an hour or so per day you need time to let your brain and body rest, you will eventually figure out what a care plan is all about, and lastly never ever ever let em see you cry, it shows weakness and it shows your instructors that they can get to you and you dont want to expose that side of yourself to them....

beautifulb · Jun 3, 2006

Work as a CNA.

ortess1971 · Jun 3, 2006

Make the best possible first impression with all of your clinical instructors. Some can detect fear, or if a student is not prepared. I have also found that some(not all) instructors pick out a "scapegoat" for the semester. I've seen this happen to friends of mine and it ain't pretty. How do you avoid being the goat? The main thing is to be prepared. Know your meds cold as well as procedures, diagnoses etc. Read up on all that stuff the night before-you never know when the instructor will pick you to question for 5-10 minutes! :mad:

cclife06 · Jun 3, 2006

Thanks for all the helpful tips!!!! I am so incredibly excited - I can hardly stand it.

NoWaNrN, ASN, RN · Jun 3, 2006

Just stop and take thing slow, know that you can get through it. If you fail one test that doesn't mean its all over. Find a good buddy in you class!

NJNursing, ASN, RN · Jun 4, 2006

*Definitely be organized - get a dayplanner, a palm pilot or some sort of way to sort out your "to do's".

*Invest in one of those RNotes - they're great, handy and small.

*Form a study group with people you really get along with. Come up with funny little anecdotes to remember things. When you're sitting at a test you'll always remember about what someone said about X or the inappropriate comment you all laughed about with Y. Don't get too off focus, though.

*Make note cards

*Really put the effort into studying. MAKE the time. You're going to have to do a lot of re-prioritizing the next 2 years.

*Don't fret if you're not getting the grades you want. I told my classmates "Even C's get degrees". They're not going to ask you what your GPA was or what you scored on the NCLEX when you're taking care of them. Do the best you can do. Don't add extra stress on yourself.

*Take time FOR yourself. It's going to be very stressful. It's hard, it's frustrating and it's going to test you. Make sure that you have that time to regroup. Learn to take a break alone - no family, no friends, no stress. Take a good walk in the park, beach, lake, wherever you feel serene and weather permits.

*Definitely come here to vent or ask questions. The people here are an amazing vault of information, advice and support.

Good luck!

mariedoreen · Jun 7, 2006

Never give up.

It sounds simple, but it will be tested. You will feel overwhelmed and underqualified at times. You will wonder if you can do it.

Take things one day at a time, by HYPERORGANIZED (can't stress that enough), and resolve that no matter what, you will not give up... and you will most likely experience success.

Good luck to you. Getting into nursing school is an awesome feat on its own these days and proves that you have already accomplished much. You can handle nursing school too, have an amazing time!

mtngrl, ASN, RN · Jun 14, 2006

Plan on A LOT of studying. You will be very busy...so you won't have much free time while in school. I even had to study on every vacation I was on! Let your friends and family know that you may have to "ignore" them somewhat, but your studies are very important, and there is so much stuff to learn for nursing. So when you do have those few weeks in between semesters...live it up! You will need to de-stress with some R&R!