Being married to a nurse...

Nurses General Nursing

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Last weekend ended on a very odd note for me, especially as a new nurse. I had the pleasure of attempting to admit a very mentally unstable patient, complete with security escort, requiring all items that could be used as a weapon removed from the room, and having to grill my aide sitter about safety precautions - always stay near the door, do not allow the pt to come near you, hit your panic button at any violent agitation, never turn your back or allow the pt to come between you and the door, etc...

After my unsuccessful admission interview and the detailed novel of a progress note that followed my interactions with this pt, I finally got to go home. (Of course, wouldn't you know, the pt came up from the EOD 30 mins before my shift ended :rolleyes: ) I really thought I hadn't taken the pt's particular craziness to mind much at all, but I guess I was wrong as evidenced by events later that night.

My poor husband. Apparently at 3AM, I sat up in bed, shook him violently awake, and started yelling "Code Silver! Get under the bed! Go! I'll get the door, just get under the bed!"

Then the cat jumped up on the bed, and I apparently said "Oooh, a kitty!" and shoved her under the bed. :sorry:

He finally got me all the way awake, made me apologize to my cat, and then got me a drink before we laid back down again. I conked out again almost immediately, but he told me he laid awake for a while thinking about all the stuff I have been exposed to/been at risk of at work. For one of the first times in our lives, he felt a little worried about my choice of profession. I couldn't help but laugh...I guess he truly thought nursing was a busy, stressful, but *safe* profession.

Poor guy though...during clinicals he'd been awakened by me muttering that I needed to check blood sugars, needed K+ results, etc.

Anything like this happen in anyone else's relationships? I feel kinda bad for the guy.

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Specializes in Geriatrics, Dialysis.

Am I wrong to laugh at your poor husbands misfortune yet feel sorry for the poor cat that got shoved under the bed? I hear you though, we deal with some crazy stuff occasionally and it can't help but leak through at home. Fortunately I've never talked in my sleep [that I am aware of] so any stories I tell at home tend to be the funny ones. When I do have to deal with a violent resident, those stories are filtered a little more. I haven't had to explain any unusual bruises or black eyes lately, so knock on wood.

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No, never acted out like that... from a work situation.

A different life stressor drove me to get up, rip the shelf out of the freezer though:wacky:

Feeling sorry for the cat (hubby knew what he was getting into).

And concerned for you. Psych is a tough gig. How long have you been doing it?

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Been there, Done that, I'm not in psych nursing, lol. At least not on purpose. I'm on a gen med surg floor, and this pt was an overflow pt that had no (and I mean NO) safe places to go. I guess you could say I do hybrid psych nursing, as we also do detox pts on our floor if the detox floor is full (and it often is).

Kbrn, it's okay to laugh at my hubby. :) He's woken me up numerous times in our years to sleep-argue or sleep-ask all sorts of stuff. Karma I guess, but he never tried to shove me under our bed!

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Specializes in Dialysis.

I've gotten up looking for machines that are alarming,don't talk in my sleep.

My husband, on the other hand, will wake me up speaking in Hebrew, I ask him to repeat in English but he never does! LOL!

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Been there, Done that, I'm not in psych nursing, lol. At least not on purpose. I'm on a gen med surg floor, and this pt was an overflow pt that had no (and I mean NO) safe places to go. I guess you could say I do hybrid psych nursing, as we also do detox pts on our floor if the detox floor is full (and it often is).

Kbrn, it's okay to laugh at my hubby. :) He's woken me up numerous times in our years to sleep-argue or sleep-ask all sorts of stuff. Karma I guess, but he never tried to shove me under our bed!

Sounds like a REALLY tough gig. Stay safe , doll.

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Specializes in Emergency/Cath Lab.

When I was doing my internship in the ICU, I would sometimes at night get up and walk to my office and turn everything on, trying to find the alarm that was beeping. My now wife says that it was the strangest thing. Only did it a few times though.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Academics.

I dream about work, but Ive never acted it out in my sleep. Poor kitty....

Ever watched The Three Stooges vignette about Dr. Howard, Dr. Fine, Dr. Howard? At one point during a surgery, the Stooges use the term "Anacanapuner," pretending it's a real medical term.

If I'm talking to my husband using medical jargon, he interrupts me and says, "Anacanapuner," meaning I have totally lost him.

ETA: here it is.

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Im not a nurse, but I love this story. Thanks I needed a good laugh. Poor kitty! :roflmao:

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Specializes in Certified Med/Surg tele, and other stuff.

Nope, never did that, but someone better be on deaths door in my family before I get rattled. My oldest (26 and single) fell off his bike while practicing off road cycling. Since he was in our back woods, and I was out shopping, I told him to lay on the couch, ice the shoulder and I would be there shortly. I had to grab a baby gift for a co-worker and I was standing in line at the check out. I figured another 15 min of waiting wasn't going to hurt anything. ;)

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Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.

Years ago, I was awakened from a sound sleep by my then-husband shoving his finger up my nose and shouting about "have to get this NG in so I can put in the Foley." (You can bet I wasn't going THERE!) HE was having work dreams. Another time he jumped on top of me and held me down with all fours yelling over his shoulder "You can do it now! I've got her." I don't even want to know what that was about!

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Just a patient--- Your poor cat, sometimes I wish animals could talk, but I think we are better off that they don't, we might not like what they say. I think often times they are thinking to themselves why are humans so crazy? Just goes to show you, there is never a dull moment when you are married to a nurse! Thanks for the laugh.:)

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