need advise

[casurfer]

I have a question to ask from one of you nurses, since you have experience.This is quite embarrassing, so thank goodness for this forum.I have never been so confused in any of my other prereq. (math, science, etc.), in fact I have a 3.75 GPA.Well that all changed during my first semester of nursing school.I was soooo confused, frustrated, and just totally out of control.I was answering the sillest questions on my tests and had to do all of my skills twice and had anxiety attacks while doing them, which I never had ever before this.The teacher, who has been a nurse for>30 years said that she thought I had ADHD and that I should quit the course until I get a handle on things.I went to see a psych. and she found that I had OCD and ADHD with anxiety.She put me on Lamactil and Paxil.I feel totally normal now(100%better)but I am starting nursing school again in a few weeks.I am so scared because when I get stressed or nervous, my S/S get worse.Another thing that I am wondering is that perhaps maybe it wasn't my psych. problems that made me confused, maybe I just don't get the critical thinking part of nursing.What I am asking is that, knowing my backgound, does anyone think that medication is really effective in keeping me on track during nursing school?I would appreciate any answers because I know you all went to school for nursing and are very experienced with pts.like me? thank you

[llg, PhD, RN]

We really can not (and SHOULD not) try to assess your medical condition and make recommendations. If you have questions or concerns about your condition and the use of medication to treat it, you'll need to go to your healthcare provider.

I hope it all works out for you.

[Anagray, BSN]

I can't give you advice regarding medication and study skills, but I can tell you that if what you really want is to do nursing, then you should go after it. I believe that in the end drive, desire and hard work overcome everything. Because you have been diagnosed with these disorders it may be harder for you to achieve your goal, so you should not feel compelled to measure up to someone else's standards. Do it at your own pace, you may have to repeat the course.

Also, if you have a learning disability your school has to give you accomodations to take your tests, which can help you as well.

Good luck, Nat

[gr8rnpjt, RN]

I went through something similar when I started nursing school. I went through the first semester just "not getting it" at all. My grades were failing (79%) and I was told I could not continue this year but I could restart the following year with the next class. I swallowed my pride, got a job as a nurses aid that year and came back a freshman again, with my previous class now in their second year. It was not easy but something clicked and I began getting A's and B's. Clinicals can be very subjective and I will never know how much was the fact that my instructors felt I really wanted to be here seeing as how I came back and started over. But I continued with A's and B's and graduated with my new class. My first year nursing instructor said "when you first started you built your foundation on sand, when you came back you built it on solid ground." Hope this helps.