Nursing Student To be.

I took the LPN program in high school and I was totally lost most of the time, lol. I never took the boards because it's not really what I wanted at the time (I regret it now). But anyway....at 17, and even at 22 when I originally went back to school for my prereqs, my head wasn't in the game. I just wasn't motivated. Now as I'm older now and have 2 kids....I have a better reason to do well. So if I had somebody when I was your age giving me advice I would say.... 1. be prepared to put your social life on the back burner. 2. Read, read, read and don't stop...especially when it comes to A&P. 3. Take it one day at a time and try not to think too far ahead because it'll freak you out. GOOD LUCK!!

It sounds like you are really headed in the right direction. I was VERY fearful of the horror stories I had heard about A&P I and II. It is all done is steps, one at a time. It would be beneficial to record the lectures if you could. Sometimes things that do not make sense the first time, will catch the second. FLASH CARDS, FLASH CARDS, FLASH CARDS. A&P i and ii are all about memorization. Repitition really helps to keep that in the head. You are young but if you know this is for you, what a wonderful and long career and future you have!! Then when you get those done and head to Patho and Micro, that is when the rewards come in. They, also, are difficult classes, as you can imagine with a class that has to teach the most complex system, our bodies. So even tho micro and patho are difficult, they are so BLASTED interesting that things are finally starting to make sense. I am headed to Nursing school August 18. I have many horror stories about it. But I know I am a dedicated student and I will study and complete the process. By the way, this student is 58 years old.
Good luck to you, and always come to Allnurses any time you need advice or encouragement. We are all going through the same thing.

Just be dedicated. Nursing college is not there for you to be a social buterfly. Read your chapters and get a good NCLEX book to practice questions. I started to practice NCLEX questions from the beginning ot nursing college now, I am able to chose the correct answer even when I do not know what the heck the question is asking about.

I've completed one year of my nursing program. I am now off for the summer and will go back for year 2 in August.

One of the best things I did last summer before starting nursing school was (and this may sound really juvenile) my husband got me an A&P coloring book ($4) and A&P Flashcards ($35) from Barnes & Nobles. I know a coloring book sounds childish, but it gave me a HUGE advantage when it came to learning the body parts & systems once class started.

So, my advice is to get to coloring!!!

Keep your focus and put school first! In the end it will all pay off.