Fluids and Electrolytes

[Kaysmom8]

Hello,

Can someone please help me understand why some of the electrolyte imbalances have the exact same signs and symptoms? I have the book Fluids and Electrolytes made easy along with several other books so I went and made an alphabetical list of all electrolyte imbalances with their associated signs and symptoms but the only problem is what one book lists another book will leave out certain signs and symptoms. This is so confusing I'm studying for Nclex and got side tracked in all of this electrolyte imbalance stuff...

[Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN]

look here..........IV solutions are driving me nuts!

.......Really need help with electrolytes and fluids

..Why type of IV solution to use?

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

frequently when electrolytes are imbalanced, more than one chemical is affected. That would explain the overlap. The "why" is best explained by knowing whether it is a sympathetic or parasympathetic response. This also helps in understanding the treatment, including medications in the fluids.

[motay68]

Look at the post Esme12 gives all of us freaking out of fluids and electrolytes. It really helps and breaks it down. Also Somebody posted a couple of links under my post (Why type of IV Solution to use?) It has an absolute goldmine of information in it but it is broken down into bite size pieces.

I'm about ready to take my first test on F&E and have decided that I got lost the second my instructor said this is one of the most important things you guys are going to learn and you NEED to understand it. And then *poof* every single brain cell I had left in my head flew out of my head and splattered against the wall.