As a Nurse, what gives you the willies?

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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Hi all, I'm a pre-nursing student, but I just thought this would be sorta fun to talk about. So all the current nurses, nursing students and soon-to-be-nurses, what's the one thing you just can't STAND...

For example....

I currently work with nurses (for about 2+ yrs now), and I know some of them just cannot take vomit, they can handle just about anything, but NOT vomit.

I know of others who can't stand anything to do with eyes, puss coming out of them you know all that gross stuff. I can personally attest to that, ugh I hate anything to do with eyes. It gives me the willies.

I also have nurses, who are bosses at starting lines, drawing bloods and what not, but absolutely freaks at the thought of having their own blood drawn or recieveing shots (which is pretty hysterical, watching them get their blood drawn ) I know of one nurse, who is so afraid of anyone drawing her blood, she starts her own line in her arm and draw her own blood. Trust me I've seen her do it.

The one thing I have learned, while working with my nurses, is that because certain things gross you out, it doesn't mean you are a bad nurse, or can't be a nurse. After all we are only human.

SO, in the spirit of things, what give YOU the willies...

My twin sis is a funeral director, so dead bodies don't bother me.

I'm kind of worried about shots, but I'm sure i'll get over it! I had to get my immunizations and I swear that needle went to my bone and now i'm all queazy thinking about needles!

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Specializes in Tele, ICU, ER.

Maggots don't bother me - whether they're medical maggots or those that've just "found a place to live" in someone's wound, they actually are good about eating up dead tissue, allowing healthy tissue to grown - so they have their uses.

Now, wanna gross me out? Skin conditions that are all over the body, leaving tons of skin flakes all over everything. ICK.

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Have seen maggots in several wounds you just have to flush them out

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My thing is IV's. I hate them!! I'm afraid I won't be able to administer an IV to a patient without getting sick. I've had bad experiences with IV"s and don't want to do the same thing that nurse did to me to a patient it really hurt!!!

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I'm starting school in January but have been volunteering in a hospice for about 4 years. The only thing so far that really makes me gag is suctioning -- I am just about gagging trying to write this response, seeing the nurse stick that catheter down someone's throat and all that gunk comes up and deposits itself in the jar on the wall.......

:no:

:barf02:

OMGosh I nearly barfed reading this!! UGGGGGHHHH

Thanks for the warning!!

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ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!!! Maggots, you have GOT to be KIDDING!! Tell me you are kidding!! You are joking right? you did not see MAGGOTS in wounds. I'd just about die, if I saw that!!! What did you do????? I think Maggots just trumped everybody's willies. GROSS!!!!

The "wheeling the dead body to the morgue" idea starts to look better and better.....:lol2:

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Maggots don't bother me - whether they're medical maggots or those that've just "found a place to live" in someone's wound, they actually are good about eating up dead tissue, allowing healthy tissue to grown - so they have their uses.

Yep, I saw this for the first time on Discovery Health channel where they were using tweezers to take maggots out of a clear jar and place them into a wound. The maggots eat the necrotic tissue only, leaving the healthy tissue alone. The first time I saw this I almost GAGGED and totally lost it!! I was so grossed out, but now it's no big deal and I actually think I could be the one placing those little buggers in the wound with the tweezers myself! Amazing! :lol2:

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Shawna... I take it you don't have much experience starting IV's. If I'm wrong please don't think I'm talking down to you. I've learned that when you start an IV don't worry about hurting the pt. it sounds mean but if you do you will go slow and it will be more painful to the pt. that and don't be too hard on yoursef if you miss some days you get every one on the first try other days you couldn't hit a drinking straw with a 24g

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Specializes in Pediatrics.

I LOVE suctioning a juicy trach. LOVE IT!

My willies are feet, especially old people with diabetic feet. :barf02: I hate touching them or looking at them. If I HAVE to touch them I always wear gloves. ALWAYS. Actually, not just old people feet, any feet once the person has hit puberty creep me out, and it is for those that I wear gloves. Babies feet I will touch and play with, but toddlers to pre-puberty, I'll touch with my bare hands, but I don't like it. I don't even like it when hubby's feet touch my feet in bed. I think it truely qualifies as a phobia and I've been like that since I was small.

It is one of the top 5 reasons I went into pediatrics.

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Specializes in Critical Care, Cardiothoracics, VADs.

Please don't use the words "juicy" and "trach" in the same sentence....:barf02:

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Specializes in NICU.

I have one year left of NS and so far the only thing I absolutely HATE is huge sacral pressure ulcers. YICK. They just look terribly painful and nasty. Give me blood, IVs, urine, etc, etc, but please no pressure ulcers.

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Specializes in PCU, Home Health.

Some of the nurses on my floor were talking about the extreme cases that have come in- and maggots were in the discussion. They said they had a patient who had so many maggots in a wound that it FILLED A SUCTION CONTAINER and did not get them all. The sad part was that the patient was 'with it' and knew what was going on. The limb was amputated the next day. They said that same patient came in again with maggots in a wound but they were not on his floor.

I think you get used to the day to day things that would gross the non nursing public out- packing a wound, blood, specimens, etc- but thankfully maggots are not a common occurance.

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