Am I Taking Nsg. School Too Seriously???

[Etana85]

hello everyone,

i am a single mother of one (a 5 year old). i am pass the halfway mark in the lpn/lvn program and i was told on several occassions by both instructors and students that i am taking nursing school a little too seriously and that i need to relax a bit. ever since i have been taking fundamentals of nursing i have been using my saunders and pearsons nclex review books to study extra and do practice exams. i just recently finished psychiatrict nursing and came out with a 96 average in the class which i was told that is the highest they have ever seen as a final grade by the director of the program and she has been there for 10 years (and by the about 5 people failed).my thing is i just want to know if i am really over doing it and causing myself extra stress that is not needed? should i just study from the powerpoints that are provided by the instructors and textbooks that i have? will it make a difference when it comes time to take the nclex-pn that i did all this extra work or can i get by on just doing the minimum?

p.s my graduation date is suppose to be in jan 2010 (because we take summer vacation):onbch: should i wait until the last month or two before i have completed my program to start preparing for the boards?

all replies will be greatly appreciated

[RN BSN 2009]

one word: balance.

[pagandeva2000, LPN]

I don't work with you, nor am I in your class to understand why your instructors would say to try and not take things so seriously. Are you constantly nervous or anxious? Do you ever take even a few hours of 'me' time?

I say to do what is best for you...it must be working so far, for you to be earning such great grades to start. In addition, I find it strange that nursing school sets up this scenerio in the beginning by making it competitive, but then, when a person is taking it seriously, suddenly, they say slow down...

Do well and do what your spirit tells you.

[ZanatuBelmont]

post cut to save room>

Hello,

No, I don't think you are taking things in nursing school "too seriously." You obviously are working to equip yourself with as much knowledge as possible during nursing school. Let's face it, what we learn in school is the bare minimum; we are taught just enough to practice safely. You are doing yourself a favor, because when you are out on the floor as a nurse, you will have more in-depth knowledge than, say, the former student who skirted by with a "thank God for rounding rules" final average (if you don't know what I mean, I'm talking about grades that are literally saved by it coming out to 75.5, which when rounded up to a 76 is passing in my program).

Keep with it!