Are nurses actually people too???

SaltySarcasticSally, LPN, RN · Feb 28, 2017

I think yours is a common perception though interestingly enough. I am sure some of it's due to, in my experience, that many of us in nursing are type A personalities and slightly OCD. I know I am! I definitely do not have it all together but I do like having a routine and neat little boxes lol but I also need to work on being more relaxed so that's my new current goal. I think you should go get new scrubs, reward yourself for all your hard work. I love scrub shopping more than regular clothes shopping.

AceOfHearts<3 · Mar 1, 2017

I stopped at the store for something after work. When I passed the cereal aisle the captain crunch caught my eye. I just ate captain crunch for my dinner :).

I set three alarms on my phone and I set them for my schedule for the week. I like to hit snooze a lot so I factor that time in. I once fell asleep after a long shift before turning my alarm on for the next day when I was back in. I overslept and literally jumped out of bed, washed my face, brushed my teeth and hair, threw on my uniform, and ran out the door (without my morning shower). I like to get to work early so I leave at the latest by 5:45am. I woke up at like 5:50 that day. I walked in 2 minutes late during huddle and that's never happened since.

I've been paying for the gym and yet I never go. I need to go and should go since I need to lose weight (I'm the heaviest I've ever been).

I'm definitely far from perfect!

NotMyProblem MSN, ASN, BSN, MSN, LPN, RN · Mar 1, 2017

So i graduated school last month, took the boards last friday, and found out yesterday that I passed. OMG. I'm still in shock/denial/ecstasy/totally overwhelmed.
But over the past 24 hours I have found that I keep having this crazy monologue in my head about what i can and can't do now that i'm a nurse.
I need new scrubs... I'm a nurse.
I have to lose weight... I'm a nurse.
I need to get a better routine in the morning... nurses have it all together.
I need to get my finances in order.... because I'm a nurse now and that's what nurses do....
hahaha. It seems that I have wanted to be a nurse for SO LONG- about 15 years to be exact, that it has also morphed into a huge all encompassing life goal for me. YES these are things to work toward of course, but I don't know why I've rolled BEING A NURSE into HAVING MY LIFE TOGETHER.
Please tell me that you're not all perfect people who get up early to watch the sunrise, slowly sip your coffee, never oversleep, have all your finances in order, and are the perfect weight! :)

Well damn! Why am I just getting this memo? Did the rest of you know about this? :nailbiting:

FuturePN · Mar 1, 2017

No, like it was mentioned, it is fun to get your more, I guess, adult scrubs? I work in a children's hospital and wore bright, distracting colors and scrub tops as a nursing assistant. I had a lot of scrubs but I felt like I needed to look more together, more grown up. So, I promptly bought scrubs in colors that I felt were more "professional" and a bunch of fun t-shirts for all of our various themed days. The kids love my t-shirts and I vaguely look more like I know what I'm supposed to be doing.

That's so true! I work in a pedi specialty care office now and I have all my lizard/owl/kitty cat/dog scrubs... you totally hit the nail on the head... i feel like i need some actual "nurse scrubs" :) I am hoping to stay in pedi but I'd like to look more professional :) I'm hesitant to buy scrubs until I know where I'm working and if there's a dress code (certain colors, etc) but I can't wait to go shopping for more nurse type scrubs!!!

knurse10 · Mar 6, 2017

Ugh...

I need to start taking my multivitamin, exercise, wear support hose at work, and spend more time with my husband. I think having it all together is an illusion that we strive for. I try to just make myself happy and hopefully the rest will come.

Andy 12, MSN, NP · Mar 6, 2017

Well, hold off on getting new scrubs until you figure out what colors u can wear at your new job.

I've gained weight since becoming a nurse cause there were always snacks in the lounge. (sometimes all you can eat is the junk food that someone was nice enough to bring in for the rest of the staff).

If you can't get your morning routine figured out, and you're going to be late, be the person who brings food for the rest of the staff.

And every nursing unit has the person who works 2 jobs (sometimes full time), because they can't get their finances in order.

All in all, nurses are nowhere near perfect. They just learn to act the part so students, families, and patients think that they are. Sounds to me that some of the nurses you shadowed had it down.

EDNURSE20, BSN · Mar 9, 2017

I totally get it. I'm suppose to be graduating in November with my bachelors, fingers crossed at this rate it looking more like March. And I'm living with my parents while I study because I can't afford to move out. But I have this image in my head after I graduate I will have this great job, living on my own, saving money and eating well. A proper adult whose got it together. But hey as long as I can move out of my parents house and work as a nurse I'll be pretty happy.

MaiHem · Mar 9, 2017

Yes, you are still a person. The same flawed, fallble, forgetful person you have always been. Getting that piece of paper does not elevate you to the realms of superhumans and gods (unfortunately!). You are suddenly not going to wake up tomorrow and serenely waft through life with farts that smell like potpurri and bluebirds landing one your outstretched finger to warble in perfect harmony with your angelic singing. The best you are ever going to get to is the duck analogy, calm and peaceful above water and paddling like hell underneath!

The only advice I can give you is to develop a 'mask'. For me, the act of putting my make up on and sliding my glasses on is the putting on of my mask. My face is still smiling and pleasant on the outside while on the inside I am groaning/rolling my eyes/retching/crying/yawning/thinking of something else while listening to someone drone on/fuming/trying to equate how much this hour of work is earning me as opposed to how much my bills are for this week. The fact that we become so good at this attests to the fact that you think we are all these awesome and amazing creatures who never wobble or falter. It will take a little bit of time, but this is what you strive to have to become rather than some trumped up version of yourself that you think you ought to be.

Here are some truths: You will be tired; you will sleep through your alarm; you will turn up to late for work not out of malice, but for the fact that you stayed up too late, piss orificed about for too long getting ready, missed the bus, forgot if it was a 0700 or 0730 start for that ward and you will feel TERRIBLE; you will miss a drug (hopefully not a vital one) and you will feel TERRIBLE; you will say the wrong thing, put your foot in it, or not know what to say at all and feel TERRIBLE; you'll stand in the corner in a blind panic watching everyone around you move like they're in a choreographed ballet, everyone knowing where they're supposed to be and what to and all you can think is "I shouldn't be here, I don't know what I'm doing".

Your feet will stink; you may stink; you can't smell the stink because you're soaked in it. Your body will hurt at the end of a shift where literally NO ONE has said thank you for that extra pillow you sourced, the 15 minutes worth of questions you answered for an anxious family, the phone order for pain medication you had to ring 3 different pagers to get an answer because you patient needed it, the incontinent patient you cleaned and changed not only them but their whole bed 3 times on that shift, the cream you rubbed into someones leg to give them some relief from their itching and the countless number of allied health professionals you have to chase down because they haven't delivered promised XYZ. You will roll your eyes where no one can see you. You will swear under your breath where no one can hear you. You will think furious, vitriol filled thoughts, all while wearing your mask. You will go home and possibly drink a little more than normal while smiling nicely at your family who is tucking into their second take away/freezer dinner of the week, or if you're really lucky, have someone you can have a bit of a rant to who won't be deeply affected by, what is essentially, a normal working day. You will still be you -UNDERNEATH. But that mask you wear will serve you very well when dealing with the day to day stressors and hurdles you face.

There are some things I refuse to do in public in uniform, such as drink, swear or smoke. After all, we are the most trusted profession in the world, and I take that very seriously by refusing to bring my fellow sisters into disrepute with my behaviour.

And when your front door clicks shut behind you after you come home, the mask comes off. I see a stack of bills that I need to pay (thank god for penalty rates and overtime), the dirty dishes in the sink, the pile of ironing to be done, the cats worming tablets that I meant to give him 3 weeks ago, the unvaccummed floor, the kids with this form and that form that I haven't signed, the load of dirty washing, the rubbish that needs taking out, the car's overdue for a service (****, I need to pay the rego too soon), there's still plates and crumbs and spilt puddles of milk on the counter from our rushed brekky and I don't have a clean uniform for tomorrow.

Welcome to nursing. You have joined a very magnificent and fantastic profession. I love my job (mostely). But you need to perfect your mask. After all these years of nursing, when I put my uniform on and walk into the hospital, I don't feel like a super hero. But sometimes when I walk out I definaltely feel an invisible cape flowing behind me. And then I come home and fish cat crap out of the litter tray.

FuturePN · Mar 9, 2017

MaiHem- I absolutely loved and appreciated everything you took the time to write. thank you!!!!!

jobellestarr · Mar 14, 2017

You are proud of yourself and rightly so. Celebrate with a new pair of scrubs! But most of all be kind to yourself. Just be yourself and that is good enough.