Cleaning up vomit

Don't think of it as vomit!Just another body fluid, breath through your mouth and use cold water to mop it up eventually you can bring your gag reflex under control the trick is not to think too much about it!!

Yeah, the sound of retching is usually what ends up doing it to me as well......I tend to just visualize it as not my own, dump it as quick as possible, try to relax.....trash/dirty dishes make me retch more than actual vomit...LOL

Breathe through your mouth.. this really helps me...

I've found that you just get used to it. This was a big concern of mine, and my very first day of clinicals found me with a patient who barfed throughout my whole shift. I spent a lot of time cleaning up barf, holding a pan while she barfed, giving her bed baths, and did I mention holding the pan while she barfed? :)

In any case, one thing I've learned can help (but that I'd save for the times you need to empty colostomy bags), is a face mask with a bit of vicks vaporub smeared under your nose. Totally kills the smell.

I use to hate vomit and poo too. Like everyone else said breath through your mouth. Someone told me if you smile you can't gag but I can't picture myself smiling while I'm wiping someones butt or cleaning up vomit. Also clean it up every chance that you get. I use to work as a patient sitter and the first patient I sat with a older woman with C-diff and had N/V from one of her meds. Everytime I had to clean her bed pan/basin I would turn on the sink and shower to cover my gags. She heard me once and asked if I was ok. I told her I choked on my saliva and it was made me gag. I have no problem doing it now but I'm not excited enough to smile about it even if it'll stop me from gagging. The only thing that'll still make my stomach flip is trach snot. The whole procedure in itself gives me the willies and the snot doesn't help one bit.

Thank you all. My eventual goal is to be a nurse for Labor & Delivery or the Newborn Nursery, so hopefully I wouldn't have to deal with vomiting too much. But I realize I may not get my first pick of what department I want to work in, so I try to be a realist and prepare myself for what I may be dealing with. I will definitely remember the Vicks Vaporub thing.

Cali, not to scare ya, but when I had my last baby, a laboring mom that arrived at the hospital the same time I did, was vomitting through her contractions! Ha, ha, bring the Vaporub!

So I know I want to be a nurse, but I have problems dealing with vomit. I can't stand the sound or the sight of it. I know this will become a part of my job. Is there anyone out there that can give me some tips on how to overcome this. Please Help.

lol i have the same fear i work in telemetry very rarely do i see vomit or hear vomit, and if i do one of my co workers deals with it for me.... i am a bad emetophobic....but i made it as a nurse i have been a nurse for 4 years, progressive care certified and acls certified......everyone has their thing most people dont like vomit,,,,but other people like me and it sounds like you have a down right FEAR of it....but you switch off i can do anyrthing but the vomit....so i do the poop and the suctioning that some people dont like for a consitent trade off!

dont let that fear stop you from nursing i am telling you it can be done.....and you will see signs of vomiting well before they vomit In order to step out of the room and call for backup!

Thanx a bunch. I have a friend that is a RN and she told me the same thing. I have read some post about this topic and it sounds like I won't be able to deal with the trach suctioning. We will see. Thanx

We all have our Achilles Heel. Mine is vomit too, particularly of the chunky kind. I can deal with bile no problem but if there's anything identifiable. My way of dealing is to find someone who it doesn't bother and let them know that I will clean up every GI bleed poop (a problem for many but not me) they ever have if they will deal with the puke. So far it's worked out great. When I worked in the ED all my techs and medics knew I couldn't handle it because they had seen me at least try so they knew I wasn't dumping the gross jobs on them.