Healthcare-related "what the heck?!?!" dreams

Nurses General Nursing

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Specializes in critical care.

Have you ever had a healthcare-related dream that left you saying, "what in the actual ****?!" when you awakened?

Last night, I was a dialysis whore. There was an underground "society" of dialysis patients and normal kidney function people. The normal kidney function patients would sell their time and their blood. I was a normal kidney function person, and I had had an AV fistula placed by some "underground" surgeon. "Regulars" would pay $60-80/hour to get dialyzed. Non-regulars would pay $75-125/hour. It was my first night dialysis whoring, and this girl I knew in junior high was walking me through the basic stuff to know and protect myself. And somehow I was able to dialyzed multiple people in one night. My hubs was supportive of it, knowing we needed it. My parents didn't, though.

Dude. For real. What the ****?!

You have any cray cray in your dreams?

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Specializes in Emergency.

The first rule of dialysis club is don't talk about dialysis club. Oh wait, you're talking about a "dream". Never mind.

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It's the curse of the nurse.I have work related anxiety dreams on a regular basis. They are on par with the best Stephen King can do.

I have not worked in a hospital for 5 years now.. and yet my brain is still debriefing.

It's OKAY. Sweet dreams.

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I have them often. Everything from bizarre codes to improbable conditions. Occasionally I dream I'm in the action, other times I am just a bystander.

Had one recently that I was on my way to work, stopped to respond to this horrible accident. Got a call from work as I'm trying to hold the driver in cspine demanding I get in right now. Finally get to work muddy and covered in blood, gas, etc, and get written up for unprofessional appearance AND I couldn't have scrubs of shame from central laundry. I woke up ready to spit nails that morning.

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Specializes in Peds Urology,primary care, hem/onc.

I have not worked as a bedside nurse for about 16 years. I have always worked in pediatrics. About a month ago (it was so vivid I still remember it now), I had a dream that I was a new floor nurse on an adult floor. I could not find my patient's rooms (the room numbers where not in order and did not make sense). I walked around and around on the floor and could not find my patients. I could not get into the PIXIS. I could not give my meds. I could not remember how to start an IV. The other nurses working the shift were just standing at the nurse's station all night watching me in disgust and would not help me. Next shift came on and in report I had to tell the oncoming nurse I did nothing all shift b/c I could not find my patients! I woke up in a cold sweat after that one! SO anxiety producing!

I also had a dream about my current job where I am a PNP. I walked into clinic late (I mosied in b/c I did not think I had anything scheduled at the start of the day) and I walked into all of my coworkers staring at me in anger b/c I had missed a procedure that was scheduled, patients that were scheduled and they had to cover me. Uggh!

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OP, sounds like it would be an awesome novel--fascinating and creepy.

I have the usual nursing nightmares--it's the end of my shift, and I suddenly discover I have a patient I didn't know about; I haven't seen him all shift. It always ends there--I don't know whether the patient is OK or not.

When I did pedi sub-acute, I would have a recurring dream in which I would walk into a patient's room to find him jumping on the bed and laughing--you know, like a normal kid. I guess I just really wanted it to happen, but the patient had severe brain damage and was never going to be a normal kid. Funny how your subconscious shows itself.

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Specializes in Pediatrics, NICU.

I recently had a dream that I admitted a 60+ year old homeless drug addict (who coincidentally looked an awful lot like that Geico caveman commercial from a few years ago) to my neonatal ICU. :sour: We had to intubate by taping ET tubes together to make them big enough for him since we only have equipment for babies. Then I needed to take him to MRI by myself in a crib, since no one would come with me or give me a stretcher for him. Then, the poor guy coded but the MRI staff refused to call a code so I had to leave the patient to call it myself but no one came so he died. So I went back to my unit finally to find everyone playing volleyball but no one cared that the only homeless drug addict adult to be admitted to a NICU in the history of ever died...

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You have any cray cray in your dreams?

Oh no! You used a phrase that has been shunned in another thread!! :sarcastic:

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/words-you-hate-1040209.html

To answer your question though, I have weird healthcare-related dreams on a regular basis.

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

I have some weird wrong patient or wrong surgery type dreams. Like, once I was taking a patient into the OR for an ACDF. But the patient was actually the second case's patient and was supposed to be a lumbar laminectomy. Stuff like that.

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Specializes in critical care.
Oh no! You used a phrase that has been shunned in another thread!! :sarcastic:

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/words-you-hate-1040209.html

To answer your question though, I have weird healthcare-related dreams on a regular basis.

So many comments!!! I'm digging. Up to the 80s. How far in is this shunning?

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So many comments!!! I'm digging. Up to the 80s. How far in is this shunning?

Good grief . . . I have no idea. LOL. :nailbiting: I know it is there though. It might have been me. Or me agreeing with someone.

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Specializes in critical care.
Good grief . . . I have no idea. LOL. :nailbiting: I know it is there though. It might have been me. Or me agreeing with someone.

Ha! Confessions, I see.....

Just kidding! I actually love to use it only because it's such a stupid term/phrase/whatever.

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