Help Me Please!

mrsboots87 · Aug 6, 2015

Youre probably not that type of learner. Some people read books and learn all about a subject. Some people, myself included, can read no more than a page or two before becoming unfocused. If you have trouble reading, maybe subscribe to khan academy for visual/auditory review of things. Or record lecture if your professor allows and take really good notes. Then just review parts of the book that still confuse you or are not really talked about much in lecture. Find out if your isntrutor tests from all over the book, or mostly from what is lectured on. That will narrow down your reading requirement. reading just becasue you think you have to just wastes time. If you don't absorb info that way, you wont learn anyway. You just need to find what works for you. I barely use the book and am going into final semester with a pretty good grade overall and feel I have a pretty good understanding of content. But we also have fantastic instructors. They don't necessarily spoon feed us the info, but they do post audio pre-lectures, really narrow down necessary reading, and lecture very well and in depth. They definitely cover more in lecture then they could ever hope to put on the exams, but are very thorough and give lots of examples. Hoepfully you get a good set of instructors and find out how you will best learn the new content.

direw0lf, BSN · Aug 6, 2015

I don't know if this is your case. But one of my teachers made a big point about how cell phones are decreasing future generations attention spans. I think you have to train yourself to hold an attention span when reading. Maybe it will come if you set goals like "I will read 1/2 a page and only think about what I'm reading" when you accomplish that so fast it will encourage you to increase your time.

I'm not the best reader either (for school books) but I found the time of day for reading and the setting made a difference with me. I read faster and retained more very early morning for me right before a different 8am class, so maybe experiment with that.

I just encourage you to work on the reading instead of give up and find only alternative methods, because even though they can be used to study based on how you learn there seems to be so much you will need to read to be a better nurse such as journals and policies, and if you want to advance to any specialty.

Turn the phones and computers and anything else off even put your phone in your car even if you think it's not why you aren't reading good, it won't be in the back of your mind either.

You can make a schedule with your reading goals also. Schedule 20 or even 30 minutes for reading at a specific time and do nothing but that! Even if at first you get nowhere keep that time and activity. Eventually you'll train your brain.

P.S. I heard from higher up nursing students or recent grads that you can never get to all the readings assigned but I still think it's important to be able to hold your attention to some of it.

nurseprnRN, BSN, RN · Aug 6, 2015

A very wise therapist once told me, "Don't say can't, say won't." Puts a whole different spin on it, doesn't it?

You know you have to do it or you'll fail. I have no idea how you passed first semester without reading, even though first semester is largely CNA level in most programs, but you already know that'll never work from here.

So whether it's a learning disability thing (school learning counselor), a focus thing (same), or a motivation thing, figure it out right quick and do what you know you have to do. You need to get that help from more than an online group like us, right? Get up, move away from the computer, and identify actual sources in your town right now, today. You have, quite literally, very little time to waste. Go!

And good luck! Let us know what you decide to do! Your experience, shared, may help others.

HouTx, BSN, MSN, EdD · Aug 6, 2015

Have you tried reading aloud to yourself? It sounds a bit flakey, and probably not something you would do if you're not alone, but this triggers your auditory pathways - giving you another information processing route.

I have to agree with direw0lf.... reading skills seem to be dwindling overall. Many (many, many. . ) K-12 educators in among my family & friends tell me that it's very rare to find youngsters who read for enjoyment. Their students simply can't (won't?) stay focused on anything that does not involve continuous visual stimulation - aka, 'video-brain'. Unfortunately, new information is very unlikely to be retained if it is only presented as a series of visual blips or text

SubSippi · Aug 6, 2015

Bring your book to the library and leave your phone and your computer at home. Reading a whole chapter might take you a couple days to get through at first, but you'll get better.

You can also try studying by answering questions on the Saunder's NCLEX cd. Answering questions (and reading the rationales) is just as valuable of a studying tool as reading the textbook, and it was never as boring (to me).

RainMom · Aug 6, 2015

I only did focused reading & skimmed a lot. I picked out those topics/diseases/concepts I felt I needed to pay extra attention to & read those sections of the material but not everything. Topics that I felt confident I knew, I only studied my notes & powerpoints. No way was I going to be able to read every single chapter assigned (usually 20-30 chapters in 2-4 books for each test).

MamaBeaRN · Aug 6, 2015

I have always been this way. I haven't started nursing school yet, but I never read during prereqs. I get incredibility bored and I do not retain much. I try to do a quick speed read, and I'll stop and read slowly if I come across something that interests me. Or after lecture if I was left confused about something I could read that part to get clarity. I could read an interesting novel in a day, but boring old textbooks, no way! I'm also a visual learner and find graphs and pictures from books to be very helpful.

I'm sure when you get to a point in nursing school when you know you will fail IF you don't read, you will probably find motivation real quick!

windsurfer8, BSN, RN · Aug 6, 2015

Yes....I am an RN, but I "could" be a crab fisherman if I absolutely HAD to do it. I won't though because I have no interest. Saying "can't" is essentially a subtle way a person excuses themselves from the work. It is easier to say "I can't pass math" instead of "I won't study 30 hours a week to ensure I pass math".

nurseprnRN, BSN, RN · Aug 6, 2015

Oh, so textbooks are boring? Really? I suppose screens are less so. Lucky for you that the NCLEX -- which tests for a lot of stuff in those boring ol' books written by experts-- is done on a computer screen. I'm sure that will make up for not having done the reading, right? Let us know how that works out for ya!

:sarcastic:

mrsboots87 · Aug 7, 2015

I do just want to clarify from my post that I do read. Just not the multiple chapters per lecture assigned. A lot of it s redundant. Assigned reading will come from multiple books and review the same things. I can only assume this is intentional so students can see which way they can focus better. And I actually find a lot of what's in the txt books interesting, but my mind wanders and I don't focus well. This is without phone or computer present as a distraction.

I believe that some people truly cannot learn by reading large amounts of a textbook. I retain info well. I love reading. I read a lot in my spare time. Some interesting articles that pertain to nursing practice and some regular fiction book reading. But for the life of me, I don't learn well with straight reading and note taking for hours. It is not fair to assume that people who don't learn that way are just not trying or too into electronics. I'm sure that is the reason for some, but not all. This is why I suggested alternative formats like khan academy for the more visual/auditory learners. There are great videos out there for many nursing subjects.

If if I could pay someone to read a book to me while I jot down notes I would. It's not that I don't find the info in the txt boring. Just the way it's laid out is had for me to process for a long period of time. Hence sliming and just reviewing after taking class notes. I'm doing quite well in my program that has NCLEX pass rates over 95% consistently. So it must be working.

i wouldn't suggest for everyone to not read everything they can. Some people have to read to learn or do well with reading. But for those that have trouble learning by boom reading, using alternative formats shouldn't be a big deal as long as the end result is that they have learned the necessary material and can turn that into safe nursing practice.

mrsboots87 · Aug 7, 2015

Oh, and for some advice on how u have learned to make book reading more effective for the times I do need more information.

I pretend I need to write an essay. I pull out info from the readings and brainstorm an essay in the subject. I sometimes even formulate a paragraph or two. I figure if I can explain a subject well, then I can grasp it better.

This is is not feasible for all the material in the book as it would take way too long. But it helps for things such as acid/base, fluid and lyte's balance, and IV fluid types. Some of the more complicated processes in the body basically.

Maybe be it can help you too.