I finally finished my LVN program...

Nursing Students LPN/LVN Students

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uhhhh, but is it normal to feel like you didn't learn enough? Like there's so much more that needs to be mastered...one of my concerns is not being exposed to the various hands-on skills in nursing such as continous bladder irrigations, trache suctioning, etc. Just wondering....

Now on to studying and passing the NCLEX-PN...yeah!! Hurry, someone play a song 'cause I feel like dancin'!

Thanks everyone here on this board who encouraged me and allowed me to vent when the pressure was intense. God bless all of you!

A very grateful graduate in Southern CA :D

Congrats!! I just graduated 2 weeks ago as well, and I feel you. I feel like I need more practice, but my friend who is an RN told me that it is normal to feel that way and that it will all come back to you when you are working. Hopefully we end up at a place where our more experienced co-workers are willing to help us out as well.

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So do I 12/3/2009, and finished the ATI exam with the highest score in our group.

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Hey y"all,

Congratulations to all of you who are finishing the program. Could someone share with me how their program was? I just finished my first semester and I had many days of crying and very very high BP (though I never had a problem with BP before this). I failed almost alll of my skills and had to retake them even the easiest ones. You are taught for a few minutes and expected to know them and well. I did not do too bad in my class tests though. Did any of you have the same experience all you all did very well in your tests. I tried to find out (before I joined the nursing program) from the thread started my pre-LPN students who were eager to share with each other how their first day, semester was but once they started, they never came back even though I kept posting questions to find out who their classes were going. I will really appreciate if someone can come back to me and let me know whether they had ups and downs in their program or is it just me. Thank you for your replies.

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I feel like I didn't learn anything at my school, I graduated in august and have been to scared to take the NCLEX. Well i finally scheduled it for this saturday, so we'll see how that goes. 95% of our clinicals were done at a SNF, where they had 2 LVN's working, and almost every time there was one who didn't want students helping her because we would slow her down. Well since there were 15 students, we were always paired with a CNA. I don't mind helping, but I definately did not learn the skills I needed to. I planned on doing a LVN_RN bridge program, but I think it would be better if I just started an RN program from scratch. In the bridge program I would skip the first year and start in the 3rd semester, but I can't imagine starting a class where I wouldn't even have 20% of the clinical experience they do. My situation is different than most. I'm sure that every graduate feels they didn't learn enough.

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Specializes in orthopedics and telemetry.

I know how you guys feel i just graduated from my lpn program dec 3, 2009 and feel like i don't remember anything

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I totally felt that way, and when I expressed my feelings to my DON, she asked me what exactly I felt like I needed help on. At that time I hadn't even done a catheterization yet and told her. She laughed and said that she went the whole way through her Bachelors AND Masters program without doing a foley on a real live person, and that once you get out there in the real world you'll be able to experience that! I was like WHAT??? She made me feel a little bit better, but I was much more relieved when I FINALLY got the opportunity to do a foley in my last few weeks at the hospital. I agree with BettyBoopGirl, I think every graduate feels they didn't learn enough. Good luck!

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Specializes in Just started in HH.
Congrats!! I just graduated 2 weeks ago as well, and I feel you. I feel like I need more practice, but my friend who is an RN told me that it is normal to feel that way and that it will all come back to you when you are working. Hopefully we end up at a place where our more experienced co-workers are willing to help us out as well.

Thanks for sharing what your RN friend told you. It helps to hear that from someone whose been in our shoes and is now employed as a nurse. And, yes, I agree with your last sentence. How else will we continue to improve our nursing skills if we don't have helpful & experienced co-workers to glean from?

I sure hope we find jobs where we can grow in our skills. Honestly, I've been seriously considering just passing the LVN state board exam and applying to RN school via the 30-unit option offered at many community colleges here in CA. Maybe more opportunities will await me with that RN license because at the moment, I'm not liking the hiring freezes I've been seeing in the LVN/LPN arena. :eek: Maybe if I attend RN school and pass the RN boards in a year and some months, the job market will be more promising. I sure hope so.

Congratulations on finishing LVN/LPN school as well! I applaud you & wish you much success. :yeah:

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Specializes in Just started in HH.
Hey y"all,

Congratulations to all of you who are finishing the program. Could someone share with me how their program was? I just finished my first semester and I had many days of crying and very very high BP (though I never had a problem with BP before this). I failed almost alll of my skills and had to retake them even the easiest ones. You are taught for a few minutes and expected to know them and well. I did not do too bad in my class tests though. Did any of you have the same experience all you all did very well in your tests. I tried to find out (before I joined the nursing program) from the thread started my pre-LPN students who were eager to share with each other how their first day, semester was but once they started, they never came back even though I kept posting questions to find out who their classes were going. I will really appreciate if someone can come back to me and let me know whether they had ups and downs in their program or is it just me. Thank you for your replies.

Oh, if the nursing classroom walls and clinical site walls could talk! Welcome to nursing school, my friend. The first semester is a killer for many of us, it certainly was for me. Did I ever cry? You betcha! Once in front of my clinical instructor -- I was overwhelmed by my patient's poor prognosis on my first day of clinicals. Other times, I cried in my car for a myriad of nursing school-related reasons. Those I'll not post here.

And, if you haven't found out yet, dont' expect to be coddled by your instructors. Ain't gonna happen. Study well, be prepared, and know that crazy stuff happens even in nursing school. In the end, it's all good. But I'd be lying you you if I told you the journey is a cakewalk. Often, you'll feel like this: :bugeyes:, but other times you'll want to in the hallway (like when a pt tells your instructor what a kind & caring nurse you are).

Keep pluggin' along in your schooling and remember to keep it all in perspective. Nursing school is just one small segment of your entire life. This too will pass. In the meantime, learn all you can, make the most of your student experience, and try to have fun through the program. Also, take some time to get to know your instructors and at least a few of your fellow students. I keep in touch with some of my classmates and instructors, even our director--they're wonderful people and I'm so blessed to have met them. :specs:

Never give up your dream of becoming a nurse. Let us know how you're doing from time to time, and know that we're cheering for you! :w00t:

God bless you.

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Specializes in Just started in HH.
I feel like I didn't learn anything at my school, I graduated in august and have been to scared to take the NCLEX. Well i finally scheduled it for this saturday, so we'll see how that goes. 95% of our clinicals were done at a SNF, where they had 2 LVN's working, and almost every time there was one who didn't want students helping her because we would slow her down. Well since there were 15 students, we were always paired with a CNA. I don't mind helping, but I definately did not learn the skills I needed to. I planned on doing a LVN_RN bridge program, but I think it would be better if I just started an RN program from scratch. In the bridge program I would skip the first year and start in the 3rd semester, but I can't imagine starting a class where I wouldn't even have 20% of the clinical experience they do. My situation is different than most. I'm sure that every graduate feels they didn't learn enough.

I agree that in your case starting RN school from scratch is probably best. I wish you well in RN school. Go for it!

:specs:

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Specializes in DD, PD/Agency Peds, School Sites.

I just finished my LVN program a few days ago. Whew! It's normal to feel like there's more to learn. We'll constantly be learning new things. Just take what you already know and build on that. We made it! :yeah:

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Thanks vintagestudent. Good to know I am not the only one who cried though I cried for a different reason - being made to repeat every lab check-off. Thanks for your encouragement and I will keep you informed as I go on. True, the instructors do not coddle us but appear unsympathetic when you fail a test. I wish they would be more encouraging and act more human. Anybody else with such an experience - having to redo the check-offs, crying and dealing with "cold" instructors who seem so ready to fail us? Let me hear your views and I will continue keeping you informed how it is going.

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