Interesting LPN Program: Thoughts

I want to do everythign in baby steps rather than all at once. Plus I think an RN program wil be much easier if I already have experience working as an LPn and I would therefore be less likely to drop out (which I am fearful of after reading many posts here on the topic).

Don't let the posts scare you. This is one of the few spots where nursing students can vent -- because most of the time our families/friends do not understand what we go through.

With the way the job market is right now, I would really consider taking the path toward RN licensure. It seems that you've done your homework, and have good support (especially with a mother who is a nurse). I don't know where you live, but in my area (New England), jobs for LPN's are almost non-existant. In fact, a local hospital just laid off 40-something LPN's. Obviously the choice is yours on which way you want to become a nurse, but it seems to me that going straight toward RN would be more beneficial to you.

but waking up at a quarter to 6 everyday is not fun. Is this common for nursing schools?

I wish I could wake up at a "quarter to 6"!

That would be a luxury. For clinicals, when we do the day shift, we have to be on the floor, promptly at 0700 to receive report. For those of us who have a drive, that means some early wake-ups!

The director of our school believes in having us get used to the 24/7/365 "real world of nursing" - that is, doing morning, evening, and Saturday clinicals.

Doing mornings was especially brutal this past winter, when I had to be up at 0450 whilst DH and our little dog were snug in the bed, cuddled up w/o me!

Our current M/S rotation is:

On Thursdays, we do PMs - on the floor at 1500 and off at 2130, with a turn-around to be back on the floor the next day at 0700 (to 1530), ditto for Saturdays.

On a couple of occassions, during NF I, we had two or three clinicals doing PMs where we got out between 2230-2300 with a 0700 report back. Lemme tell you, 4-5 hrs of sleep is tough.

I'm plugging along and only have 5 more months left! Just about anything is doable for a short time.

Yipppeeee!

Thanks for the encouragement Rhody. I actually come from a medical family. I have 6 doctors and 3 RNs in my family, inckuding my mother and an aunt who is an instructor at a nursing school. If you think that NS is a lot of work, just wait until you hear some of the stories I heard about med school!

If you think that NS is a lot of work, just wait until you hear some of the stories I heard about med school!

No kidding! I know some people who've gone through Medical school (and I've seen the residents at the hospital), and it is ridiculous. I happen to think that evening clinicals followed by morning clinicals is also ridiculous. Then again, I am a big fan of sleep in general...