Is nursing for me? Having trouble in anatomy?

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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I just got back from my anatomy lab and lecture midterms, and I failed both of them. I honestly am devastated and wondering if nursing is still for me. I just feel defeated I guess. I was doing so good up until this class. I am still passing the class but a D+ is nowhere near good enough for nursing school. Not even considered passing. I still have time to get my grade up, but this was considered an easier unit (brain and nerves and endocrine). I also have a proffesor who will not answer my questions, he will tell us to look them up in the book. And when we do that we are either too in depth or not in depth enough. I am frustrated and sad because if I can't pass A & P, how am I going to go through nursing school. Anyone ever been in my situation? It's heartbreaking to know the career you dreamed of might not be a possibility. But oh well. This is life. Everyone is telling me to drop out now because nursing school is just A & P. Obviously its not my strong subject.

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Well first of all endocrine is anything but easy! Secondly, I know many students who have had to retake A&P because it is difficult. I am currently in A&P2 and can only tell you that the more you go over the material at home, make flash cards, write the information down, the more it will stick. Does your instructor teach from PowerPoints? All our lectures are over PowerPoints and the exams are built from the PowerPoints so each day I go over the PowerPoint we are covering or the flash cards I have made over them. It can be very discouraging.. I failed chemistry and it set me back a couple semesters because the semester I retook it I took only chemistry so I could devote all my time to it and got a B. I have met many students in a&p that decide to retake it and jump right back in. I would encourage you to keep trying! If you feel nursing is for you and it's the difficulty of the class I wouldn't give up based on that. Success is a pile of failure you are standing on. There will be many testing and trying times through nursing school, in fact I just cried tonight because I was overwhelmed from A&P2! Now looking back I'm thinking why did I cry, to get it out, that's why and then I will jump right back in and give it 110% effort on Tuesday. Best of luck to you!

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Thank you so much, I needed that. I have a ridiculously hard proffesor who makes the subject 10 times as harder as it needs to be. I am going to try to memorize the power points now. It's still just halfway through the semester, so I will have time to bring it up. Hopefully I don't have to retake. Just hang in there! Biochemistry is an awful one!

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If you really want to get into nursing, then you need to sit down and figure out what's preventing you from understanding the material. Are you focusing on the wrong information? Are you not spending enough time studying or reviewing the material? Are you studying in the wrong manner for your learning style? Etc, etc.

Just because you aren't doing well now, doesn't mean you can't do well. If this is something you want, you should put the time and effort into doing what you need to do. Though, yes, A&P is something that you will definitely need for nursing school, so it is in your interests to figure it out now and get your A&P down well.

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Hi,

It may be hard for you to believe this but i specifically created this account just to respond to your post.

I had the same problem with Anatomy. I was battling the fact that there was so much memorizing to do and I didn't take my studies serious until after my second mid-term exam. It was like some scales suddenly fell off my eyes!! I was on a D just like you with one more mid-term (exam and practicals) and a few homeworks left. I went to discuss with my professor and he was diplomatic about telling me what to do but I sensed from his words and expressions that he was doubtful of my ability to pass the class. My niece who is a nurse encouraged me to finish the class that I could still make it. I hate failing at ANYTHING i commit myself to so I knew dropping as far as I was concerned, meant I had failed, hence, i made up my mind to WIN. I ate, slept, drank, walked and talked Anatomy from that day. I listened to Anatomy lectures on YouTube when driving to and from work (I was working two jobs by the way), in the gym, while taking walks. Mind you I generally do not enjoy studying but I loved Anatomy by force and thanks to God, I ended the class with a strong B!!

My point is to let you know that passing Anatomy even with your current D is not impossible. It will be very difficult, it may disorganize your life temporarily, but, it is not impossible. The question is ARE YOU READY? Answer this question genuinely. If you're ready to give it 150% from today, then don't drop it but if you have doubts, you may consider dropping it. Only you can genuinely answer this question. Its all in your hands and if you make up your mind to, sincerely, then you will. Best of luck to you!!

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I feel like I had to come say, I did HORRIBLE my first round of APHY 101, my first midterm I got a D. My final grade was a C. Not good enough, and I questioned constantly whether I could do this.

I am almost done with my second time through, I didnt do AMAZING on my midterm but i actually passed this time with a C and i still have my A in the class. With no prior experience anatomy is a BUTTLOAD of information all over the place. This time its actually clicking for me and i able to recall information and it amazes me. Last time i definitely was trying too hard to just get the assignments done because I was pretty loaded with work between classes and my kids and this time it's going so much better. If you want this, keep going and dont let anything stop you, especially not yourself!

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Dont be discouraged. The first time I was introduced to Anatomy I was completely shocked and mad at the world. I was so upset that society has lied to us. Lol. I was like so it's not head shoulders knees and toes like we learned in grade school. It's cranium, scapula clavicle humerus, patella and phalanges... But you would see why they didn't teach us as such. Anatomy 1 is the basics, and once you get that you will understand 2 even better. Pictures help out a lot. Look at the body as a puzzle and focus on small pieces at a time. Then put the puzzle together that's how it helped me. Flash cards with pictures helped too. YouTube has khan university that helped. Google has images that also helped. Wikipedia isn't as bad as people make it it sure helped me. You can't get it just leaving class thinking it will stick because when you go back to class again you will remember nothing trust me. It's a new language and you will be fine. Don't doubt yourself. You will do great. Since we are in the social media age, I follow nurses, doctors, and anything health so that's on my timeline and I'm not distracted. You can do it. Also there is an app called essential anatomy. It has layers of the body from bones, to muscles, to body systems. Start small and go big. Just like you started with an atom, start with bones a naked skeleton and once you know all the bones the muscles are a peice of cake and so fourth.

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