Missed opportunities

Nurses Recovery

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Don't you hate it when opportunities arise and you can't pursue them because of your monitoring? I know I bought this, and it's temporary, but I still hate it. I have a chance to attend an awesome training session, paid, 5 days. I could probably go, get permission from TPAPN, but I've already taken 2 trips with TPAPN approval, I've only got 2 months left, and I don't want to rock the boat. It isn't worth it. I just want to do my time (72 days!) and get out. I'll have plenty of jobs, training, travel etc after I'm out, but I still hate it.

Specializes in OR.

Right now I am seesawing in my own corner on this very issue. I have an opportunity to go on a delightful vacation to the Jersey shore with my boyfriend at the end of August. Thus far I have shied away from all such opportunities (including family things) because I feel like so much of my dignity has already been taken from me that I don't want to "ask permission" to leave the state. Supposedly I must "submit a recovery plan" and some other bull jive. My feeling is that when I am on vacation, I am on vacation. I don't want to worry about having to find a lab for a P test in a place I've never been to that I am flying into and won't have a car. I don't even want to think about this ****.

I seriously doubt I will get a break from this nightmare for a vacation....these people are no where near that reasonable. I suppose I'm only hurting myself but then the less contact with these ahhh....people, the better.

Recovering_RN

362 Posts

Supposedly I must "submit a recovery plan" and some other bull jive. My feeling is that when I am on vacation, I am on vacation. I don't want to worry about having to find a lab for a P test in a place I've never been to that I am flying into and won't have a car. I don't even want to think about this ****.

I know each monitoring program is different, but I can tell you I've requested and been approved for two trips, one where I wouldn't have reliable internet access, and both where I wouldn't have any transportation or ability to get to a lab. One trip was approved where I wouldn't have to check in or test (I ended up not going on that trip, but still, it was approved), the other trip was approved for me to continue daily check ins but no testing. I'm in TPAPN. I didn't have to write up any "recovery plan" or anything. I was pleasantly surprised that these trips were allowed. I have a good relationship with my case manager and I'm sure he had some say in the approvals. Yes it's demeaning to have to ask for permission, but I got over it. If I were you, I'd write up a request stating why you wouldn't be able to test, (no transportation, no lab nearby, no taxis or Uber etc), and see if they'll approve a trip with testing suspended. For me, it would ruin a vacation if I were sweating it out every morning at 4 am, praying that when I do my check in I wouldn't be required to test. I'd rather wait for the monitoring to be over, than stress over trying to interrupt a vacation to get to a lab. But if I knew I wouldn't have to test while I was away, it would be worth trying. Of course, I knew that once I got back I'd have to test right away, and I also assumed there'd be an extra, expensive blood, hair or nail test involved. Turns out it was just my regular urine test though.

Specializes in OR.
I know each monitoring program is different, but I can tell you I've requested and been approved for two trips, one where I wouldn't have reliable internet access, and both where I wouldn't have any transportation or ability to get to a lab. One trip was approved where I wouldn't have to check in or test (I ended up not going on that trip, but still, it was approved), the other trip was approved for me to continue daily check ins but no testing. I'm in TPAPN. I didn't have to write up any "recovery plan" or anything. I was pleasantly surprised that these trips were allowed. I have a good relationship with my case manager and I'm sure he had some say in the approvals. Yes it's demeaning to have to ask for permission, but I got over it. If I were you, I'd write up a request stating why you wouldn't be able to test, (no transportation, no lab nearby, no taxis or Uber etc), and see if they'll approve a trip with testing suspended. For me, it would ruin a vacation if I were sweating it out every morning at 4 am, praying that when I do my check in I wouldn't be required to test. I'd rather wait for the monitoring to be over, than stress over trying to interrupt a vacation to get to a lab. But if I knew I wouldn't have to test while I was away, it would be worth trying. Of course, I knew that once I got back I'd have to test right away, and I also assumed there'd be an extra, expensive blood, hair or nail test involved. Turns out it was just my regular urine test though.

My thing is that I wouldn't call my relationship with my CM 'good'. The less contact that I have, the better. These people would not even spare me the randoms when I was down for the count after major surgery. I had to check in and if I was 'selected' I had to call and let them know I was still on pain meds and they would excuse it (even though they had the Rx and knew darn well I was still on them) I seriously doubt they will excuse me to go on vacation.

My boyfriend has said he will make sure I get to a LabCorp if I must but there's still the issue of this marring what is supposed to be a very special occasion for him. I just hate the stranglehold this all has over parts of my life that has NOTHING to do with nursing.

Because this is a very special thing for him and for us, I will suck it up and ask but I will have to try very hard to keep my utter disgust about from showing through.

allnurses Guide

hppygr8ful, ASN, RN, EMT-I

4 Articles; 5,044 Posts

Specializes in Psych, Addictions, SOL (Student of Life).

In my effort to be a persistently Positive person I try to never dwell on negatives. Every missed opportunity is a new opportunity waiting to happen.

Hppy

Specializes in OR.
In my effort to be a persistently Positive person I try to never dwell on negatives. Every missed opportunity is a new opportunity waiting to happen.

Hppy

You have my unending admiration for looking at things this way. At least while I am under the carbuncle ridden thumb of this program, it is very easy to see the missed opportunities and near impossible to see the new ones waiting to happen. The one positive that I continue to concentrate on everyday is different from the day before....it is one less day left in this ****show. 497 days to go....

LindsayRNL

22 Posts

I haven't gone on a vacation in 4 years and the one time I did ask for an interruption, it was denied. Loved flying across the country with a rental car in a new city, pressed for time, in the snow, looking for a place to live all while worrying about being selected to test, when I only had 2 days to look for a place to LIVE for the next 3 years.

I also passed an opportunity for a dream job that was per diem because I wasn't allowed a second job. I was so tempted to not tell them about it but I was too scared they would know.

Heck yeah I'm bitter but it's all my own doing. Some of it is overkill.

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