Overwhelmed....will it always be like this?

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I'm starting my BSN program tomorrow. We got our books on Friday and have to read about 10 (long) chapters by Monday along with the ENTIRE ANA Nurses Social Policy Statement and the entire ANA Nursing Scope and Standards of Practice. This does not include the additional 10 chapters along with podcasts and On-line skills videos that are due for other classes during the week and we haven't even had clinical orientation yet plus the syllabus for Community Assessment (a 3 credit class) hasn't even been posted yet so I'm sure there will be additional reading for that.

I spent over 8 hours reading on Saturday and most of today (Sunday) reading and I'm only halfway there.

My question to current students is.....will it continue like this or are they throwing a ton at us at once to just get us going???

I never thought I would be this stressed out.

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Specializes in Gyn/STD clinic tech.

i will tell you that i was not in a bsn program and my workload was similar. welcome to nursing school, it is an intense experience.

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Here's my observation: The material gets easier to understand, as you understand it, the workload increases. Simple as that. I feel crazy sometimes with the amount of work that's assigned.

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Specializes in Telemetry, OB, NICU.

I finished ADN program, and my assignments were like this from the first day of nursing school to the last. Well, not necessarily you'll get this much, some less, some more; it depends. One thing for sure is workload always stays high.

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

No, it will not always be like this. Theoretically you will graduate eventually. ;)

That being said, you WILL find ways to consolidate your reading and other tasks. You will learn where you have space to wiggle and you will get very good at time management and study skills (or, if you don't, you will struggle).

Congratulations on getting in. It is one heck of a ride. The good thing about being so busy is how fast it goes by.

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Specializes in CNA.

Yeah its a lot of reading, homework, etc etc. Welcome to Nursing school!! My ASN program is like that. For our summer break, they said "enjoy your time off, get to know your friends and family again, relax.... here is what you need to work on before classes begin again" it was a stack of papers about 2.5" thick, and the syllabus with about 5 chapters to read for the first day!! Then I got an email with meds to memorize, another email from my second class stating we should get the book asap so we can begin reading. LOL! So much for relaxing and getting to know ANYONE!!!!!! :uhoh3: Crazy but it IS do-able. Hang in there.

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I'm currently a student and yes it's going to be just like that from now on. But as someone above said it will get easier and faster as you get into it. Once you get more knowlege of the processes and lingo then the reading will go faster and the level of intense concentration to understand it will lessen. In other words it will quickly make sense as you read it. There is also a lot of repetition in the materials from topic to topic, semester to semester.

Don't get overwhelmed just take it one day, one week, one test, one month, one semester at a time. Congrats on starting and good luck.

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Specializes in LTC.

I like hussle and bussle of nursing school. Yeah it gets overwhelming but I like it at times.

Good luck !

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I'm just gonna throw my experience out there. When I went through the BSN program...they assigned those 10 chapters a week, which came out to like 700 pages maybe. Did I read them? Nope. Did I skim them? Nope. You'll find that most teachers will give you a good powerpoint and podcast that will cover pretty much everything you need. You can completethose powerpoints with some notes that you take during class. If you still have trouble grasping a concept, THEN break out the book and cover that particular topic in the book. You'll also realize that many times you won't even bother touching the book, then you'll get mad that you spent the money on it. I never once bought a book before the class started. If you get on your teachers' good sides, or even ask someone who just took the class...they'll tell you whether or not you really need the book to begin with

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Specializes in Emergency Dept. Trauma. Pediatrics.

LOL I read maybe a total of 3 chapters in all of nursing school. Reading text books just was never something I could commit too no matter how hard I tried. I only ever even opened 1 of my books, 2 others I opened to get the CD out, that was it.

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Specializes in LTC/Rehab.

i start my program next week but got advice from a friend who graduated a year ago. she told me you can't possibly read the 10-20 chapters a week that are assigned. You skim.. look at diagrams and pictures.. read the tables and charts.. and do the best you can. the rest will come to you in lecture.

good luck!

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It is intense, but you will catch your stride.

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