Cgritz77

1.) I'm in Pa, and my state works with PNAP. You should find out what your state's monitoring program is and give them a call as a new referral. They can assign you a case manager from there. They may send you a letter, but I recommend being proactive, because the board and the programs take forever to get things done.
2.) This is weird, because the board ordered me to go to a specific psychiatrist of their choosing, but honestly I would call the board and ask them where you need to go. If you don't have an attorney you may want to get one to help you extend the timeline you have to be evaluated.
3.) I haven't actually gone to any nurse support groups. Only AA. I have to do 3/week based off my "remission" status. It's just required, and I don't look much into it than that.
4.) I'm not actually sure about false positives. I haven't had one being in the program for 2 months, but I don't worry much about it.
5.) As far as I know, they test you for the entirety of your program. I've heard 2-3 times a month average. I've had 5 in 2 months so far.
6.) Your case manager will help you with the job aspect. They have to clear you for work, which is extremely annoying, so you can't work as a nurse until that happens. I haven't gotten a job yet so I don't know much about that.
7.) How did you cope with all of this??!
Ugh. It's very frustrating. I go to the AA meetings, and I check in with my RecoveryTrek app M-F. I'm not back to work yet, so I'm relying on my boyfriend and family for money. It's hard. I also had a first time DUI 2 years ago, but I was already a nurse. The best way I handle it is to just face it head on. Best to just do what they want and then one day you'll be free. I try to help others going through the same stuff. There's a facebook group I joined for support called "Nurses in Assistance Programs." You can find it by adding Valerie Arens. Talking to people on here and on there is helpful. Otherwise I try not to think about it too much. Hope this helped! Best of luck! ?