MBrickle

There is also speculation that Jim Carey suffers from major depression as well. Both of them over-act quite a bit and I, too, wondered if it was some sort of a coping mechanism. So sad either way.

Assessment is easy but time consuming and requires great detail. Research is awful. Just awful. With a good group you are looking at 30 hrs/week of work up to 50+ with a bad group. There are many bad groups. Week 2 in vulnerable is tricky but the class is easy overall. Easiest: health promotion, holistic health of the adult.

Research is beyond awful. I had a decent group and easily spent 40 hours a week on it. I felt that vulnerable was ok, but the week 2 assignment took me about 28 hours. So, if you can call out of work that week, that's what I would do.

I want to go to Simmons but my main concern now is money. I have a spot being held at UMB and I also interviewed for a TA position there (5hrs/week, free tuition and 25% off all fees) which will sweeten the pot if I get the job. However, I've never worked in a hospital and don't really have any connections for preceptors - which you need to obtain for yourself pretty much at UMB. We will see...

Personally, faced with this, I would seek the guidance of a mental health professional on what the best course of action would be. Young kids can't understand illness if their parents look healthy (ie: early stages of cancer) but I would think they can understand it if their parents look visibly sick. I think with the appropriate supplemental interventions (therapies, counseling, etc) it can be healthy for children. I certainly don't think its selfish to want to see your children before passing. It may also be more confusing for a child to just wake up without a parent one day and never get to see them while they are on their deathbed. Kids are coddled too much these days. Death is part of life and so I think this is appropriate so long as supplemental grief counseling is provided before and after death.

Holding up? This class was my 4.0 killer for sure!

I applied for September but haven't heard anything yet. How do I check my application status??

I have never received a package as of yet. UMass assists you but I hear you largely have to work on your own to find them which I'm terrified of as I don't have hospital experience or many connections. Will you be attending in the fall?

I'm going to pop in and say that "they was" not doing anything, but "they WERE doing something." Grammar issues like this drive me batty!

As some who ruptured a disc 6 months in and who still can't feel the back of her left leg: 1) lift weights! Strengthen your core and arms so they can bare the brunt of lifting and also do lifts to work out your back for overall strength as well. 2) and this is huge: ALWAYS, ALWAYS make sure your hips are forward and in a neutral position prior to lifting. Lifting while twisting, to any extent is the kiss of death for your back.

I'm so sorry to hear this. Your family will be in my thoughts.

I'm glad! Research is tough...if you want a good grade then you need To be fully responsible for everyone else and their work which is doubly stressful! It will end and you will move on! It's like summiting a mountain - no other class in this program will be like research!

How's it going with your group and grades?

Did anyone here get into UMass Boston? Or, for anyone who has been there, do they ever send an official "package" with intro materials and cost information? I have received a few e-mails from them, but other than my admission letter, but nothing with a general overview of program, etc. Still waiting on Simmons!

I think the nights thing is tough which adds another element of complexity to the situation. I'm a night owl and working nights is killing me after 2 years. Especially because it takes me 1.5-2hrs to get home in traffic. I couldn't imagine this with a child on top of it, and I don't want to be a miserable, tired mess and miss out on my child growing up and on time with my husband as well. I would much rather have a rough few years financially and have my children closer together to get the financial burden over with sooner.

I think it's very lucky that one of you gets to stay home! Maybe OP could have her husband cut back hours since she is the breadwinner. Honestly, daycare is prohibitively expensive, which is really a shame.

I will also be trying to get pregnant soon. I rotate nights/days Monday-Friday. I'm constantly exhausted and a 2-hr commute home in traffic doesn't help. My husband has a demanding job and while it is technically 9-5, he often works until 9/10/11p or later. Once I wake up in the evening, I take the dog for a long walk, try to go to the gym, make dinner and go to work. I'm constantly exhausted. This will not work for us once we have a baby. Plus, having a child is hard enough on a marriage, let alone both being sleep deprived. We are hoping to buy a home by September, but I have no issues renting if needed. If having a home is a priority, could you put off conceiving a year? Could you at least put your kid in part-time daycare? Certified in-home daycare is often much cheaper than a center (our friends pay $1650/mo for full-time infant care in a center and we live in a high cost-of-living area)? Could your partner go part time or modify his schedule at all? Could you work weekend nights and one day shift? Minimizing costs? All this is to be considered. It's tricky so I feel your pain - we are trying to navigate costs of home ownership, having a baby and me cutting down to part time as I start NP school in the fall! Not easy! Good luck.

This post makes me sad. As someone contemplating having a child in the very near future, my only fear is other moms and this thread exemplifies that perfectly. Some people can't breast feed. Some don't want to. Some have to work and some don't. Others choose to work because they have a desire to. Some choose to lift weights during pregnancy, others don't (in relation to recent pregnancy CrossFit drama). I think women should do whatever will make them the best mom possible for their children. I think the relationship benefits between mother and child will far outweigh any negatives of any of the decisions a mother makes because it will make them a higher functioning family. Nobody is disputing the absolute benefit to breast feeding, but for those of you who responded with such arrogant, condescending and judgmental comments - shame on you. Ironically, it's YOU who need to open up your minds and understand that how the world works for you is NOT how it may work for everyone else. A woman's choice not to breast feed isn't because they didn't "research" the topic, which is a particularly arrogant thing to say as we are all nurses here. Judgment is a more powerful poison than you think breast milk is, and I guarantee it does more harm.

A great nurse makes such a difference! I only ever had one nurse that would show me and explain things to me. She was awesome. She won an ICU position but declined. She was on her way to becoming an FNP after a back injury. Such a loss to all future students!

Even if it is allowed, it's important to know that you will be held to the standard of your license. For example, if you walk into a room to take a patient to the bathroom and you notice their color is a bit off or their breathing is a bit more labored, etc. it would be your responsibility as a nurse to follow the appropriate channels and if the patient decompensated to the point they wound up in ICU or passed away, it's possible that someone could point the finger saying that you were a nurse and therefore had the responsibility to see the status changes even though you were working in a PCA capacity. This is why many hospitals don't let this happen. If yours does, I suggest a great malpractice insurance that includes a lawyer (because if push comes to shove, the hospitals lawyer won't really be working in your best interest) and report any and all status changes you note and remember that you will be held to the standard of a nurse and act accordingly.

In a functional job market this all sounds great. Unfortunately, in my job market, half the nurses can't find a decent first job let alone have a varied experience to tout on a résumé and cover letter. I have a good résumé, nice cover letter and I'm an incredibly hard worker. A self-starter. I ask questions, I find answers and overall, I'm a really great employee. Do I ever get call from the hospitals I apply to? Nope. I don't have experience and you can't get hired without it. It's a catch-22.

This is EXACTLY the problem - this mentality! We are undervaluing ourselves because we are so desperate for a job and therefore are taking less money. We need to stop doing that!! Hospitals are the only ones benefitting from this - not us!

1st semester I was at Tewksbury State Hospital (fundamentals), second semester I had med/surg rotation at mount auburn and psych at Salem hospital. Third semester I had pediatrics at New England pediatrics and labor and delivery at Cambridge hospital. Last semester I had my complex med/surg rotation at Lahey.

You are too expensive! Anyone with under a few years of experience is too expensive to train, and anyone with over ten years of experience is too expensive to hire. I really think 3-9 years seems to be the sweet spot! Yo

I hear ya. Week 2 in vulnerable is a beast. I took research with history II and pretty much only slept and did school work for a month. Oy!