soingal

I am that way, too! I have a wide variety of sources that I use to get information/study.

i dunno how i would deal with a dead rat!! i'm not doing well in my computer class. what?! you ask! i got discombobbled (not spelled right) and need to get my grade up. last thurs evening i successfully d'loaded ms ofc 2010 to one of our home xp computers. it's a 60-day trial. well, my refund (yay!) is coming tomorrow, so i'll be getting my laptop tomorrow. i think i can d'load the software from microsoft's website for around $99. i may have to go to the main ivy tech campus tomorrow to finish my computer homework for this week. math...ah, that dreaded word! we started talking about fractions this past monday. i'm cool with that, but the instructor was using the factoring method to reduce. my brain tends to want to go on strike in that class. go figure. i think our next math test is next monday. i am going to do my best to get an a on it. i'm doing well in the english classes. they start in a few hours. i just colored my hair but have to wash the goop out of it and apply conditioner. it's tough being a woman... i may visit the math tutor again tomorrow. i get anxious around them because i want to 'be perfect' about solving these problems. sometimes i think i may be better off trying to analyze it myself... chow for now!

Thanks for the encouragement! I pass the word around about this website to people. It's the only nursing website that I frequent.

Well, I'm back w/some new news. LOL First off, we got our grades last night for our first math test. He gave us a curve, and, because of that curve, I was 1 pt away from a very low 'B.' Ah, well. At least I passed it. I got hung up on the distributive property... We had our hands full in last night's class. Can't remember the exact topic's name, but it has something to do with having both sides of the equation even. Go figure. LOL I need to see where I went wrong on the test and then type up some new notes. The Math 015 (present math class) and Math 035 (next semester's math class), I found out, won't count toward IU Purdue or Indiana Wesleyan University's RN to BSN program, so I will be taking Essentials of Algebra I and II, which, in total, will take a year to complete--all of the math courses. Whew! We're reading the book "Tuesdays With Morrie" in the Reading Comp class. Part of that assignment is due tomorrow after lunch. As for the Intro to Microcomputers goes, the Pearson Education online simulation/software is not user friendly, making this a frustrating class! It was supposed to be RELAXING for me, not frustrating!! I'm off today, and I decided that I will have around 2 days (tomorrow and Thur) to try working on the online practice simulation at the[closer] campus. Hopefully, my refund will arrive this week. I've already added quite a few items to my 'priority' list. I don't think the Calendar feature in the Ivy Tech email system is saving my calendar entries. I gave up on relying on it and am storing it in another web-based calendar (Zoho Calendar). I have a follow-up eye appt w/my doc tomorrow morning. I had strabismus surgery on July 11. (eye misalignment). Whether or not my Rx changes, I've got new frames picked out at a local Wal-Mart store. We worked on resumes in last week's New Student Seminar class. The instructor had a sub working w/us... Not too much else to report. I did find a book re: MS Office 2010 online and am going to purchase it soon. I can't learn it the way I want to w/this simulation from heck... Have a great day!

RATS??!! YIKES!! I better be sedated for that one! LOL We're off the first 2 days of this week; however, I'm already off on Tuesdays. I have my first math test this Thursday. I "walked away" from it for a few days last week and had a MAJOR brain freeze last Thursday right before class. I was trying to help another student out w/ a problem. Got half of it correct... I met a woman in my computer class who is also taking the same math class as I but through a different instructor and on different days. She's thoroughly confused, and I offered my assistance. She lives in the same town as the main Ivy Tech campus that I go to, so I am going to try to touch base w/her in a short while to set a time and place at the college to meet. I have 2 work/study interviews set up for Thurs. as well. One is w/the admissions office; the other is w/the financial aid office. There is a notification from Ivy Tech that they will only accept financial aid as payment for bookstore items no later than tomorrow. I find that contradictive since Sep. 12 is the earliest that anyone can expect a refund. Ah, well, It really doesn't matter since the actual refund is mine to do with as I please, and it's going into my personal bank account. Had a real fun time (NOT!) getting the computer class online lab figured out last Friday. Turns out, students have to buy an access code for myitlab online; I didn't realize this. You can either buy it from the bookstore (around $40, from what I was told by another student), or pay $110 thru Pearson Education. To make a long story short, I purchased it from the company and put the tab on the spouse's debit card. Didn't have too many choices there... We had an open-book quiz in that class, and I scored high, so I'm happy about that. I might not have scored as high had I not had the book. The 2 books were actually supplements that I borrowed from the instructor's boss. We are reading the book "Tuesdays With Morrie" in the English composition class. I will be ordering it directly from Amazon so that I can receive it within 48 hours. We're having a substitute fill in for tomorrow's English classes. I'm glad that my classes start as late as they do. It allows me to get some things done. I visited a massage therapist earlier this a.m. I have 2 disc bulges: one in my thoracic and the other in the cervical spine (most likely due to the aging process). Surgery isn't warranted, so I have to do the next best thing. I do feel better and more limber and will continue to visit the massage therapist. It's right down the road from my family doc . I was fortunate enough to discover a boatload of books in the Ivy Tech library last week. I wasn't focusing my eyes on that corner of the room; that's why I didn't see it till then. I checked out different nursing books. I did stumble upon a book by Elaine ... Marieb. It's easy to remember the author's first name since it's the same as mine. Go figure. LOL Not too much else to report about my classes. I may visit the tutor again to go over the math problems. I just need to practice it EVERY day or I will be in trouble. I'm glad that I am able to inspire you! It has taken me at least 5 years when I first thought about pursing a healthcare career; I don't think a person can have enough research. I just need to work on organizing the million pounds of paper...LOL

The closest Wal Mart to my town has a Toshiba laptop (not sure which model w/out looking at it in person) for $279 before sales tax. I "bungled" it last Friday. Had it in my head that my computer class started at 4:30. It REALLY started at 1 pm! Anyhoo, I called and talked to a lady in the bldg where the class was being held. I went over to the main campus anyway to take care of some other business. She asked if I could meet w/her Monday (yesterday) so she could give me a recap of what the computer instructor had went over. I was over there @ the main campus yesterday and met w/the lady, and she informed me that the actual book is part of a bundle. HOWEVER!! I still can use my book; she just gave me 2 different 'supplements' that I will only need to borrow/use for this week and next week's class. I believe that this computer class is done (somewhat) in an online/simulation learning environment. Today I will finish catching up on my Math homework (I did over 100 practice problems from math-drills.com) and had to get the addition/subtraction, yadda yadda down w/that before completing the homework problems. I did miss my Math class yesterday because 1) We can miss if we feel that we know the material, and I called my instructor and left him a msg on his VM. 2) My 2 youngest children wanted to attend the Open House @ the elementary school, which I had forgotten about. I met w/ a tutor (an actual instructor) at the main campus yesterday to go over my knowledge of negative numbers. My problem w/things is that I have difficulty w/organization, so I'm trying to get a grip on that. There is a lady who does tutoring at the campus that I am at the most. I wish I knew which book Ivy Tech is going to use for the A&P class next semester. I may just go ahead and do some studying on my own to get a grip on the material. The A&P class that I had at medical assisting school wasn't as thorough as this is going to be, I am certain! LOL Hope everyone is having a wonderful day!

Wanted to let everyone know that everything is going well. Tonight is my 2nd day of the Math class (pre algebra). We will have homework, but our instructor doesn't grade it, only the tests. I took the time between 2 English classes yesterday to hole punch my orificenal of math worksheets that I printed from math-drills.com. I bought a 2-inch binder @ Staples before class just for that purpose. If necessary, I can buy a bigger one if need be. I also bought a plastic/foldable crate to haul my books around in. Nobody seemed to really pay it a second glance, as I thought it looked like I was tooling around quite the contraption. LOL Ah, well. It's part of the cause... I have always done well in Reading & English, so next semester when I have English Composition, I am confident that I'll do well. We'll be writing essays out the ying-yang... I didn't get either of the 2 work/study positions that I recently interviewed for. The first guy tried smoothing over the 'rejection' (cough) and implied that other departments will def. be calling me, blah blah. Oh, well. I'll just see what happens. I'm receiving some financial help for gas $ from my mom. I can't wait until my refund gets here... Tomorrow is my computer (filler) class: Intro to Microcomputers/working with Microsoft 2010. I am going to buy the Toshiba laptop at Walmart for $279 as soon as the refund gets here. I've got my eye on an Epson all-in-one scanner/copier/printer at Staples and may just get it there instead of having it shipped to me. More research on pricing is needed before I make a final decision on that. Hope everyone is enjoying their courses!

That sounds like a great idea! I don't know which one is highly recommended. polka-dot on this forum posted quite bit of pdf files a few years ago. I was thinking about printing them out. I counted them, and there are 161 pages of pdf files. The link to this: https://allnurses.com/pre-nursing-student/p-help-my-334360.html It'd be great to know what book(s) re: A&P Ivy Tech plans to use next semester, but the earliest that I can find out is around October. I have an A&P book entitled The Human Body in Health and Disease when I was in medical assisting, but that was probably just an intro to A&P. I know that A&P in nursing school is MUCH more intense! LOL:eek: Edited to clarify that 161 pages of pdf documents are the total re: the chapters that polka-dot compiled from the author Marieb.

Thanks for all of the encouragement! I'm getting my stuff together this weekend. I am going to have a folder/notebook for each class and am actually going to (for my own personal benefit) have a "schedule" printed out for each day that I'm in class to keep myself organized. Gotta get rid of these scatterbrained tendencies! LOL I'm going to make my own flash cards as well. Don't know whether to get an inexpensive laminating machine or use card stock paper. Will keep everyone posted.

hello, everyone! i wanted to take a moment to introduce myself. i am not a stranger to allnurses in general but mostly lurk and read posts. i've been a member for a few years. i am a 42 y/o mother of 3 children, ages 13, 10, and 8 years. thankfully, they're in school! i became interested in working in healthcare because of my "medical follies," as i've affectionately dubbed them. i've had over 10 surgeries total and consider myself a "professional patient." this is what started it all...lol i graduated from an accelerated diploma medical assisting program in july of 2010 but was unable to find a job. however, my real desire/goal was to attempt nursing school. i have had a little bit of a math 'phobia' in the past; i gained confidence during my ma program, which enabled me to continue attempting to pursue going back for an actual degree, which i do not currently have, only diplomas. i was going to go through iupu's bsn nursing program but knew that a pell grant wouldn't cover much, esp. during each semester. it would cost over $40,000 if i went through their program. i met again w/a nursing advisor and was given more options about my future goals. i decided to start out at ivy tech, and, if everything went as i planned, i would complete their asn nursing program and then bridge over to a bsn at iupu. i was fortunate enough to receive a federal pell grant, as well as a frank o'bannon grant (indiana). the pell covered my tuition w/ money left over. my money will be refunded to me, but i won't receive it for 6-8 weeks after this fall semester starts. the o'bannon grant will be refunded to me as well. i found my books online at amazon for 90% cheaper than at the bookstore. the only problem that i had w/this is that one of t he 3rd party sellers used fedex smartpost, which i do not recommend if you're antsy and want the book quickly. lol i am very excited about starting this journey monday and look forward to interacting with the members of allnurses for encouragement and support. elaine

Math 015 (Ivy Tech) -- Pre-Algebra/Intro to Algebra English 083 (not English Composition) New Student Seminar Microcomputers (want to obtain my certification in MS Office)

Thanks for the responses! While in medical assisting school, I thought the nervous system was overwhelming, for starters! Granted, I could've/should've applied myself more, got a decent final grade, but I'm really on a mission this time around. LOL

hello, everyone! i am in the process of entering college this may for my pre-requisite courses (bsn program). i have completed a diploma medical assisting program (another topic). in nursing school, do most a&p classes require a student to know all of the bones of the skeletal system or just the major ones? i have an "introductory" a&p book entitled the human body in health & disease by thibodeau/patton which seems like a good book, but i will more than likely have a different (possibly more thorough) a&p book when i get into this particular class. i wanted to get a head start on studying the skeletal system and want to be well prepared. btw, i'm a 41 y/o mother of 3 children who has had aspirations of working in healthcare for a few years now. the university i'm planning on attending is iupu in columbus, in (they also have campuses in indy and bloomington). thanks in advance! hoosier

Pilonidal Disease. Trust me, I know all about it! LOL The guy most likely has underwent a recent pilonidal cystectomy and has a large cavity wound that is healing from the inside out. My mother-in-law was my caregiver for 2 good months after my surgery. My surgery was in 2002. I could not sit properly for 2 months and couldn't wear jeans for that amount of time as well. The wound took 5 months to completely heal. When reading my medical records, the c/r surgeon's NP wrote "non-healing" wound during most of my visits. I thought the doc herself was going to have to do something, but thankfully she didn't have to get involved during the end of my healing. I know how people would react, though, to someone just out of the blue making such a request...) I couldn't take care of my own situation, though (couldn't see back there . There are websites relating to this problem (pilonidal.org is the main one). Hoosier

:yeahthat: and then some! No serious illness requiring life support here, but I've had enough surgical and other related diagnostic procedures to make a person's head spin. I'm a true professional patient like you and feel that I have a ton of life experiences to bring to the profession. Good luck to everyone with their nursing career endeavors!

I've not taken any pre-req's yet or even enrolled in NS, but I've talked to one NS that's part of a large hospital in the nearby city, but, simply put, I've been a professional patient many times over, hence the interest. I have 3 young children, and if something were to ever happen to my spouse, a career in nursing would allow me to support myself and my children. Presently, I started work this week in the transportation/distribution industry (again), but I look at it as a stepping stone. Even though I've gotten this job, I still look at the allnurses.com forums when possible.

Hello. I just typed a lengthy post about my situation, but I keep encountering trouble saying that I'm not logged in when I am, so I thought I'd just type a few sentences, briefly telling what's going on, and can get detailed later. I may go for the RN in the future. In the interim, I've been exposed to identity theft but haven't noted fraudulent activity. I'm in the process of trying to find out if it's due to a clerical error, etc. My social security # is involved. Again, I can get detailed in a while, but I lost my typed text, so, for those of you who may have experienced this, what course of action did you take? I don't know how long this situation will take to get resolved. It could be quick, or it could get drawn out... TIA, Hoosier

LM (you know what) off!:rotfl: Double :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: Quadruple :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

:yeahthat: I thought that the Stadol was a "good" thing at first but then quickly changed my tune afterward. I was terribly unfocused, sad, yadda yadda. I had this beautiful baby girl and didn't "know what do do about it!!":uhoh21: When my minister (at the time) came to visit me, I broke down in tears for no apparent reason! I was afraid to hold my daughter, change her diaper, etc. Breastfeeding in the hospital was sporadic, at best. She didn't want to nurse. I felt inadequate. I had to fib when the nurses did their newborn assessments. They'd ask how long she nursed on each side, and I always gave a "good" number... It took nearly two weeks for me to "become focused" once I arrived back on the homestead. I later attributed this to having the "baby blues," not true postpartum depression, with "a little bit of Stadol crap mixed in...":bugeyes: My two subsequent births went better. Of course, they, two, were scheduled C sections, but I just had PAIN, not PAIN AND CONFUSION!!:lol_hitti P.S. My SIL received Stadol during her first labor and touted its greatness. Um, yeah, whatever... P.S. I'd have to look at my medical records (those of my daughter, I guess) to see the APGAR scores...

i had my interview 2 days ago after i was accidentally "stood up" by the woman who i had originally spoken to over the phone. to sum things up, she said that "you have [all of the qualities] that we're looking for..." great! what's not so great, of course, is the hour and a half drive (on a good day) that it would take just one way to get there, but i've worked in cinti before... anyway, she did ask me what my salary expectations were, and i gave her what i call a "range bracket," not an hourly "bracket." i didn't want to shoot myself in the foot. she informed me that, should i be called back for a 2nd interview, i could be interviewing with one of the doctors. there are [supposedly] 5 docs in this group, and they're in the process of adding a 6th one to the mix. they plan on opening 2 new offices in the immediate future, but those positions will be part time and then work into full time. now, i usually send thank-you letters after interviews, but i haven't done so yet. here's why. my spouse is very concerned about me driving that distance. he will be obtaining a truck driving job very soon and won't be home during the week (most likely scenario). we have three children; the older two are in elementary school. the youngest one would, of course, be at the daycare provider's house if/when i'm out in the workforce. since the older two are in the school system and there are only like [2] daycare providers in my small town, i am limited as to where my kids have to go either before or after school in terms of daycare is concerned. even though my in-laws are retired, they're not going to provide childcare on a regular basis. they also live 30 minutes away. so, with all of this being said and me trying to re-evaluate what i want out of life, i have come to the conclusion that, if i do secure employment, no matter where it's at, i still have to put my kids at the top of the priority list. i cannot pursue jobs that require one to work past a certain hour in the evening because i don't know of anyone locally who provides evening daycare. should i ever take the plunge and try to pursue a career in nursing, i would definitely have my clinicals to think about. i would like to know if all clinical sessions start in the early morning hours (such as 5:30 a.m, 6:30, etc.)? i feel like i should send a thank-you letter, but it sure would've been nice to know what the actual salary is so that i can save myself and these people some trouble now instead of [possibly] dragging things out, only to discover that it's not do-able. the woman told me that they anticipate making a final decision within two weeks' time. any suggestions or thoughts on my "dilemma?" p.s. i tried looking into some available local opportunities because my spouse helped me "make a decision" because i have a big issue with indecisiveness. it seemed like a better idea would be for me to obtain a job and save some $$ for a while and then put that towards a college education. however, even trying to find a job "right now" is such a task in itself...nobody wants to pay much. thanks for listening, hoosier

I refer to the internet as "my gateway to the outside world" and/or the information superhighway... This is basically the only site I refer to as far as the subject of nursing is concerned. I've laughed, cried, agreed, disagreed, etc. (of course, all from the confines of my desktop/computer chair...):wink2:

well, you won't believe this (then again, maybe you will! lol), but i was "officially" stood up today for my interview! that's right, i got there plenty early (due to inclement weather: rain!), and i was informed by the woman behind the reception area that the person [in question] who had contacted me via the telephone and who was supposedly the person whom i'd be interviewing with had called in sick and in turn forgot to inform them (and, most importantly, me!) that she couldn't interview, yadda yadda. the woman whom i spoke with was, as expected, extremely apologetic, but i don't think she realized how far of a drive it was for me: around 60 miles one way. i didn't ask her what the salary was, but i did inquire about whether or not the job (i didn't know there were multiple ones available) was part time and/or full time. she said that, although "i'm not privvy to a lot of this information," she divulged that the doctors are in the process of opening 2 other offices and are trying to incorporate more doctors in the group (as i whole, i guess). these positions are to manifest themselves next month and will [most likely] start out part time and then advance to full time once the job [description] is in full swing. whatever. lol my spouse (and different people that i have spoken to about today's shenanigans) wasn't pleased about this, and i've had some people tell me that i should've demanded monetary compensation for driving over there for nothing. i imagine that, once the woman gets well and back in the office, that she'll be calling me to apologize, etc., but i don't know that, just because she has/had "egg on her face" that it would increase my chances of becoming hired. i'm basically out of at least $10 in gas and my time. i've not been in the workforce for 9 years, and my spouse is the main breadwinner, so it's no reall big "loss" if i don't get it. i'll relay what happens next: the plot thickens...:uhoh21: footnote: i've been "waffling" about what i want to do as far as my career is concerned. a voice mail was left from a [private and expensive] college in the metro area whom i had been recently dealing with. i hadn't divulged to the admissions rep that i found out [online research] that they're not accredited. they're twice as much as the [local] community college, too. when confronted with the accreditation issue, the guy took offense and said in a heated voice, "that's not true!! whomever's telling you that is telling you an [outright] lie!!!" sheesh! then, in the same conversation, he claimed that "we're accredited..but we [nor any other college, for that matter] can guarantee that your credits will transfer [anywhere].":angryfire i guess i'm real 'big' on learning institutions being fully accredited and really would like to get some sort of a degree than just a diploma or certificate. the college in question is (as stated earlier) quite expensive for the programs that it offers. the only 'highlight' that i can see at this point is that a student can start their coursework each month, as they don't have to wait until august or january, etc. that's the nice thing about it. i can only receive [limited] pell grant assistance and would, of course, incur student loans. i can't see paying $18,000 for a medical assisting program with [no] accreditation (if it is true) when the median salary for a medical assistant is in the $10 range in the local area where i live. i couldn't travel to the city for that wage, however, since i'd be losing money at the gas pumps and paying the daycare provider even "half" of what she normally charges parents. i'm trying to get my hands on something known as an "interest inventory." i see that they are available online and may take one, but i know for a fact right now that i'm not going to enjoy (nor am i cut out for) factory work, electronics, etc. my interest lies in healthcare, but it would seem that there are just too many choices for me to [easily and painlessly] narrow it down. i'll post back when i find out anything "new and interesting." lol hoosier [color=#483d8b]p.s. although i'm sure there are posts on these forums from people who've been in m shoes regarding their issue with indecisiveness, can anyone give me any pointers on how to best narrow down these "endless lists of choices" and come up with something concrete and just [color=#483d8b]go for it?!:behindpc: [color=#483d8b]hoosier

Is Christ accredited [through one of the major accrediting agencies]? I had a mtg. w/ an admissions rep @ Good Samaritan Hospital's nursing school last week, and the guy told me that Christ Hospital "isn't accredited but is working on it...":uhoh21: I have plans on attending an open house that Christ Hospital's nursing school is sponsoring--this Thursday evening. Do they pay for all of your tuition if you are accepted into their nursing program, etc.? This is a big decision for me (as it is for anyone else trying to get on with their careers/lives...) Simply put, Brown Mackie is way too expensive to justify going there, especially concerning their medical assisting program. GSH's cost is $10,000 a year (it's a 2-year Associate Degree program), and this wouldn't include getting the pre-requisites out of the way. I could take the PR's at Ivy Tech, as long as they're fully accredited, which they've assured me that they are, but I still feel inclined to get verbal affirmation over the telephone... GSH's nursing program has a $400 matriculation fee: Approximately $150 of it goes towards a physical exam administered by the Occupational Health department; the remainder is considered a "good faith estimate." I'm still negotiating; I'm actually "waffling" about my decision (or lack thereof) about what I really would like to do as far as pursuing a career in healthcare is concerned. Good luck to everyone struggling on making a decision! Hoosier

You might want to try wearing Power Steps. They are more durable than those purchased at Wal-Mart and other department stores. They are supposed to last for around a year but may last longer depending on usage/wear and tear. I have plantar fasciitis in my left foot (and possibly right foot) and get annoyed constantly. I wear Skechers shoes (haven't tried New Balance). I get my shoes from eBay. Good luck with finding the right treatment! It's a real bear...:icon_hug:

Can you elaborate on that? If I go with, "Well, I want to get into something [bigger and better], like actual nursing," I don't know how that will go over with the interviewer. I don't even know WHO I will be interviewing with! One of my children isn't feeling well, and I may have to reschedule the interview, but I have a "2-day window" to see how he's doing... I don't know if it's pt or ft, but my spouse said that if it's pt, it won't pay me to drive there. They say "third time's a charm!" (What I mean by this involves this being the third "bite" that I've gotten since I recently started submitting my resume online...) Hoosier