~Stacy

I just want to add my own experience as a way for others to maybe learn....Several years ago I fractured my coccyx, it was not seen on x-ray at first but was suspected...I went back to the ER a couple of days later because my PCP could not schedule me in a timely manner and told me to go....I was considered a drug seeking patient and left on my own...I could barely walk, had to have my husband unbutton my pants so I could use a bathroom, three hours after trying to get off of the couch...I was in absolute agony...My husband made an appointment for the Ortho doc, sure enough spiral fracture to the coccyx seen obvious on x-ray Recently I had my gallbladder out, upon waking up from surgery I had the usual dose of morphine...When asked my pain scale I said 7, was told no I was definitely a 10, my face says everything....After my dose of morphine was up, I was told I was being given Toradil.....Never felt better in my life... I took my boards 5 days later, staples and all with only taking Motrin and Toradil at night....I have never been one to take pain meds but if I tell you I am in pain, I am...Look at your patients, I know I do

I passed!!!!!

Thanks everyone. The wait is awful

I know exactly how you feel, lol. It's awful and all I want to do is tell everyone I passed.

After coming here for months and reading posts, I feel I owe it to all of you to share my story and thank you for sharing yours with me. One word of advice is do NOT schedule your exam for the last week that you are approved to. I had to have my gallbladder out a few days ago and could not reschedule my testing day. We were required to take Kaplan as part of our graduation requirement. I feel the decision tree was helpful in breaking down the questions when I didn't know the answer. I scored in the mid 50's to low 60's on the question trainers. Trainer 6 was 58 and trainer 7 was a 63. I only did a little of the qbank questions. Overall, if I had to do it over again, I don't think I would pay to take this course. We also purchased NCLEX 4000, which was extremely helpful and I highly recommed purchasing it. The most helpful things to use for this exam I learned from the boards. LaCharity (should be your bible), know your Lab values and infection control inside and out. I also purchased Saunders but I didn't really use it to much, I think your med surge book is sufficient. When the computer didn't shut off at 75 questions, I cursed under my breath. After a 100 and some odd questions later I just wanted the computer to shut off, I didn't care anymore this exam was kicking my but and the staples in my abdomen were beyond uncomfortable at this point. When I got to question 165 and it still didn't shut off, I just knew deep down I was going to get all 265 bleeping questions.I pulled myself together and just decided that I was going to try and do my best to answer the questions and learn what areas I was lacking in so that I would pass the next time I took it. Question 264 was easy and then came question 265 and I had no clue what the answer was. I was freaking out inside. I read the question and answers three times, used deductive reasoning and kept saying to myself I would pick the same answer that I did, but I had absolutely no idea if it was right. The drive home I didn't know what to think but I didn't feel terrible. I felt like I tried my best and the worst thing that could happen is I would have to take it over again and it wouldn't be the end of the world. When I got home I poured myself a nice alcoholic beverage and called my best friend. I couldn't even remember the question but knew what the subject and the answer I put. We were trying to look it up but couldn't find out if it was right or wrong because I didn't remember the other choices... When my boyfriend came home from work I told him about the trick but I was afraid to try it. Finally after an hour or so I decided I had to know. We went up to our room and I was so nervous I couldn't even type so he did it for me. I got the good pop up...We jumped up and down, danced, and yelled at the top of our lungs and then I cried. I actually did it, it's all over. I already gave you my advice on what tools I think you should use. If you have the money for Kaplan then I would take the class but it's not a deal breaker, I wouldn't do it again. I had around 5 math problems, tons of select all that apply (they were not that difficult) use true false to answer them. I had alot of meds, most I never heard of. The ones i did know were basic questions and not difficult to answer. I had alot of questions on growth and development which I didn't expect. Also quite a few questions on STD's and 1 OB question. Know your teaching.

Hi, if you need any more help feel free to ask. My son is autistic and I use many behavior modification techniques. Routine is key! Charts work great in setting goals and giving rewards. Make a chart for them to see their progress. Start small - pick three things you would like to see change in. Provide rewards frequently at first and then increase time in frequency. Once goal is achieved pick a new behavior you want changed. Give frequent prompts. I wish I had time to write more but I have to get to work.

Ok, maybe I can help. I have been a hairdresser for sixteen years and am currently a nursing student. I make good money and the company I work for does provide medical and retirement benefits. I do work nights and weekends and you will need to do that in order to make it. If you have great people skills as well as technical skills you will be successful. Now, the reason I decided to switch careers is that nursing provides so many different environments in which to pratice. I don't want to be a hairdresser at 60 maybe 70 years old by the time it comes to when we could retire if it is even still around by my time. The other reasons why I chose to go into nursing is I needed something more in my life and that there had to be more to my life than what I was currently doing. I needed more of a challenge. As a nursing student, the patients are the same as my clients in communication skills both coming to you for a service that requires great technical skills, the difference is one can always be fixed and the other is a matter of life and death. Nursing is unlike anything I have ever experienced before, I have been challenge intellectually on every level imanginable. I have the upmost respect for nurses and what they do everyday. No one can decide for you what is best for you, only you can decide that. Cosmetology school will take you a little over a year to complete and years to build a clientelle. If your considering nursing I would greatly consider going for your RN. If your not considering RN I would consider getting your cosmetology liscense because you will make more money doing that. I would hate to see you set yourself up by becoming a hairdresser with the intentions of going to nursing school later. Later may never come. Nursing school will turn your world upside down. It is the most challenging, gut wrenching, rewarding, most gratifying thing you may ever experience. If I may suggest, I would say take a couple of classes at a community college first and then try to make your decision.

Thanks everyone. I'm not going to focus on it any longer. At 36 years old I think that it would have been brought to my attention a long time ago if something was wrong with the way I talked. I'm still a little curious as to what she meant by the comment. I approached two of my previous clinical instructors about her comment and they just laughed and said that the comment was ridiculous and she didn't know what she was talking about. They said there is absolutely nothing wrong with the way I talked or anything else about me.

No she didn't say what it was. Everyone I have talked to said how odd of a comment it was for her to make and they never heard me speak in a tone that was abnormal or odd in any way. I'm really at a loss as to what she would be referring to.

Hi, I wanted to know if anyone could provide me with some insight. Yesterday my clinical instructor told me she had to ask me something and to not read into it. I said ok and she asked me if I had speech coaching? I said no why would you think that. She said that the sound of my voice was unusual and that she has had patients with serious medical conditions that sound like I do and were given speech coaching. I asked her what she meant but she couldn't really explain it to me except my tone was unusual. I asked her if she thought I wasn't speaking clearly or with a slur and she said no that was not it. I have never in my life been told that my voice is unusual or abnormal in anyway but this is really bothering me as to what she would think was wrong with me. I told some of my classmates what she said and they were taken back as much as I was by the comment. Can any one help?

Hi everyone! I hope its not to late to join your group. I could use the support. I'm in my second semester of nursing school and over the course of doing prereq's I have put on about 25 lbs. I have to run for now but will post later. Thanks Stacy

Thank you to everyone who participated in this discussion. I have a son who is diagnosed with Autism. There was a time when he received numerous vaccines in one day that resulted in him having to be hospitalized. Although, I was very much aware of Mercury and the rise in Autism statistics I still choosed to have my younger daughter vaccinated. She is just fine. I would like to take some of the info that was supplied here on this forum and some of my own and write a paper on this for a class if that is ok with everyone. There is still so much we need to learn about this disorder. My son is now eleven years old, he is also blind in his left eye, and attends a regular school in a regular classroom with minimal supports. This is from a child that did not speak nor could he draw a line or hold a pencil. I was told his prognosis would be that of "Rain Man". I could write a book on all of the interventions we used to get him to the progress he is making today. Yes, diet is a huge part of this disorder. Yes, intense behavior modification is the key to improving their quality of life. Yes, Yes, Yes, we need more health professional with an Open Mind that our willing to work with our children and incorporate new ideas and ways of learning. Yes, we also need more teachers who understand what Autism really is and take a chance on these kids in Regular classrooms if the child is capable in learning in that environment. The best thing I did for my son was when he was able to attend kindergaten was to go check out different schools and different classrooms in the area. He was in a theraputic pre-school setting at a school for children with Autism. I did not feel a special ed class was adequate for him. I found a new teacher who was very apprehensive about taking Anthony into his regular classroom but I begged him to give Anthony a shot. I assured him I would be there to guide him every step of the way and if he felt it wasn't working out I would find different placement for him no questions asked. Although Anthony couldn't draw a line or anything at this point. He could type since he was two years old. He used actual money to do his math work. We used shaving cream to write with. etc. Since, it was only kindergarten I was more intersted in the social skills aspect of his life with "regular" kids. He learned through classical and operant conditioning what was appropriate, he also learned through modeling. Ok, I think I rambled on enough and went way off topic here so I apologize. Thank you for your interest and keeping the fight alive for all the people who suffer with Autism. Lastly, Remenber Autism Speaks. Stacy

I start nursing school in January so I can't offer you a whole lot of insight on your situation. At our school I believe that you are aloud to repeat one failed nursing course before being kicked out of the program. I would find someone at your school and sit down and talk about your options and concerns before giving up. Keep your head up everything will work out for the best. Good Luck

Thank you so much for the warm welcome. I really appreciate it. I will defintely participate in the boards and share my experiences with everyone. God knows I'm going to need all the help I can get. Tiffany, I believe it was you who had made a previous post about your child having PDD. I also have a child with PDD. He was diagosed at three and is now eleven years old. If you ever need to talk or a shoulder to lean on feel free anytime. I don't have all the answers but I can completely relate and share my experiences of what worked and what hasn't for us.

Congrats bunkindoodle!:balloons: I have also been accepted to the January class at Frankford. My name is Stacy and I am a former lurker who has decided to come out an introduce myself. Everyone who is waiting on letters, your time is coming and we will soon celebrate. I am actually more nervous now knowing that I got in. Stupid huh?