6xblessd

Hi, I've read quite a few posts from this board, going back an entire year. I have five years of med/surg and one year of ICU. When I went to the ICU at our local community hospital (100 beds) a year ago, I really thought I would love the unit. After a year of dealing with very poor management (boy, could I tell you some stories........but then again, most every experienced nurse I know has some management horror stories under his/her belt ) and a less-than-thorough orientation (although my manager spoke about a classroom orientation, it never materialized), I'm just not sure critical care is really for me. I burnt out quickly and don't have that burning desire anymore. I'm done with floor nursing, med/surg is totally over for me, but I'm not sure I am done with hospital nursing yet. I've always been interested in the OR and am finally at a place in my life where I can think about getting a day job (kids in school, etc). I'm not afraid of call since I've worked a crazy night schedule for years now. What I'd really like to know is what your experiences going from ICU to OR have been? My ICU had a lot of strong personalities, and orientation was pretty stressful, so I'm not really scared of personality issues. I'm no shrinking violet myself :chuckle. What kinds of problems/issues (if any) have you run into going from ICU to OR? Do you have any regrets? And for experienced OR nurses who have dealt with training and/or working with new OR nurses who have come from the ICU, have you seen any common issues/problems? Thanks, Lauren

I delivered my fifth baby in the middle of my 2nd semester of clinicals. Had her on March 31 and was back in class a week later. Skipped two clinicals (the max you could miss and not get booted) the week after I had her. Long and short is that I was back in clinicals (8hr evenings plus 1hr drive each way) when she was 12 days old. I had a very dear aunt come up and help out for two weeks, and my husband was able to take the baby to school with him (teaches at a private school---he just wore her in a baby bjorn, and she slept while he taught!) when I was in clinicals once my aunt had gone home. I took her to a few lectures (totally against the rules, but neither my classmates nor my professors minded for the first few weeks; she just slept or nursed anyway!), but otherwise managed to work things so that either my husband or my aunt had her while I was not there. Totally breastfed during this time, dragged my breastpump to clinicals and lectures; everyone was very supportive of it. The school year ended when she was six weeks old, and then it was summer break. It was very doable for me, and I made As in nursing school. HOWEVER, I can't deny it was stressful and exacerbated a chronic illness (Crohn's); I spent a week in the hospital later that summer due to it. I don't know if I would have still been that sick without nursing school; I do think the pregnancy/postpartum had a lot to do with getting sick, too. (I did make it back to school for the 2nd year and graduated the following May, BTW) Even with illness and such, I am so glad I did it the way I did it. Getting my nursing degree was the best thing I ever did (besides marrying my husband and having my kids, of course!) and was worth every minute of the blood, sweat, and tears to get it. And the precious baby girl didn't suffer for any of it; she's quite a happy, well-balanced 7 year old now! Good luck whatever you decide. Just keep in mind that there are no guarantees you will be able to complete a semester----you could end up on bedrest, etc, etc. It's a gamble! For my next pregnancy (6th and final child!!) three years later, I ended up on bedrest the last few weeks. If I had been in nursing school for THAT pregnancy, I would have had to withdraw and start again the next year. Lauren

What is "normal"? I've just come to accept that there really is no such thing when you have children . Anyway, I'm 37, will be 39 or 40 by the time I actually start a CRNA program, and would be 42/43 by graduation. I know that probably sounds ancient to some of the younger crowd, but I've worked with the elderly enough to have a different perspective . They'll probably have raised the retirement age to about 80 by the time I get there! LOL That means I'll still have PLENTY of years to work and reap the benefits of my efforts.

Hi Sue, I just this week visited the university I am considering applying to in a few years and spoke with one of the faculty in the anesthesia program regarding my weak chemistry background. First of all, it was HUGELY informative speaking with this professor, and I highly recommend it for anyone who has questions about a CRNA program or needs some individualized counseling regarding the best classes to take to get in a good position for applying in a year or two. I basically have almost no chemistry to speak of and did poorly in my sciences way back in my bachelor's degree many moons ago. When I went to nursing school, I went for an ADN and did not have to take any chemistry at all. I was told by this professor that I need to take a basic chemistry course (he said it doesn't really matter where I take it, as long as the school is accredited) and ace it, considering my poor record during my bachelor's. Then I will need to take an organic chemistry, and this university happens to offer a really tough one online. If I manage to wrap my head around general chemistry (I'm determined!), then I will take that online course. If I do well on both of those and the GRE (did really well on the SAT eons ago, so hopefully that is an indication), my app will look pretty good. I did ask him about physics and statistics and biochem (all of which I am also totally ignorant of), and he stated they would be very helpful for me as far as making the CRNA program more doable, but that they would not be required. So that's where I stand.......I'm already on a list to get the schedule for the chemistry course starting this January at my local community college, and we'll go from there. I think chemistry is so basic to everything you do in CRNA school that I am determined to get a good foundation in it. Again, I'd highly recommend talking to somebody at a CRNA program you would be interested in attending so that you are not stabbing about in the dark as to what classes you should take or what preparations you should make. Lauren

I'm not in CRNA school yet (I'm taking baby steps in that direction and just started in the ICU after 5 yrs of med/surg), so this advice is more my general commentary on schooling, babies, and balancing it all. I did get a 4 yr degree when I was fresh out of high school. It's a 4 yr degree that doesn't do squat for me and wasn't what I really wanted to do in the first place,but at that tender age, I really didn't have the guts to stand up to the forces swirling around me and say, "Hey! What I really want to be is a nurse!"---even though I had known it in my heart since I was a tiny preschooler :) My husband and I married when I was 21 1/2 (he was 27). We knew we wanted a large family, and we started right away. I was 28 when we had our 4th, and that was also when I decided it was definitely time to return to school and get that nursing degree I had always wanted. So I did. I delivered my 5th baby in the middle of my first year of clinical, and I was back doing 8hr clinicals when she was 12 days old. We have no family members anywhere closer than 1000 miles, but a dear aunt of mine flew in for a few weeks, and my husband was able to wear the wee one in a Baby Bjorn and take her to class with him after my aunt was gone, and I was still in clinical. (he teaches for a private school---that's how he was able to get away with that! LOL) I was able to breastfeed my daughter (yes, I dragged that ole Medela pump-n-style with me to and from lectures and clinicals!!), and thankfully was done with that school year when she was 6wks old and had the summer to enjoy her infancy. I graduated nursing school the next year, started working, and had #6 three years after my 5th was born. So I come at this from a slightly different perspective. I don't see any reason why women can't have their families first and their careers second, IF that's the way they want to do it. I know too many women who have waited too long only to find out their fertility wasn't quite what they expected once they finally have their careers in order enough to feel like they can start trying for a family. Not to mention how drastically the risk for birth defects increases as you get older. I would NEVER try to tell another woman how she should plan her childbearing and career because I don't think there is one right way for everyone. Yes, there are some things that are harder when you have your children first and your career second. But there are some things that are easier, too. Society is very hard on us women/mothers (and honestly, it's usually us women who are the hardest on each other! we are a huge part of our own problem, as much as I hate to say that!!). A man would NEVER have his parenting ability or character questioned for having gone back to school to further his education, no matter HOW old he was or how many children he had. In fact, I bet most people would admire him and give him more respect. Not us moms, though---we take some serious flak for going back to school and doing something to improve ourselves and support our families when we have young children. People question why we would even have had children in the first place if we were still going to have a career and continue to further ourselves. What the heck?! My mother was a single mom of 4 with a simple 2 yr degree who managed to return to school after her husband left and now has her doctorate. I personally grew up thinking that was admirable. I hope my daughters (and sons!) feel the same way about my continuing my education when they grow up. Caveat: I KNOW that CRNA school is all-enveloping. I wouldn't recommend having a baby immediately before beginning such a daunting enterprise. You have no idea how your body is going to handle pregnancy or how you are going to feel once you have that baby (and having been around the pregnancy/postpartum/newborn block more than a few times myself, I can tell you that there is NOTHING that will prepare you for what a change it is going from being childless to having a family). CRNA school is expensive, and most people need to take out lots of $$ to live on while in school, too, and you'd hate to have to leave school in the middle and lose all that $$. I guess if I were you, and I really wanted a family, I would strongly consider putting off CRNA school for a few years. School will always be there, but your fertility might not be there (at least not in the way it is now, while you are young). This is something I've been thinking about lately because I had actually just read an article by Martha Stewart's daughter in some women's magazine about how she feels like the medical community totally duped her by telling her repeatedly "Oh, there's plenty of time later in your life to get pregnant" So she waited, and now she can't get pregnant, although she's spent like 75 grand every few months for quite a while now trying to. One of the biggest mottos I try to live my life by is this----HAVE NO REGRETS. And only you know what would make you have regrets; nobody can make that decision for you. For me, I had my family first, and I have no regrets. Just my rather lengthy .02 Lauren

Hi, I am currently in the very early phase (and I do mean baby-step-stage!) of considering entering a CRNA program. I have six children at home (ages 14 down to 3), have been working as a staff nurse on a busy med/surg floor (as well as floating to orthopedics, eldercare, and geri-psych) for five years, and have an interview for a position in the ICU in a few days. Basically, my youngest is getting ready to enter preschool, and after five years of a job I have very much enjoyed, I realize it's time to move on before burn-out sets in. I have actually wanted to make a move to the ICU for several years now but have been hesitant about making the change due to scheduling/childcare challenges while I was still having babies. Babies behind me (God willing! ), I am now starting to think about what I want to do with the rest of my life. I am having my transcripts (have a BA in Liberal Arts and an ADN) sent to a CRNA program and plan to visit the school later this summer to speak to faculty and to find out what classes I need to take (I'm sure I'll have to basically take whatever I would need for a BSN) to put me into a position of being able to apply for entry in a CRNA program in a few years. I have also talked with human resources at our hospital about the possibility of a tuition-paid in exchange for years committed upon graduation (I actually did this for my RN degree and never regretted it), and it is a definite possibility. Before I actually take any classes, I also plan to shadow a CRNA for a day or two to make sure it's something I can actually see myself doing and loving. How many of you have managed to pull off going to CRNA school AND taking care of a family? I'd like to hear some honest answers from some women (and men!) who have been there and done that. I am quite familiar with the challenges of going to nursing school, having a family (I actually delivered my 5th child during my first year of nursing clinical and had to be back in clinical rotation when she was 12 days old.......dragging the old breastpump along with me and all......if I hadn't made it back to clinical that soon after her birth, I would have lost an entire year of time as far as my schooling went), and working part-time during the process. However, I fully understand that CRNA school might be a completely different animal. Finances will be a concern, as I am currently the primary wage-earner for our family (husband makes just under 40K/yr, I make about 60-65K/yr depending on how much OT, etc, I pick up). I am hoping I could work some weekends during the didactic portion of the program, but I realize even that may not be possible. This means I will have to take out A LOT in student loans to be able to pull this off without being thrown in the poorhouse. I'm 37, have a very supportive husband (and I do mean VERY supportive---he is every bit as involved in the care and raising of our children as I am, if not more), and am in reasonably good health. I'm fairly intelligent and could probably pull off decent grades (4.0 in nursing school, I think I had a 3.3 or so for my BA, due to just being TOTALLY not interested in what I was studying and due to being completely in love at the time , was valedictorian of my class of 300 in high school). Of course, I do feel like bearing all these children has sucked out more than a few brain cells along the way! I greatly appreciate any insight from CRNAs (or current SRNAs) with young children going through the process. Can it be done? Is/was it worth it to you? Thank you, Lauren