aslaten08

It think as nurses, we are often the one that sick, angry, hurt ( emotionally, physically, etc), people tend to "act" out upon. That just really comes with the job, and even though they will never have a class to prepare us for that issue, it is something that we, as students, will learn sooner or later. Trauma does some freaky things to a person emotionally, and we have to be there to be able to stand up against these "attacks", verbal abuses, whatever, in a professional way, and in a way in which we need to understand to not take it personally. It is human nature to want to blame someone else for something awful that happens, and it seemed like in your situation, that family member "acted" on you. You should be proud of yourself that you were able to keep it together for that family member, and able to allow her to collapse in tears on you. On the other hand, people don't understand just how emotionally and mentally challenging nursing is. We learn how to do as we go, and some, like you, got a preview of what our lives as nurses will entail.

Hey girl. My husband is in the military, too. I have 2 small kiddos, and he is always gone, and doing the whole nursing school thing with that on top of it is NOT EASY!!! Some days I feel like I am about to explode with all of the stress. Let me know if you every need advice. Good luck!

Thanks for the input guys. I just think that as nurses, we are taught to look for the *stereotypical way* of someone who has bipolar. I am just a student, but I am doing clinicals every week, and I see and hear of this issue on every unit I am on. I also just had a test in my psych/nursing class and one of the questions was this: "What would be a sign that a person, who is bipolar, is in the manic state?" Well, the correct answer was that you would expect this person to be dressed in mismatched clothing and have outlandish makeup poorly applied.... I'm sorry, but if this is the way that they are teaching us to expect people with bipolar to look, then no wonder why so many nurses out there put this stigma on bipolar pts. It really makes me mad. People with bipolar, if medicated correctly, can live normal lives, but yet if they are in the hospital for something such as an infection, and the nurse sees the hx of bipolar, they are almost looked down upon. We have got to stop this crap!:angryfire

I just want to put this issue out for others to read...A majority of the time, when a patient is in the hospital, regardless as to why, and they have a history of bipolar, depression, anxiety, etc., they are almost ALWAYS sterotyped into being a "druggie", a "seeker", a bad person, etc. Now in saying this, when a patient is in pain, as nurses, we are supposed to take their words as to the intensity of their pain. But if the patient is in pain AND is bipolar, has depression,etc, most nurses automatically would say, "That pt only wants pain meds to get high" or whatever....ARE YOU SERIOUS??? When someone is in pain, of course they are going to be requesting their pain meds around the clock, but for some reason, if they have a hx of bipolar, they are automatically almost looked down upon or something. I am just so sick of other nurses questioning these patients and their requests for pain meds. Sorry...I just thought I would get some input and see if anyone else has seen this issue where they work..

Not to scare you or anything, but pre req classes have nothing on nursing classes...Nursing classes are so different..You have to learn how to study different, the tests are different, and stuff like that. You can no longer just memorize a bunch of information and hope to pass the tests that way. In nursing, you have to KNOW the information, and use the information you know to figure stuff out, like how to prioritize crap, do this, do that, etc...I'm in my second year of nursing school, and I still don't think I have the studying figured out..

ineffective body temp. regulation, acute pain, and yeah, the impaired skin integrity.Ineffective coping would be used if the pt was not dealing with her dx, was in denial, grieving, etc. I really don't see ineffective coping for your pt's dx. Does she have problems breathing? Can she keep her O2 sats stable? Start with ABCs, those are always first diagnoses..Then go off your assessment...Did the pt. have pain, cyanosis, edema, confusion, etc...Do careplans like that, and they will get much easier..I promise!

you could do acute pain, confusion, risk for constipation..

At the hospital in my town, we put magnet signs on the frame of the pt's door. There are ones for DNR, NPO, FSBS, the main stuff really..But I really think the bright yellow wristband is a very very very good idea. That way, it's right there on the pt

Thanks guys. It's always nice to hear from others who are the same situation. Nursing students/nurses are a certain "breed" of people, and I think we are the only ones who understand eachother. Sort of like a family, ya know? 4 more weeks until this semester is over with...Let's just try not to have a nervous breakdown until then.

Hey there everyone. I was online trying to find a cheat sheet to use during clinicals, and came across this site. I'm glad I did, and I'm glad I decided to become a member.. I am in my last year of nursing school (for my RN), and I am about to lose my damn mind...I am so sick of the instructors, the lectures, the careplans, and the tests...(Don't even get me started on the tests!!) I am just hoping that somehow I can get through it without failing....UGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! But I just thought I would say "hi" to everyone...