rnwannabe77

You are so right! I'm just gonna concentrate on studying and passing the exam on Tuesday and see what happens from there. Unfortunately calling in sick tomorrow is not an option. I do, however have Tuesday off from work so I can review a bit in the morning before the exam. Thanks for responding and for the good luck wishes! Best wishes to you in your last class!

Hi....I feel the exact same way! I never know where to start! Once I do start studying I can't get in a groove, then I get up and as you said "fidget around the house". Right now, though, it's crunch time. I know I have to be glued to my books all day today because it's the only day I have before Tuesday to get in some quality study time. I'll be doing so right after this! It's so hard to schedule study/non-study time in advance. I often schedule time to study when I get home from work, but my days are so long (I wake up at 4 AM and get home at 6 PM on non-school days) that I'm exhausted by the time I get home, make dinner, etc. I find myself falling asleep in my book on those days. On days that I have class and clinical I wake up at 4 AM and don't get home until 10:30 PM, so I'm definitely not able to study on those three days! If I pass the final on Tuesday, I'm definitely gonna have to work something out for next semester. Good luck in your last semester and thanks so much for the article link!!!

Thanks for the advice....However, youtube is one the major distractions at home. Instead of studying I start watching music videos. Maybe I'll just try watching the funny cats though, when I'm in the need of desperate stress relief! Thanks again and good luck in your program!

Hi...Thanks for responding! Just to clarify, I work full-time but attend school part-time. Class is one night a week from 3-9 and clinicals are two nights a week from 3-10. Combining work, class, clinicals, and my commute it's like having two full-time jobs which I know is a lot! I have family that I am close with (not so much during the school year though, for obvious reasons) and a boyfriend that I live with. For the most part they are supportive emotionally but I'm on my own financially (which as you said is an added stress). They are definitely pushing me to study and finish out the school year! I would love to take a semester off to reduce my stress, but I won't be able to reenter the program until this time next year, which is not an option for me. Maybe I'll reward myself with a nice vacation upon finishing the program, and use that as motivation to pass the final! I don't know when you finished school, but congrats on both graduating and finding a job so soon!

Thanks for responding! I've been working at my current job for 11 years now. Although it is a stable, good paying job now, the future of it is not bright. I agree that I should use my current job as motivation to study hard and move forward, but with burnout it's easier said than done! I've been trying to study all day, but there are just too many distractions here at home: the tv, computer (AllNurses and Youtube), housework, food, anything but books! I know, I know...I should get my butt over to the library, but once again no motivation! I agree with you that I've made it this far, I just gotta keep going....I'll start studying tomorrow...Need a mental break!

I posted this in the LPN student forum, but have decided to post here as well in the hopes of eliciting some more advice. I'm going into my final semester of LPN school in about a week and a half. My final exam for Med/Surg is Tuesday 4/3. My problem is I feel as though I haven't given 100% effort this semester and my grades really reflect that. Last semester I got a B-plus for the final grade. After two tests this semester I'm barely hanging onto a C-plus with one more exam to go, that being the final. To be honest, I am capable of so much better, but the drive and determination are just not there anymore. I realize that my problem is burnout. I've been stressed throughout the entire program, but this semester I have been totally zonked! I have no desire to study at all, in fact I took today off from work with every intention of studying but haven't done so yet! Throughout the semester I've studied half-a**ed, which means I have to study all of the material from start to finish to get caught up before Tuesday! I have today and tomorrow to do so, as I unfortunately have to work on Monday. (I work full-time, which I'm sure many of you do too!). Talk about overwhelming!!! I honestly don't think it's feasible to believe that I can accomplish this AND pass the final exam. I am totally stressing out over this to the point that I feel like throwing in the towel and giving up! Next semester (if I make it) is three months long. The semester consists of maternity/peds and vocational trends. I honestly can't see myself doing this for three more months. I know I've come this far, but I'm seriously running out of fuel. I feel as though I'm a fraud for putting so little energy and effort into this semester, and I'm almost certain that it will carry over into next semester. I can't see investing almost two years of my life into this program for nothing, but I lack the motivation entirely to move on. I'm really hoping that someone out there will have some advice for me, anything to inspire me to succeed this semester and move on to next. How do all of you full-time workers/part-time students find/make time to study and deal with stresses of everyday life? How many of you have suffered from burnout and have effectively dealt with it? I'm sitting here realizing that I HAVE to study, but I'm hesitant to do anything about it. Please help!!! I just wanted to add that the desire to be a nurse is there, in fact I wish to bridge over into an RN program and possibly BSN....I just have to somehow overcome this burnout!

I'm going into my final semester of LPN school in about a week and a half. My final exam for Med/Surg is Tuesday 4/3. My problem is I feel as though I haven't given 100% effort this semester and my grades really reflect that. Last semester I got a B-plus for the final grade. After two tests this semester I'm barely hanging onto a C-plus with one more exam to go, that being the final. To be honest, I am capable of so much better, but the drive and determination are just not there anymore. I realize that my problem is burnout. I've been stressed throughout the entire program, but this semester I have been totally zonked! I have no desire to study at all, in fact I took today off from work with every intention of studying but haven't done so yet! Throughout the semester I've studied half-a**ed, which means I have to study all of the material from start to finish to get caught up before Tuesday! I have today and tomorrow to do so, as I unfortunately have to work on Monday. (I work full-time, which I'm sure many of you do too!). Talk about overwhelming!!! I honestly don't think it's feasible to believe that I can accomplish this AND pass the final exam. I am totally stressing out over this to the point that I feel like throwing in the towel and giving up! Next semester (if I make it) is three months long. The semester consists of maternity/peds and vocational trends. I honestly can't see myself doing this for three more months. I know I've come this far, but I'm seriously running out of fuel. I feel as though I'm a fraud for putting so little energy and effort into this semester, and I'm almost certain that it will carry over into next semester. I can't see investing almost two years of my life into this program for nothing, but I lack the motivation entirely to move on. I'm really hoping that someone out there will have some advice for me, anything to inspire me to succeed this semester and move on to next. How do all of you full-time workers/part-time students find/make time to study and deal with stresses of everyday life? How many of you have suffered from burnout and have effectively dealt with it? I'm sitting here realizing that I HAVE to study, but I'm hesitant to do anything about it. Please help!!! I just wanted to add that the desire to be a nurse is there, in fact I wish to bridge over into an RN program and possibly BSN....I just have to somehow overcome this burnout!

I'm a student doing clinicals at a VA Hospital in MA. A nurse in the PACU told me that she and others do three 12 hour shifts a week. However, I'm not sure if that is the case for all of the units in that particular VA. '

Congratulations! That's great! I hope to be done with my part-time 2 year program in June, that is if I can find the motivation and time to dedicate to my studies. Anyways, definitely keep us posted regarding NCLEX. Keep on studying!

Hi...Just in the past year alone I've experience several panic attacks. I'm working full-time in addition to attending school part-time. I don't recall ever experiencing a panic attack before starting school. Consequently, I'm attributing the panic attacks to the massive amount of stress I've been under since starting school. Anyways, I've learned to remain calm, deep breathe, and talk myself out of the attacks. I reassure myself that everything is going to be o.k. and that I'm really NOT going to die. I actually had a panic attack when I was taking my first Med-Surg test about a month and a half ago. Thankfully, I was able to talk myself out of it before acting on instinct to flee out of the classroom and head to the emergency room! After all, I got one of the highest grades on the test and to this day I have no idea how I did it I realize that the amount of caffeine I drink on a daily basis is probably a huge contributor to my anxiety, but I just can't give it up! Not only am I addicted to the taste of coffee, but I'm also addicted to the caffeine itself, to the point that I suffer massive withdrawal symptoms if I don't drink it as soon as I wake up in the morning. I can't see myself ever giving up caffeine! My suggestion is to try to talk yourself out of any impending attack and remember to breathe deeply.....This definitely seems to work for me. Good luck in NS and during your clinicals!

I agree! My hands and lips get dry and cracked every winter. For the past couple of years I have been applying Vaseline to my hands (as well as wearing cotton socks over them) and lips every night. I wake up in the morning and my hands are as soft as a baby's bottom and my lips no longer feel cracked! Throughout the day I use Earth Therapeutics Gardner's Hand Repair (from Wholefoods) after each and every time I wash my hands. I just started using this recently and it seems to be working. I would definitely recommend the Vaseline!

Hi....In my program if we miss one clinical we have to do an 8 hour computer assignment. From what I understand the assignment is a case study and it takes the full 8 hours to complete. If we miss two or more clinicals, I believe we have to pay an instructor close to fifty dollars per hour to make them up. Thankfully I have not had to miss any! In your case I don't know what you should do. I'm very surprised that the program director didn't provide you with any information on cinical makeups. Good luck!

Hi, That is the same book that my class is using. I believe that the end of unit and end of chapter questions are located on the disk that came with the book. As for the workbook answers, my professor posted them on the portal of my school's website. Is this a required book for your class? If so, you should approach your professor about it and see if he/she will post the answers.

I am in my second half of an LPN program and there is one of "those" in my class too! Luckily she is not in my clinical group. Over the last year or so, I have learned to ignore her comments and her snide remarks that she directs towards me and my classmates. This girl was constantly interrupting the professor in the middle of lecture, talking about her health problems, her job in healthcare, and numerous other aspects of her life. I guess some of the classmates got sick of listening to her stories over the last year and finally complained to the professor. As a result the professor said she will basically no longer entertain questions and interruptions from the same people during class. Obviously the comment was directed towards the problem classmate. It seems as though she got the hint b/c that whole class period she only raised her hand once, and the professor blatantly ignored her! That was the end of that! Maybe you can approach the instructor privately and let him/her deal with the issue or like others have said, just chose to ignore her.

I was wondering if anyone has ever passed out or nearly passed out during clinicals, and if so were there any consequences? The reason I ask is, last night during a procedure at clinical I began to feel nauseous and had to leave the room. I felt as though I was gonna be sick and was on the verge of blacking out before finally sitting down. My skin was extremely clammy and I was breathing heavily. My clinical instructor took my blood pressure and it was extremely low at 80/30. She insisted on calling an ambulance but I declined, as I have experienced episodes like this in the distant past and I've always bounced back. Immediately after last night's episode I drank some orange juice and ate a meatball sub and my blood pressure stabilized, however I was still feeling a bit nauseous. I'm not sure if my near passing out was due to watching an invasive procedure the first time, being dehydrated and hungry, or being overtired and stressed out. I do know that I am now required medical clearance from my doctor to return to clinicals and I have to meet with the student advisor and dean tomorrow to discuss the situation. Needless to say, I'm a bit nervous. Has anyone else experience anything like this?