midlife101

Looking for anyone who has done or is in the Pueblo Community College part time LPN to RN program. I may be wanting to do that program after I get my LPN through PPCC. Any info or opinions would be appreciated.

I have to second the comments about taking what people say about the "difficulty" of any particular class with 60 mg of NaCl. I'm currently taking A&P I, PSY 235 and Math for clinical calculations. Of course, A&P is the one that requires the most attention but a few months ago, I heard people saying that the math class was REALLY tough. Frankly, my second grader is learning most of what I'm "learning" in this math class. It all depends on the person. We are all wired for different kinds of subjects. Just apply yourself, study in reasonable chunks of time (no more than 2 hours at a stretch for me) and don't get too far down in the weeds, trying to memorize a bunch of stuff you don't need to know.

I guess my concerns in regards to the crying issue are twofold. First, I have 3 daughters and I see one of my primary responsibilities to them to teach them the skills they will need to function in an adult world. I'm not raising children, I'm raising adults. I'm becoming more aware each day of the double standard that society (yes, that includes parents) holds boys and girls to as they are growing up. It seems that girls are given a "pass" on the expectation that they must develop age appropriate skills for coping with their emotions. This isn't because girls are incapable of developing these skills. It's because society draws a parallel between physical strength and emotional and mental strength. This is incorrect. While, on average, females may not be as physically strong as males, I don't believe females are mentally or emotionally weaker than males. Society simply doesn't levy the same expectations on females as they do on males. This is a HUGE disservice to our daughters. I want my daughters to be respected for their mental and emotional strength as well as their strength of character (among other things) I do not want them to be ACCOMMODATED or tolerated because of behavioral problems attributed to their gender. Therefore, I teach my daughters how to COPE with their emotions and how to fix the problems that are causing them to feel like crying. This approach is far more EFFECTIVE than crying at a problem only to find the problem still there when the tears clear. The second issue is professionalism. A previous poster mentioned that she had seen Dr.s cry and throw temper tantrums. Again, unprofessional behavior should be called out regardless of the gender or hierarchical position of the person displaying it. And please god, dear baby Jesus, can somebody explain how "*Professionalism* stems from letting out your emotions"? I've only seen the perceived professionalism of badly behaving adults eroded by crying, temper tantrums etc., whether in public or "private".

If I read that correctly, and I may not, the implication is that I don't understand stress or frustration because I'm not a nurse yet. As it turns out, I have over 30 years of work experience in a variety of different fields and have seen at least my fair share of stress and frustration. In that time, I've never cried in reaction to those conditions. Why? Because I'm a professional and I didn't want to lose the respect of my peers and supervisors by displaying a professionally inappropriate response to adverse conditions. I'm no longer buying into the line that women are more emotional than men. Sorry, I just don't buy it. If I got angry and punched the wall, that response to the emotion of anger would be immediately labeled inappropriate and I would be disciplined. Nobody would do my work and send me in to the boss' office to punch that wall till I felt better. Short version; you don't get to act any way your emotions push you and if you do, there are consequences that come with that.

This thread is scaring the daylights out of me. As a new pre-nursing student, I'm really wondering what I've gotten myself into. Being well aware of the fact that I'm going into a female dominated profession, I've read an awful lot of threads here lately referencing nursing staff breaking down and crying due to frustration, anger etc. Is there no expectation in this field that adults will have developed adult mechanisms for coping with their emotions? Is there no expectation that professionals will conduct themselves professionally? Perhaps I'm over sensitive to the issue for some reason but c'mon! Crying in response to frustration, anger, stress etc., I expect out of a toddler but not from a professional adult...in any field. I wonder if some folks don't need to get to a counselor and try to develop some more adult mechanisms for dealing with their emotions.

The only thing better would be to replace Julia Roberts with Jennifer Aniston. snort.

For what it's worth, I just finished my CNA curriculum at our local CC where I will hopefully be attending the ADN program soon. There was a guy in our class, who ended up being in my sub-group for clinicals. He and I were the only 2 guys out of ten students in our clinical sub-group. I never really heard the other students say much about him until we were finished with the classroom portion of the program and into clinicals. I think during 6 weeks of clinicals, I heard 1, maybe 2 comments from the other students supposing that he was gay. I heard FAR more commenting going on about his failure to show up to class on time and the probablility that he would not make it through CNA clinicals due to his punctuality problems. Long story short, none of us cared about his sexual orientation but people DID notice his lack of professionalism as evidenced by his constant inability to show up on time. Gay: Nobody cared. Unprofessional: People cared.

Josh, I don't think I understand. You graduated high school about a year ago and somebody is telling you it's "too late" to start down the path to becoming an RN? Did I read that right? Holy crap. I guess I'm screwed. I'm 47, a single parent of 2 girls and just finished my first semester of prerequisites. I too took a different path in a prior life and have spent 30 years either in the military or as a government contractor, doing contract work for the military. Now, it's time to be an RN. And after that long pursuing the almighty paycheck, I can tell you, without hesitation, that I feel better with every step I take away from that previous life. Regarding one of your follow-up posts, "... but all i can do is try!". (In my very best Yoda voice) NO! Do or do not. There is no TRY. Go for it! Sam

I will be 48 in August, am a single dad of 3 girls, 7,11 and 24. The older one is scheduled to make me a grandfather in December. After 10 years in the military and almost 20 as a systems and satellite engineer, I was layed off in Oct of 11. I had already become interested in nursing but never took the idea too seriously due to the time commitment required which would have made it impossible to work full time and go to Nursing school. Well, I jumped at the opportunity when the layoff happened and by December 2011, I was studying to test out of a math prereq. Have since finished my CNA classes and have 3 more semesters of prerequisites before I can apply for the ASN program next spring. I'm having the time of my life! Living on unemployment as long as I can, I've liquidated almost all my posessions and it feels great. If you want to know who I am, watch the movie Larry Crowne, add 2 young daughters and take away Julia Roberts as one of my teachers.

Ya'll are taking this way too seriously. Lighten up and forget it.

Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan 'Press On' has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race. --Calvin Coolidge

New guy here. I'm a 46 yr old single dad of 3 daugters (that accounts for some of what's wrong with my brain). I've decided to take the plunge and start the prereqs at my local community college with the intent to become an RN...hence, my presence on this board. In the last couple of weeks, since I've been here, I've read alot of threads about men in nursing and some of the stereotypes (real or imagined) that go along with the term "male nurse". I, myself, will admit to feeling a bit of a feminine connotation associated with the term, probably due to the association with "nurse" and breastfeeding. It occurs to me that if we put our heads together, we should be able to come up with a better term that we could then quietly promote in our day to day activities. We've already heard "murse", RN with prostate and some others but I'd like to hear other ideas too. I'll profer a couple of suggestions of my own to get things started: RN-DG (RN - Differently Gendered) RN-NSG (RN - Non Standard Genitals/Gender) Well? Let's hear it folks (yes, you ladies too!)

ruby, maybe someday, i'll get someone like you as my preceptor. i appreciate the no-nonsense, git-er-done approach. you sound like my kinda gal. (is "gal" acceptable terminology these days? guess i'm too old to know or care.) s

I also see a certain sense of entitlement and incivility in people who are younger than I. I have frequently wondered if it's not just me, the old guy. I don't think so. I believe that we have stopped having expectations of others, particularly younger people and there is absolutely nothing wrong with having adult expectations of ourselves and those around us. A certain 23 year old I know is completely incapable of functioning in the adult world she now lives in and consequently chooses to remain (mentally) in the world she grew up in where she was never expected to do anything she didn't WANT to do. This is terribly sad to see.

Rocky, Yep, you are quite clearly crazy. I'm 46 and will be starting pre-reqs in the next couple of months. 46 is obviously the upper age cutoff and I personally think someone as old as you has no business whatsoever doing something valuable and fulfilling with their life. The personal and professional experience you've gained in previous jobs and other situations will serve no good purpose whatsoever as you proceed through school or after you become a NP. Your dreams of helping people and having a positive impact are so silly as to be almost laughable......give it up.....please put these childish dreams away.....for your own good and the good of those who you might help if by some incredible twist of fate, you should actually achieve your dreams. s:D

DukeGirl- Outstanding! See Kudos below. s

Chixie, First, let me say that since so much is lost in this type of communication, I will ask you to read the following as if it were coming from a very close friend who is listening and has a friendly smile on his face. It sounds like you're dealing with a lot of needless frustration. I'd like to suggest that crying in response to frustration is an ineffective response i.e., you're doing what feels good and natural but it ain't gonna fix the real problem. We all feel frustration at times....sometimes, most of the time. I absolutely understand but while crying may soothe your feelings of frustration or anger, it's not going to address the source of the frustration. I think you may need to be more assertive. This may be a skill you don't (yet) have or may not have developed to the point where it can be a tool for you to use in just these types of situations. Having said that, let me also say that not having assertiveness skills doesn't make you a bad person by any stretch.....it's just a set of skills you don't have yet. Just like riding a bike or flying an airplane, you can learn. This isn't something that some people have and others never will. You can learn this. I would recommend looking for a counselor who may be able to provide you with a good start on developing your assertiveness skills. Let me help you get started--> Each of us, no matter what our station in life is, deserves to be treated with fundamental personal and professional respect...PERIOD. Understanding this concept (which has been very difficult for me at times) is one of the first steps in asserting yourself. You have to think a little more highly of yourself. You have the RIGHT to be treated with respect, therefore it is not at all unreasonable to REQUIRE the people around you to extend that respect to you. Just because somebody treats you disrespectfully, doesn't mean you have to put up with it. I wasn't always good at asserting myself and took alot of lumps from pushy, mean, overbearing or otherwise nasty people. I now know that it is up to me to place boundaries around myself and enforce those boundaries with rigor. You don't have to live with this kind of stress and you don't have to tolerate bad behavior anywhere....especially at work. Feel free to pm to discuss if you want. Hope this helps s

Newbie here. What's an "OT"? Thanks

If I may, I am a 46 yr old dad of 3 wonderful girls (one of which was cared for in the NICU for a couple of days after her birth.) I have recently had what many at this site refer to as a "calling" and as such will soon be starting prereqs for nursing school. For the first time in my life, I know what I want to be when I grow up and where I belong--the NICU. I just wanted to thank you all for participating in this discussion. It has been so very eye opening. Since I began reading this thread, I have felt as though I was sitting in the caffeteria with you all listening intently to an amazing discussion of a very difficult issue for which none of us has the solution. You have all further strengthened my resolve to someday become a NICU nurse. Midlife101

Sorry, but I MUST strongly disagree with this. If the institution you are applying to requires you to send ALL Transcripts from ALL prior college work, then that is what you must do. While I agree that you should not let problems with prior coursework keep you from achieving your dream of being a nurse, it is morally and ethically wrong to omit information that is required. A lie of omission is still a lie. Who cares? You should.