kater_92

I am in an accelerated program. My first day ever of clinical was yesterday and I'm pretty sure I came down with the norovirus the night before. Violent vomiting and diarrhea until 7am the morning of my first shift. I emailed my instructor and she said it was fine and to feel better. Today, I still have a bit of diarrhea, but no vomiting. However, I got my mom sick and she has been throwing up all morning. I had 2 important labs today. I probably could have made it though the day but I know how contagious I am and I was worried about having diarrhea so I did not go. The summer semester is just starting so they were orientation labs but I still missed a pop quiz and how to create a plan of care for my patient. Which is obviously a huge nursing skill. I emailed my instructor about having a make up session so I can learn this but I haven't heard back and I'm just getting really anxious. I feel so behind all of my peers already and I'm worried my instructor won't want to help me, and then I'll be lost for the rest of the semester. Has anyone missed this much school before? I hate being sick. The last time I was sick to my stomach I was probably 10 years old. I'm just really worried about how this is going to affect the rest of the semester for me.

Hi everyone, I'm starting nursing school in September. I've been reading these forums to give myself a better idea of what to expect. One thing I see a lot is "don't be afraid to ask questions" and "it would be irresponsible if you didn't ask when you're unsure of something" etc. I'm just a bit confused by this, because I also read about how incredibly busy nurses are during their shifts. Is there really time to stop what you're doing, and find a nurse to ask them a bunch of questions? I just picture myself trying to juggle 6+ patients and needing to stop every 5 minutes to ask a question. It just seems scary, like what if I'm in a time sensitive situation and I don't have the time to ask someone? Also, I'm currently working in a very busy optometry office with about 7 other girls and we pre-test patients. It can get quite catty between us, and when someone keeps asking questions, people get sooooo annoyed and gossip about the person, calling them stupid etc. I'm really bad at being assertive, and I know I'll be so scared to ask a more experienced nurse for help, in fear of them getting annoyed. Is nursing the same as the office I'm currently working in? Is there a certain time period in which it's no longer acceptable to ask a million questions? Like once you've been there for 6 months you shouldn't be bothering more senior nurses anymore? Thirdly, since nurses are so incredibly busy, how can I find a nurse that is free to help me with all my questions? What if everyone is tied up with their own patients? And how to I approach them? Do I wait until they're at the nursing station, or just walking down the hall (what if they're in the middle of doing something?) I know these questions seem ridiculous and I'm hoping things will make more sense when I start. I just really don't want to be a nuisance to my coworkers, but I also know I need to keep my patient safe. I just want to know the proper way of going about asking for help. Thank you!

Two years ago on vacation in the US, my dad's blood pressure was dangerously high and he was complaining of a massive headache. I freaked out and forced him to go to the hospital. He has been suffering from some sort of sinusitis for years, and we thought maybe his blood pressure was just unusually high from the stress of it (he already has hypertension). The doctors ordered a CT scan (which I guess can check for sinusitis or something? Not sure, I haven't started nursing school yet LOL) and we were expecting a normal result. The doctor comes in and tells us he actually has a subdural hematoma and needs an emergency craniotomy the next day. I was devastated. He had fallen 3 months earlier and hit his head but the doctors cleared him and said there was no internal bleeding, but I guess it started up months later. The nurses did a stroke assessment on him and he had zero signs of having had one. I feel so blessed that he came out okay in the end. Scariest few days of my life. He says if I hadn't pushed him to go to the hospital, he would be dead. Please please please, if something seems off, get it checked out!! PS: ALWAYS GET TRAVEL INSURANCE PPS: this experience is what made me realize I want to be a nurse as the nurses were so amazing and comforting

I'm 23 and got into an accelerated program and I'll be 25 when I graduate. I was upset that I didn't figure out I wanted to do nursing straight out of high school like some of my friends did. But honestly, nursing deals with life and death. You're going to see a lot of awful things (as well as great things) but it's definitely not a job to take lightly. I'm not sure I would have been ready to be a nurse at 21/22. That's great for people who are, but I don't think I had the maturity. I think 30 is a great age to start working as a nurse.

I'm not a nurse yet, I haven't even started school yet, but I'm an introvert as well. I work in a doctor's office currently and I do enjoy interacting with patients. It's funny because the doctor always gets rave reviews about how personable and friendly I am. Meanwhile I think I'm awkward and shy. I think introverts are really good at being friendly because we're so aware of our actions and how we come across to other people. It doesn't come naturally to us so we have to make sure we're faking it well, and I think it works a lot of the time. Not trying to say I don't enjoy talking to people because I really do a lot of the time, I just feel like I have to overcompensate for being introverted. The thing that really bothers me though is when the doctor is behind so *I* get yelled at, as if I have any control over how long he takes with his patients. Then I see the patient leaving and they're like, "thank you so much Dr.! SOOO good seeing you!" I hate the lack of respect I get and I know it won't be any different as a nurse, and I'm sure it'll be even worse. I'm working on taking deep breaths just and letting it roll off my shoulders. It can be exhausting talking to people daily, including my coworkers (whom a lot of them are horrible at the moment). But as much as I'm an introvert I've learned I can't just sit at a computer desk all day talking to no one. I think it's very easy for me to isolate myself but in the end I just end up being lonely and sad. Talking to people pushes me way out of my comfort zone but I think I'm happier and more outgoing because of it. I would try to think of it in that sense. Yes, being a nurse can be mentally exhausting for introverts but would you really be happy talking to no one all day?

Hi everyone, I was accepted into an accelerated nursing program starting in September. I've always heard that nurses do a lot of heavy lifting and it's hard on their backs and lots of nurses get injured but I've never known exactly what kind of lifting they do they do. Is it mostly lifting patients? What amount of weight should I be expected to lift? What if I just can't lift someone? I have a back condition that makes me a bit slouched over (I'm 6'1 and I guess this condition can happen to tall females). I'm worried about making my back even worse. I've started to go to the gym and I'm working on strengthening my back but I'm worried it won't be enough. Also, I've heard of lifts that can be used to lift patients but I'm not sure how helpful they are or if all hospitals use them? Thank you :)