Silliest thing you ever did after a long shift...

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So my unit is way over census and understaffed. I've had an utterly ridiculous assignment the last few nights; you know, the kind of shift where when 0700 rolls around the fact that you and all your patients are still alive seems like a victory? Yesterday morning I arrived home just beat. My legs felt like the bones might shatter any minute, my lips were puffy (a weird thing that happens when I'm overtired), my hands were shaking and I just felt like hell. I went to brush my teeth, as you do, and after a few seconds I realized that something didn't taste right and my mouth felt really sticky. I looked down at my sink and discovered that I was not, in fact, brushing with toothpaste. Turns out that Crest Vivid White and Eucerin Plus Intensive Repair Hand Ointment are packaged in tubes of almost the exact same size and shape. That'll learn me to keep them next to each other on the counter. :trout:

So dish: What's the silliest thing you've ever done after a wretched night at work?

Specializes in ortho/neuro/general surgery.

A few times now I've pulled up in the driveway or garage, shut the engine off, took off my seatbelt and fallen asleep.

Buying various assortments of chocolate. The worse the shift, the more the chocolate.

Trying to buy beer on a Sunday morning from a store that doesn't sell it until after noon on Sundays.:uhoh3: It was a really bad night and I was really tired and really wanted a beer, so when the cashier told me I couldn't buy it, I just stared at her and then walked out without buying anything.

Chucked my nametag, stethoscope and wallet containing my license across the car onto the floor and swore I'd never go back.

Went to a Wallyworld after a shift and came home with 4 new light-up toothbrushes for my kids, a new power toothbrush for myself, a pregnancy test cuz I was too tired to remember my last period and I was sure it had been way too long (no), and also all kinds of extra toiletry items like soap, shampoo, etc., that we didn't need.

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I once "woke up" passing a car on the highway at 65 MPH after working 3 weekend overnights and going to school from 8a-3p on Monday while in nursing school. One of the scariest moments of my life. No, I'm wrong, it WAS the scariest moment of my life. Didn't see the car while driving up to it, it just seemed to appear out of no where. I'm now very careful, although I still tend to work off hours. :uhoh3:

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Specializes in SICU, EMS, Home Health, School Nursing.

Well, this isn't the craziest thing I have done, but it is the most recent. Yesterday, after having a very busy night at work, I went to my parents to help get ready for thanksgiving. My mom asked me to make the mashed potatoes which I have done at their house a lot ever since I was just little. All was going well until the mixer broke (or so I thought)

My mom has one of those big kitchen aid stand mixers, you know the type that has the big beater that spins around in it and the bowl goes up and down (not the smaller type where the top lifts). No matter what I tried or how hard I pushed, I could not get the beater to come off or the bowl out. I was getting very frustrated (keep in mind I had been up for over 24 hours by this point) and I was like "ok fine I give up, stay on there" and I started scooping the potatoes out. My mom looked over to see what I was doing and very calmly said "you might want to try lowering the bowl" I had accidentally forgotten to lower the bowl down, so the beater had no where to go, (that was a major "duh" moment). After I finally got the bowl out, my mom just shook her head and said "wow and they trust you with peoples lives"

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Specializes in NICU, Psych, Education.

When this thread was posted initially, I knew I had done some things that would make good reading, but I just couldn't think of them at the moment. However, the other day I pulled a real doozy, so I figured I would be a good sport and come share it.

I had worked all weekend, then after sleeping a few hours I drove back to my apartment at school (two hour drive), so I was still quite out of it. I have a third-floor apartment, which always means that I get this Herculean surge of testosterone and attempt to carry all of my belongings (several bags, laptop, clothes, books, etc) upstairs in one trip. So I did just that, safely made it upstairs and went on with things, spending the rest of that night between sleeping and working on a project.

Fast forward to the following afternoon when it came time to go to class and hand in said project. I got ready and was about to leave, but I just couldn't find my keys anywhere. I looked all around... every drawer and cabinet, my bedroom, the bathroom, even the fridge.

Suddenly, a light bulb came on in my head, followed by a sick feeling. Sure enough, I opened my apartment door and there were my keys, right in the door, where I had left them 18 hours earlier. So there you have it.

Signed,

Lucky to be Alive in Texas

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When I first started working nights I worked 11-7 5 nights a week. I was terrible about sleep walking and talking. My husband said one night I went room to room in the house turning on the lights then turning them off. (Guess I was checking patients) Asked him why he didn't stop me, he just shrugged his shoulders and said "You didn't go outside."

Then I had a nurse that always asked if my med area was clean everytime we worked together. So one day I tell her "Yes my med area is clean I'm cleaning it right now." woke up to realize I wasn't at work and I had cleaned the top of my dresser off.

One morning I get a phone call asking if this was Mrs. Justhere, told the person on the phone "I don't know let me check." and started to look at the mail on the dresser to see what the name was, got back on the phone and said "Yes it is." To my defense I was asleep and only been married a few months.

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Specializes in NICU.

Hee, it's funny that this thread was resurrected today. I worked last night and I'm getting on a plane later that leaves at 3pm. I'm frantically trying to pack, clean my apartment (it's possible the super will need access while I'm gone) and stay upright/conscious. I'm so caffeinated and delirious right now, I'm sure anyone who saw me would think I was on some serious amphetamines.

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Specializes in LTC, Subacute Rehab.

12 hour clinicals all this semester..

1. Husband took me out to dinner. I ate slumped over on the table giggling at everything. I'm sure the waiter thought I was drunk O_o

2. Driving home, became convinced that all the cars signalling to change lanes were sending coded messages. Spent half of the 25 mile drive trying to figure it out.

3. Window blinds at home were making a noise just like an IV pump (not the alarms but normal running). Took me a few minutes to realise that I didn't think hearing an IV pump was odd in the slightest :idea:

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Specializes in subacute/ltc.

let's see

Handing the girl at McDonald's my blockbuster card instead of my debit card and wondering why she looked so confused.....

Standing in front of my house door pushing the "open door" symbol on my car key pad, while wondering why my house door remained stubbornly closed!!

gotta love those back to back doubles

Tres

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Specializes in Community, OB, Nursery.

A couple weeks ago a coworker of mine fell asleep in the middle of giving report but kept on talking, just mumbling nonsense. Fortunately she woke back up and everyone had a good laugh about what she'd done. She had absolutely no idea what she'd said.

And Eric - I did the same thing leaving my keys in the door a couple weeks ago. I had driven to my mom's house instead of going to mine. Come time to go to work, I'm searching frantically for my keys....which were hanging right in the door. Nice safe thing to do.

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Specializes in NICU, Infection Control.

One co-worker did 3-12 hr nights, than got on a plane in the morning after the last shift. She woke up a while later w/her head on the man next to her's shoulder, BIG drool mark on his shirt. Problem was, his head was on top of hers, making it impossible to move w/o waking him up. (We're talking total stranger here.) She figured "whatever" and went back to sleep. When she woke up again, he was awake, and the drool had dried.

No harm, no foul, I guess.

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Specializes in Med Surg, Hospice.

I was working 3-11 and I was so hungry I was planning on stopping at Sheetz for hot dogs when I got back into town. I came across the bridge and got in the turning lane. The turning lane has a red light, but a green arrow. The arrow was on, so I buzzed right through it. Next thing I know, there's the red and blue lights in the rear view. I pulled over. Cop comes to the window, asks to see my license and stupid me pulls off my work ID badge and hands it to her.

I thought she was going to write me a ticket for blowing the red light but she didn't. She just wanted to let me know my brake light was out and to get it fixed. I felt like such a dork.

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I dont know about silliest but the best thing I ever did was to go to a Rod Stewart Contest. He still has it !!!!!!

Pat

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