Sleep?!? Any hope??

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Hi y'all! :) I have orientation for my first semester of nursing school on the 31st and I don't know if I've ever been so excited and nervous at the same time!

But I have a question for those of you who've survived first semester. I'm not TOO terribly worried about the academic side of things (though I know it'll be hard), because I've done really well in my pre-reqs and can study hard when I need to. My problem is that it has been/usually is at the expense of sleep. Perfectionist that I am, if I have a hard test in the morning, I tend to stay up half the night (or more) studying to make sure I get the grade I want instead of sleeping. But I know this isn't healthy and that sleep is REALLY important for a lot of things, physically and mentally. So.....do you have any tips on how to balance the demands of nursing school academics with the fact that sleep is necessary to function well? Any advice would be really appreciated!

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All I can say is that nursing exams are just different. You can't find all the answers in a book like you can in pre-req classes. You really need a good nights rest to critically think for an exam and to act quick on your feet in clinical!

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Hello, I start NS next Tuesday. I am a perfectionist and I really work hard to earn high grades. I also have terrible bouts of insomnia from time to time. I have tried all kinds of things: tylenol pm, advil pm, benadryl, prescribed sleeping medicine. At one time I was put on Ambien and it actually made me hyper and kind of "manic". I am on gabapentin which helps some. By nature I am a night owl. I feel vitalized and sharp at night and very creative. I found out today that I will have to be at my clinical by 0600. That means I will have to wake up around 0445. I know that I am going to have days that I am up 2 and 3 days in a row. I just hate to go to bed before midnight, even then I usually do not fall asleep until 2 and then up by 6. Oh well, I will just have to pop some no doze from time to time :nurse:

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You should really try to figure out why your mind can't shut off at night, taking no doze, especially before clinical is a bad idea, one that could get you kicked out of some nursing programs if the instructor thinks there is a safety issue. just my two cents but guided imagery is one thing they talked to us about in the first week of nursing school and seems to work better than rx meds for some people as well as offer a long term solution to a problem so many people have.

Hello, I start NS next Tuesday. I am a perfectionist and I really work hard to earn high grades. I also have terrible bouts of insomnia from time to time. I have tried all kinds of things: tylenol pm, advil pm, benadryl, prescribed sleeping medicine. At one time I was put on Ambien and it actually made me hyper and kind of "manic". I am on gabapentin which helps some. By nature I am a night owl. I feel vitalized and sharp at night and very creative. I found out today that I will have to be at my clinical by 0600. That means I will have to wake up around 0445. I know that I am going to have days that I am up 2 and 3 days in a row. I just hate to go to bed before midnight, even then I usually do not fall asleep until 2 and then up by 6. Oh well, I will just have to pop some no doze from time to time :nurse:
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it's best not to cram but you gotta do what you gotta do! You sound like you'll do perfectly well. Have fun! :)

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Specializes in E.D..

You will find that nursing school exams aren't memorization based, so cramming won't even be necessary. For example, you will not be seeing questions like: What's a normal blood pressure? Instead, you will see questions like: If your patient has a BP of X, what would you expect the doctor to order? Comprehension is the key, so you will be studying well in advance of exams to ensure your understanding.

Sleep is essential, too. Perhaps the night owl should take an afternoon or early evening snooze when possible. I have suffered from sleep deprivation, and it was more detrimental to my body and mind than any illness I've ever had.

GOOD LUCK! It is sooooo worth it!

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