The more I study the more I realize how much I still don't know!!

javaline · Apr 25, 2009

Oh my gosh, I totally feel the same way. I graduated in February and have been studying ever since. I have my test scheduled for the 28th but totally feel unprepared. At times I feel ready, but most of the time I feel scared out of my mind. The stress is really getting to me. I have already rescheduled once before because of the self-doubt and I'm considering rescheduling again, but then I think, will I ever feel prepared? I am glad I'm not alone. :uhoh3:

Gin0theMC · Apr 25, 2009

oh snap i felt that too! i took my boards on tuesday. yknow what, if youre blanking out, just rest for a bit. drink water and freshen up! i think it means your brain is getting fried so dont over study. good luck and god bless!

cherielpn · Apr 25, 2009

two days to go. i am going to read up on neuro and muskuloskeletal today. i only briefly reviewed any pediatric stuff, watch me get a whole bunch of peds questions! i decided not to even waste my time studying drugs. i mean i know cardiac drugs and digoxin toxicity, stuff like that, but that's about all. i just don't think there is any way to know all of the drugs and their side effects, isn't that what a drug book is for anyway? i just don't know what to study anymore. there is soooooooooooooo much. i originally had my test scheduled for may 4th, but i figured it's now or never....the more i study, the more i realize how much i still don't know!!!! :banghead:

porkfat · Apr 25, 2009

That's exactly how I feel. But you know what, that should just motivate us to study, study, study more! :)

elnkb · Apr 25, 2009

I feel exactly the same way. I have done 2000+ questions...keep getting high 60s...I don't even know if thats good enough. Btw...the questions I did are from Lippincott, Saunders, LaCharity & Kaplan....This is my second time taking NCLEX RN exam..I am REALLY SCARED. Everytime I think about the exam start tearing. I don't want to fail again. I feel like delaying but everyone keeps telling me to be confident and just do it.....Even if I delay I don't know if I'll ever regain my confidence. Well the exam is on Tuesday April 28...and until then it just gonna be more questions

madams0714 · Apr 25, 2009

no matter how much u study u still feel like u failed, but most likely u passed. i am waiting on my results and have no idea how 2 feel. i studied and got 70-90% on tests, but i walked out of the test feeling like i was gonna puke. u'll be fine a little stress is good for test taking. u can always narrow it down to 2 answers just think hard about which is the best. fyi, study ur cultures.

cherielpn · Apr 25, 2009

i keep reading a lot of the threads on this website and most of them state to study kaplan and saunders. my school included saunders 3rd edition (orange) with their books/courses, i just don't have the money for kaplan. i just hope that this saunders book and cd is going to be good enough. does anyone know if the nclex asks questions that go into detail about certain disease processes or is it just basic stuff? do i have to know off the wall lab values, like for ana (antinuclear antibody) titers? so much info, so little time!

cherielpn · Apr 25, 2009

one more thing, i am getting so confused on signs and symptoms of hyper/hypokalemia, hyper/hypocalcemia, hyper/hyponatremia, etc. anybody know of an easier way to remember that stuff?:sstrs:

DaFreak71 · Apr 25, 2009

If anyone says they know everything about nursing....they are lying or delusional. It's ok that you don't know everything. You aren't supposed to. NCLEX doesn't expect it, nor does nursing school or your future employer. That's why you'll go through an orientation period with EVERY employer you are hired by. Doesn't matter if you've been a nurse for 30 years--you're still going to be oriented. When you get to the point where you think you know everything about nursing--it's time to quit because that kind of cocky thinking is going to lead to some major mistakes. We get dangerous when we think we know it all.

I felt the same way when I was studying for the test; like I didn't know ANYTHING. The goal of the NCLEX isn't to measure weather or not you know everything...it's to make sure you aren't going to hit the floor and kill someone. Just basic stuff. The more difficult the questions you get, the better you're doing on the test since it adapts to your previous responses. You want the SATA's, fill in the blanks, priority and delegation questions because these are considered to be high level questions.

DaFreak71 · Apr 25, 2009

i keep reading a lot of the threads on this website and most of them state to study kaplan and saunders. my school included saunders 3rd edition (orange) with their books/courses, i just don't have the money for kaplan. i just hope that this saunders book and cd is going to be good enough. does anyone know if the nclex asks questions that go into detail about certain disease processes or is it just basic stuff? do i have to know off the wall lab values, like for ana (antinuclear antibody) titers? so much info, so little time!

in my experience, the obscure questions are not included (like ana titers). the patho part definitely helps to lead you to the correct answers, but i believe the questions are more application than "how does the xxx work" kinda stuff. not that you don't need to know it for your own edification, but i personally would not (and did not) focus on the ultra complex stuff. as far as off the wall lab values--i doubt it. know your fluids/electrolytes, toxicity levels of dig/lithium/mag/tylenol, and a few others.

forget what other people on the board suggest you study. i found that saunders was a very good study aid. but that's just my opinion. if you can't afford kaplan--go with what you can afford. you may still have the majority of your text books from nursing school and most of them have practice questions at the end of each chapter. that's a usefull tool as well.

cherielpn · Apr 25, 2009

thanks so much. i have been studying the fluids/electrolytes and i keep getting them confused!! i will concentrate on lab values tomorrow and then i am just going to relax the rest of the day. my exam is on monday! but right now, i am wondering if i should postpone it?????????