5/29 This week, I have learned... One year later!!!

[ixchel]

One year ago today(ish) saw the birth of WILTW. In that time, we've been able to grow together as people and nurses, and it has been awesome!

I've been wanting to put together this massive, awesome recollection of each week, but then I realized how ridiculous that would become. So, I wont do that. But, I did want to peek back at some of my more monumental lessons, and encourage you to peek back, too, if you would like.

As always, please share present day learnings, too.

What I learned, over the last 52 weeks...

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/this-week-i-991434.html

Making sure your nurse knows you have breast implants can prevent an embarrassing ICU transfer when a dislodged boob looks like a hematoma.

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/what-i-learned-998813.html

If you're going to give a nonresponsive patient a titty twister in an attempt to establish they are actually responsive, warn the other people in the room first.

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/9-5-what-1007775.html

When you read a patient's chart notes and see they couldn't be stopped from punching and spitting on staff with 25 mg haldol and 10 mg Ativan, you might actually think to yourself, "thank god he's only felt me up this shift".

9/12 What I learned this week...... | allnurses

This is one of the threads that was moved to blue. It is, however, the first WILTW after Brian died, and feels worth it to include.

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/10-31-what-1021192.html

Herpes can literally get in and on every part of the body. I'm glad my innocence was already shattered by sidepockets because for real, people. EVERYWHERE.

(It was in the lungs.)

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/12-5-what-1026131.html

If a coworker is charting in a darker, quieter space, YES, they are are hiding. Go away.

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/12-19-what-1028089.html

Never remove an African American woman's wig.

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/1-9-what-1030794.html

This thread was linked on social media and people were royally pissed off by it.

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/2-27-what-1038754.html

This week, I learned the end of a patient story and I celebrated with a happy cry.

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/3-19-what-1042681.html

If you shave your dog to determine if she has a heart block, you may be a little unbalanced. (And that stethoscope I mentioned? Gone. Thanks, AHole.)

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/4-16-what-1047607.html

Why is the end of a straight cath ribbed? It certainly is NOT for her pleasure!

(Incidentally, my husband learned how to change an instead cup post op.)

https://allnurses.com/general-nursing-discussion/5-21-wiltw-1053097.html

It comforts me to know my LEO hubs and his coworkers have devised an apocalypse plan. I also just realized being nurses makes us all valuable (like, save the nurse, kill that guy instead, valuable).

And what have I learned this week?

5 hours of driving in a day when almost 6 weeks post op from lumbar fusion can make the rest of the week complicated. So can carrying a ~15 lb load of groceries.

My time away from work could be as long as 6 months. I miss it, and I don't miss it.

When a person awakens during a focal epilepsy seizure, they will potentially continue to interact as though in the dream still, while also interacting with their real surroundings.

So, friends, with that I say, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, WILTW! You all have been wonderful to share my nurse growth with. Every time we get new posters, I feel the excitement of this weekly installment growing. What began as sort of a journaling process for me has become a highlight for many on AN, and I love that! Thank you all!

[video=youtube_share;MjF1bG5LUcs]

[meanmaryjean, DNP, RN]

Here's what I learned second-hand this week. My youngest (age 21) told me I was much more relaxed now that I no longer work at the bedside. Apparently, working from home in one's pajamas (PRN-not daily) has that effect on a person. However, the transition from PICU to Professor has not been entirely without bumps- case in point, I STILL am waking up at 0300 every single night for no apparent reason except I worked nights for 39 years.

[Jensmom7, BSN, RN]

My son's 2nd birthday is coming up. Where did my little baby go?!

That's ok, my baby is going to be 32. [emoji33][emoji33]Interesting since I'm only 29...[emoji41]

[Jensmom7, BSN, RN]

What I learned this week:

* WILTW started about a month after I joined. So much good information, funny stuff and camaraderie. I have to go back to old editions; I tend to get so wrapped up in reading that I forget to hit "Like" a lot of times. Shame on me, some of he best stuff can be found in WILTW.

* This and the School Nurse thread are my favorites.

* Speaking of the School Nurse thread, I learned this week that a teacher is always a teacher, even in her private life. Fairly new Hospice patient, primary CG is his daughter, a retired teacher. Her mantra when faced with something she finds distasteful, scary or just doesn't want to have to think about at the moment? "Call the nurse!"

Not really as funny as I tried to make it. She let him be uncomfortable and anxious for 12 hours because she couldn't bear the thought of opening the Morphine and Lorazepam bottles, much less talking to the triage nurse on the phone. Her excuse? "I'm not a nurse!" That was also her excuse for not opening the two boxes of supplies she received 2 days prior. [emoji33][emoji35][emoji33][emoji35][emoji33][emoji35]

[meanmaryjean, DNP, RN]

....oh, and I still call my students 'patients'......

[Lulu Belle, RN, EMT-B]

This week I learned:

-People think I'm actually a good EMT and have a knack for assessing people. It felt good to hear. I've been doing it for about a year now, and when I have bad days, I get worried that in nursing school I'll be one of those students who does great in lecture but has horrible clinical skills.

-I only have a semester left before I apply to nursing school!!!! I can't believe it!!!! It feels like yesterday that I was starting my 3 years of pre-reqs, feeling like the end would never come.

-breakups really freaking suck. Especially when it's only because of bad timing

[smartassmommy]

I passed Sociology with an A!

Dimensional analysis

I might actually be pretty good at med math

My job has taught me enough to explain TPN to my math instructor (and the class).

[brillohead, ADN, RN]

I might actually be pretty good at med math

About the ONLY thing I remember from High School Physics Class was the concept of dimensional analysis. (Keep in mind, I went to high school when Reagan was in the White House.... it's a miracle I remember ANYthing from high school at this late date!)

I tried SO HARD to get my fellow nursing students to use dimensional analysis for med math, but I think the combination of the word "analysis" and the presence of "fractions" just plain scared them off.

They all fretted over memorizing formulas and applying the right formula to the right situation (almost all the med math problems had all kinds of extraneous information, like the patient's weight when it wasn't a weight-based dosage and the drop factor when we didn't need to compute the drip rate, etc.), and I was happily sitting in at my desk multiplying by one and cancelling out units of measure like a mofo.

And while I was in the program, they changed things so that *every* test in *every* course had six med math questions on every test/exam. Dimensional analysis was like getting a ten percent extra credit bonus on every single test for me, and I graduated magna cum laude!

[BCgradnurse, MSN, RN, NP]

I'm a recent visitor to this page. I love that this has been going on for a year.

I learned that I really missed AN when I took a several months' hiatus.

I learned that I really worry and care about people I've never met IRL, but whom I "see" almost every day.

I learned that I really like and respect my new boss. He can be tough, but underlying everything is a genuine desire to do right by the patients.

[AspiringNurseMW]

About the ONLY thing I remember from High School Physics Class was the concept of dimensional analysis. (Keep in mind, I went to high school when Reagan was in the White House.... it's a miracle I remember ANYthing from high school at this late date!)

I tried SO HARD to get my fellow nursing students to use dimensional analysis for med math, but I think the combination of the word "analysis" and the presence of "fractions" just plain scared them off.

They all fretted over memorizing formulas and applying the right formula to the right situation (almost all the med math problems had all kinds of extraneous information, like the patient's weight when it wasn't a weight-based dosage and the drop factor when we didn't need to compute the drip rate, etc.), and I was happily sitting in at my desk multiplying by one and cancelling out units of measure like a mofo.

And while I was in the program, they changed things so that *every* test in *every* course had six med math questions on every test/exam. Dimensional analysis was like getting a ten percent extra credit bonus on every single test for me, and I graduated magna cum laude!

I LOVE dimensionsal analysis. People start talking about formulas before tests and I literally cover my ears while singing lalalalala. Dimensionsal analysis + a little common sense = never struggling with med math questions.

[cracklingkraken, ASN, RN]

WILTW:

Being single at 24 apparently means that all your friends want to set you up with a "nice guy" that they know.

I'm taking the NCLEX tomorrow, and I'm not sure how I feel. I guess I'll find out if my 2 years in nursing school has taught me anything.

I didn't get the job offer. However, I'm determined that one interview doesn't dictate the course of my future. I'm going to continue to apply here in MI, and I believe that the right opportunity will present itself.

Being near a lake in MI during a rainstorm and high speed winds can cause huge swarms of bugs to stick with you underneath the picnic shelters. I don't mind bugs usually, but this moment has deterred me from going to a lake for a while.

Phenytoin can cause gingival hypertrophy, so regular dentist visits are a must.

Having medical friends, we collaboratively are hoping to do medical missions in a few years, after alll of us have graduated and have some experience.

[canigraduate]

Don't worry, crackles, you'll get there.

WILTW - I am trying my hardest to stay at my current job until after my one year anniversary just so I can have some stability on my resumé. I only have a couple more weeks. I can do this.

I finally gave IV push labetolol for the first time. It was pretty cool watching someone immediately resolve their afib.

It's harder being a patient when you're a nurse and you understand the stuff the doctor is telling you, and not telling you.

I like summer!! Sunshine makes me happy. That's the best thing about living in Arizona. My Vit D levels are approaching normal for the first time in forever.

[brillohead, ADN, RN]

I didn't get the job offer. However, I'm determined that one interview doesn't dictate the course of my future. I'm going to continue to apply here in MI, and I believe that the right opportunity will present itself.

What part of Michigan? I know of some openings on the SW side....