This week, I have learned..... (8/1)

Nurses General Nursing

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This week, I have learned:

(Vacation edition!)

1. Absolutely nothing specifically related to nursing

2. It's hard to not judge unhealthy habits of people on vacation

3. I'm reaching a point in my nursing practice where I can frequently size up a person for their health issues

4. It sucks being handicapped with an unseen condition at an amusement park

5. I am NOT afraid to write a scathing hot review of a terrible hotel

6. Simply being within viewing distance of my kids' joy is the best part of a vacation, ever

7. If you have the option of "quick queue" at an amusement park when it's 100 degrees outside, just do it

8. If you touch me when it's this hot outside, I will want to punch you in the face (reread that with the properly deserved expletives)

9. I have a new favorite motto

That's all from me! What have you learned this week?

Specializes in Hospice.

Sometimes the cardio thoracic surgeon doesn't care that his post op day 7 patient dumps 600 ml out of his chest tubes in an 8 hour shift when he has usually been dumping around 100. " Well, it's better out than in Cardiacfreak."

Sometimes the doctors can't or won't give you an explanation why.

Even the most serious doctor can smile and chuckle without breaking their face.

You can have a HUGE frontoparietal infarct extending into the occipital lobe and still be able to walk and talk with only slight tingling in your right hand.

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School supplies for two 4th graders, one preschooler, and a new planner and tab dividers for mom costs $100.

I'm happy I've been grabbing clearance clothes throughout the year, but they need shoes.

My doctor doesn't do adult immunizations.

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I have learned that:

1) I do not know how to relax, like, at all. On summer break before my next semester of school and I'm writing my resume and studying NCLEX questions for fun.

2) I love baking way too much. And putting veggies into baked goods can be very easy and the are well-hidden!

3) My husband will (most likely) never change his habits into healthier ones and will (most likely) always choose an easier / quicker fix over a permanent / harder one. ("Yes, I'm overweight with severe apnea, but I won't eat ANY vegetables at all or start a walking / exercise program, just get me a CPAP machine like my friend has." "Ok, do you want his other health issues, too?")

4) I'm a lonely person and I don't have many friends aside from my parents / sisters / husband. I just don't know how to keep people around.

5) I love going out to breakfast with my dad and I'm thankful every day that he's still with us.

6) I may have been lying to myself about not having a motherly yearning.

7) I'm very passionate about being proactive about one's health. (But I still don't nag my husband...)

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Specializes in Cardiac and OR.

I guess this could go into the upcoming "What I learned", but I am too darned excited! I got an offer for the OR position for which I interviewed last week!! Woohoo!!!:laugh:

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I guess this could go into the upcoming "What I learned", but I am too darned excited! I got an offer for the OR position for which I interviewed last week!! Woohoo!!!:laugh:

Yay congrats!

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Specializes in Cardiac and OR.
Yay congrats!

Thanks!!!!

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I learned that falling in love with someone half a world away is very painful, especially when they are the person that you turn to for everything and have spent 4+ hours a day talking to for the past year.

I also learned that thinking about the student loans I would have to take out to go to nursing school (when I'm almost done paying the ones for my paralegal degree) can make my low blood pressure skyrocket.

As I'm going through summarizing 1196 pages of medical records for a position paper, I've learned that I can't help but judge the patient, even when I try my best not to. I know it's not fair to the patient, but when they're in the ER four times a month for ridiculous reasons, it's just hard not to.

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Specializes in Aged mental health.

ChikaBoom, it's like you have just laid down my life in cyberspace... Minus the being close to parents thing.

Spooky.

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This week I learned that compassion fatigue can mean my internal swearing filter wears out after about 3 days of incessant me me me me me from patients.

I also learned that I have a lot to learn in how to deal with newly minted hospitalists that come off egoistic and cold when they are truly just afraid to act.

Also, our doctors were apparently under the impression that nurses all took breaks between 11 and 12, for an hour, in a room quite similar to their resident's lounge. WT everloving F.

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
This week I learned that compassion fatigue can mean my internal swearing filter wears out after about 3 days of incessant me me me me me from patients.

That's when you learn words in a language not common in your area. I never swear in English, but I can swear like crazy in French! I can swear in Spanish too, but there's too large of a Spanish speaking population to use those.

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1) I learned how to appropriately set the sensitivity and pacing threshold on my patient's external pacemaker. (I had learned how to do this before, but never actually done it on my own patient).

2) I learned that Guillain-Barre syndrome has a risk for bradycardia and cardiac arrest 12-14 days out. Watch for that!

3) I pulled my first PA cath! I also, in passing, feel pretty confident that I can recognize a good PA cath waveform now after being so concerned that the one my patient had was in the RV.

4) I learned: if your patient takes Haldol at home, he DEFINITELY needs it when he is in the SICU.

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Specializes in critical care.

Alright people. Just watched a video with Jenna and Peter and (SPOILERS) they're revisiting the Pompeii plot line this season and explaining why the 12th Doctor has THAT face. We need an AN watch party.

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