When has your intuition saved the day?

[deeDawntee]

Assertion: Great nurses are incredibly intuitive.

Please share when your intuition has saved or helped a patient or when has your intuition helped in other areas of your life?

What is intuition? How would you describe it? How could others develop theirs?

Have you ever felt what your patient is feeling? Chest pain when they have chest pain? etc. Are you too empathic? If so, how do you manage it, so it doesn't disempower you?

Or is intuition really experience along with knowledge?

All opinions welcome.

[classicdame, MSN, EdD]

This s an incident of intuition + education. I had a 7 m/o baby admitted for poor feeding. He did not "look right" although nothing in the assessment was concrete. I called the MD at 9 p.m. to say he was lethargic and she bellyached about me not knowing the difference between lethargy and sleepyness. So I initiated the chain of command because he was hard to rouse. Ended up getting a phone order from MD for CT scan which led to MRI which led to craniotomy for brain tumor. Who expects that in a 7 m/o? MD still has a hard time being polite to me but we manage.

[deeDawntee, RN]

This s an incident of intuition + education. I had a 7 m/o baby admitted for poor feeding. He did not "look right" although nothing in the assessment was concrete. I called the MD at 9 p.m. to say he was lethargic and she bellyached about me not knowing the difference between lethargy and sleepyness. So I initiated the chain of command because he was hard to rouse. Ended up getting a phone order from MD for CT scan which led to MRI which led to craniotomy for brain tumor. Who expects that in a 7 m/o? MD still has a hard time being polite to me but we manage.

Congratulations!!! Another life saved by a nurse following her intuition... I have learned so much from all of you who have responded to this thread. That MD should be ashamed of herself!! Way to go.

:yeah:

[Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP]

Many many many times when I was a new grad (!) & working on a med-surg floor with lots of bed jumpers etc. I would have all sorts of internal conversations: "Go check on that pt in 466." "But I just checked him." "GO CHECK HIM AGAIN!!" And sure enough, they'd be trying to get out of bed as a BKA, or they'd be SOB, or whatever.

My next job, I worked in a community health center. If pts came in w/o appointments, they put their complaint down on a 'triage sheet' and it was placed in a box for the nurse to review & see the pt. Many times then too, I'd see a 'cough x 3 days' or something that seemed equally non-emergent. I'd go start to do something else thinking it could wait and then something would say, "go look at that pt now" and they'd be wheezing & satting in the low 80s, obviously in some distress.

Don't ever discount 'that feeling.' I'd rather go check on somebody & them be fine than not do it and something was going on.

[deeDawntee, RN]

Many many many times when I was a new grad (!) & working on a med-surg floor with lots of bed jumpers etc. I would have all sorts of internal conversations: "Go check on that pt in 466." "But I just checked him." "GO CHECK HIM AGAIN!!" And sure enough, they'd be trying to get out of bed as a BKA, or they'd be SOB, or whatever.

My next job, I worked in a community health center. If pts came in w/o appointments, they put their complaint down on a 'triage sheet' and it was placed in a box for the nurse to review & see the pt. Many times then too, I'd see a 'cough x 3 days' or something that seemed equally non-emergent. I'd go start to do something else thinking it could wait and then something would say, "go look at that pt now" and they'd be wheezing & satting in the low 80s, obviously in some distress.

Don't ever discount 'that feeling.' I'd rather go check on somebody & them be fine than not do it and something was going on.

Great advice... do you think you always have been intuitive? When do you remember first noticing it? Was your Mother intuitive?

Was it encouraged as you were growing up?

[Elvish, BSN, DNP, RN, NP]

Mom was definitely intuitive. The other two questions I'm not sure about, but Mom was/is definitely in tune with the world around her to pick up on stuff others didn't.

[deeDawntee, RN]

Mom was definitely intuitive. The other two questions I'm not sure about, but Mom was/is definitely in tune with the world around her to pick up on stuff others didn't.

That is really great. At least your intuition wasn't discouraged. (Do you agree?) I have a feeling most of us have had our intuitive side disempowered at the best and completely squashed for the most part. Everything in society is so outwardly focused. I think it is a special gift for adults to have kept their intuition intact. Unfortunately, nursing schools aren't going to start teaching Intuition 101, even though it is one of those intangibles that saves people's lives.

[meant4me2]

Many many many times when I was a new grad (!) & working on a med-surg floor with lots of bed jumpers etc. I would have all sorts of internal conversations: "Go check on that pt in 466." "But I just checked him." "GO CHECK HIM AGAIN!!" And sure enough, they'd be trying to get out of bed as a BKA, or they'd be SOB, or whatever.

My next job, I worked in a community health center. If pts came in w/o appointments, they put their complaint down on a 'triage sheet' and it was placed in a box for the nurse to review & see the pt. Many times then too, I'd see a 'cough x 3 days' or something that seemed equally non-emergent. I'd go start to do something else thinking it could wait and then something would say, "go look at that pt now" and they'd be wheezing & satting in the low 80s, obviously in some distress.

Don't ever discount 'that feeling.' I'd rather go check on somebody & them be fine than not do it and something was going on.

In the position that I previously held...i had numerous problems with "i just did"..or "why"...or "calm down". My intuition would have me plagued with emergencies/or potential ones/ i was always asking "did you"? "please check", "i would feel better if"...

I would be at desk working in the books or handling calls and would jump off the desk and take off down the hall or across the building.

Most of the time my concerns were justified...especially the look I would get when I would ask "where is so and so?". Alzheimers/dementia patients so we always had to be on the ball..and then some!!!!!!

[miss arron]

That sounds terrifying!!! Is he ok? You had an intuitive dream!!

yes, he's doing just fine now. thanks for asking!

speaking to encouragement/discouragement in trusting my intuition/that "gut feeling" - i think i was the only one who ever discouraged myself.... but i always follow my intuition these days - it almost never fails.

[deeDawntee, RN]

"speaking to encouragement/discouragement in trusting my intuition/that "gut feeling" - i think i was the only one who ever discouraged myself.... but i always follow my intuition these days - it almost never fails."

That is a great lesson for us all. Way to go!

[deeDawntee, RN]

Do any of you intuitive nurses out there have any suggestions as to how a person can start to develop their intuition? How would someone who wanted to be more in tune with that inner voice develop that ability? Or how can someone begin to trust that voice?

How do you quiet the noise of your mind to hear the voice of your intuition? Does it come from a different place, does it sound different? Is it really from the gut? How do you tell the difference between worry and wisdom?

[JHRN2BE]

As a nurse, I have had to be really careful not to take on what my patient is experiencing. I am not just talking about the emotional stress of being physically ill and all the tragedy that surrounds people in that situation. I will actually physically feel what they are feeling.

How common is that out there with us nurses?

It was happening to me on and off as a new nurse, but I was trying to ignore it, until one night when a patient called and complained of chest pain. I sat with her as the house superviser, who just happened to be on that wing at the time (this was a long term care facility) got the nitro. As I sat with her, I thought I was going to collapse with the intensity of the chest pain I was feeling. We got the first nitro under her tongue and as she felt better, I felt better. I could feel the chest pain gradually decrease and go away with my patient. That really freaked me out!

I have learned to not get so connected that I can't disconnect when I need to for my own well being, but that has taken some work.

Has anyone else had to deal with that?

Yes. I have felt things, too. This is exactly what we learned about in Massage Therapy school. It is possible to 'feel' other people's ailments, pain, emotions, etc. I posted previously about using "What's mine is mine, what's theirs is theirs." There are also other visualizations to use such as grounding. I have used grounding (meaning visualizing a cord or tree trunk passing through the body out the bottoms of the feet and connecting to the center of the earth. Then a golden cord coming up the spine out the top of the head is connected up. If a tree trunk is too strange..then use candy canes, whatever you wish.) This is meant to help you stay focused in the present. As far as intuition, there are so many books out there to help develop intuition and learn techniques. If you have trouble visualizing this, a teacher once taught me to visualize myself as a stick figure. As with anything, use your best judgment as to what works for you. If I hadn't been to massage therapy school, I would have NEVER known about this. It has been great information to have as an RN.

Best of luck to you!!! Hope this helps!!!

JH

[deeDawntee, RN]

http://cultivategreatness.com/2007/03/27/how-can-you-enhance-your-tuition

Above is an interesting article on intuition development.

http://takingcharge.csh.umn.edu/therapies/intuition/what

And an entire website about intuition in health care!!