Ode to Nursing

Nursing school has been quite the adventure. I knew when I signed up for this that it was going to be difficult, but I had no idea what that really meant. Last week I was struggling along, things all seemed to pile on top of each other with no sign of relief. I was tired of:

1. Crazy assignments, with little or no instruction.

2. Med/Surg Lectures that seemed to have little point because of the disorganized and chaotic style of lecturing.

3. Preassessment the day BEFORE clinical which means driving up to Murray twice in one week.

4. After driving up to do said preassessment, coming home to do the 4-6 hour assignment to take to clinical the next day.

5. Being at clinical and feeling like I know nothing. I hate the feeling of incompetency.

6. Trying to memorize countless medication so that when you're at clinical and your nurse/patient asks you what a medication is for, you don't have to stand there stupidly and say, "I don't know".

7. This stack of books.

6. Using that whole stack of books for almost EVERY ASSIGNMENT and having to take up the entire kitchen table to do it.

7. two 3-hour lectures, back to back on Tuesdays.

8.10-12 page Process Papers. Shouldn't nursing be more about DOING than WRITING IT ALL DOWN?

9. Getting covered in all manner of bodily fluids: sputum, urine, CT drainage, you name it...

10. Studying as hard as I can for a test, and not really doing all that great, a new concept in my life.

But then I thought about it, and nursing school has so many good things that I love...

1.Awesome friends, both in nursing school, and out.2. Playing dress up.

3. Playing with dolls (rather large ones).4. Watching surgeries in the OR, with real doctors changing real people's lives.
5. Practicing our sweet nursing skills in the NLC on each other!5. Learning how to start IVs and give injections on the most awesome practice patient I could find.

6. Helping people every time I'm at clinical, even if it does only mean sitting and talking with a patient for a while.

7. Finally having almost exclusively classes that I enjoy being in, as opposed to dumb GEs like "Physical Suck" (physical science) and English.

8. Getting sweet t-shirts.

10. Pushing myself farther than I ever thought I could and still standing strong... getting closer and closer to being a real nurse.