Week 10 Recap

Ahh, yes Sunday is my day to post. I might have to evaluate, maybe Thursday would be better. Last week was pretty rough. I had a really hard time getting up early. Typically I get up at 6am to get up early in order to get something accomplished before the official start of the day but now 6am is the latest I can sleep to get to school on time. My new class starts at 8am. I have to be on the 7am bus, maybe 7:15, but I am pushing it, especially if it is late. My new class this block is Fundamentals of Nursing. What I can say about it so far is that it is jam packed. It is a 4 hour class, with quizzes every week, it also has a 5-hour lab component. It is, just as the name implies the fundamentals of nursing. Last week I learned about urinary catheters, moving patients, safety, hand hygiene, restraints and fall risk. This week we learned about wound care - specifically pressure ulcers and how they can be prevented, and various feeding tubes. It is already intense but I like it. I am liking these more practical classes - more doing, less cramming information into my brain.

I had my first clinical this weekend - two eight-hour shifts; one Friday and one Saturday. It was a lot of ADLs (activities of daily living) - bathing, mobility, etc. A few people complained about one of the preceptor - the preceptor I have been assigned. She is very direct, which I appreciate. Some people don't. To be fair, if there is one thing I have learned in nursing school is that nursing school students are complainers. And to wash my hands! Of course I cannot get into any details but I will say my patient had a lot going on and pretty much illustrated almost everything that I have been learning the past two weeks. I had a really busy, interesting first day, and the second was more mellow. But overall it was a really great experience. It was a much needed boost to the slump I have been in. I am eager for this block to be over, I know it just started. I am excited for more intensive clincial experience.

In other awesome news - my husband who graduated in December with a Masters of Architecture got a job (kinda). He is contracted for the next month to complete a project, and then be offered a full-time position if all goes well. As, I am sure you all know the architecture field has been hit pretty hard and there really aren't any jobs. This job was not advertised but he got it through being active in approaching firms and soliciting them. And it paid off. Today he said something like, it's weird how everything is falling into place. And it is, one of our first discussions after meeting was how he wanted to be an architect, and now he is. Almost 7 years later. Funny how life works out sometimes.

Looking forward to Doors Open Denver next week. And hoping to ride the wave for a while.

Spring Break is Over!

I had a really hard time our first day back. I could not get to sleep last night and had to wake up early for class and then headed straight to work. Now I am at home studying for my Pharm test - psychopharm. I started thinking about Daniel Johnston and of course googled him. I found a couple of cool youtub videos. This is called a brainbreak.

Sping Break

Well, what can I say – it has been a while. Last week I was on spring break and just didn’t get around to blogging and the week before I was studying for finals, so I just didn’t get around to it.

We take some of our classes in eight-week blocks. I just wrapped up the first of these – Health Assessment. This is one of two classes needed to take the CNA exam – not that I am interested in doing this but it is an option. My instructor Tammy – is really great and I already miss her. I will see her again near the end of my program. At the conclusion of class she gave an optional lecture on things we can do now, as students, to help job opportunities in the future. It was really helpful and informative. One of the things that came out during that lecture and in other instances is this idea that we (recent graduates) should work a couple of years before choosing a specialty area to get a Masters degree in. And for the most part I agree – if your goal is to be a nurse. But for me, and I feel like such a snob saying it but I don’t want to be a nurse. I want to be a midwife. That is my goal. So with any luck I will not be working as a nurse for two years or any length of time but jump right into my program to become a nurse. Sorry – that was probably more cathartic for me than informative to anyone that might be reading.

Over the break I got word that I have been assigned to OB/GYN for my first clinical. Not that I see myself working for an OB but I would have liked to do this rotation a little later in my nursing school career. I guess I have the feeling it will be hard to impress anyone with my limited knowledge and skills. What can you do? It’ll be fun, I am excited. I am not excited that I have been separated from my nursing school buddy. Again, what can you do?

My main goals for spring break were to start a garden, alter my scrub pants, and complete my schematic assignment for Patho. I did in fact start my garden. We dug up the earth and made a little fence to keep the dogs out, and also started seedlings in the basement. My cauliflower, broccoli, and brussel sprouts have already started sprouting – in less than a week. I also pulled weeds in my flower bed and along the walkway on the side of my house. Weeds are the bane of my existence. Last night I altered my scrub pants, as well as sewed a button on one of my blouses that has been hanging around my sewing room for some time, and fixed another blouse where the button hole ripped. I also tried to fix a hole in a new sweater. It doesn’t look very good but really – what to do with a hole? And just because, I bought an awesome pattern for a skirt from Fancy Tiger that I love and started cutting out all of my pieces. I need to buy more fabric to complete the project but hey a start is pretty good. Lastly, my schematic assignment, I have not completed or really started for that matter. I have thought about it a lot and have done some research but nothing I have found is really that helpful. I went to the public library last night but didn’t quite find what I was looking for. My next stop is the school library. So I am not quite there but on my way.

I am hoping to end my spring break by putting some seeds in the ground, studying for the Pharm exam I have on Tuesday, prepping for my new class for the block – Fundamentals of Nursing, and preparing for the Arrested Development Trivia to take place next Saturday. By the way, my trivia team has not won in two weeks – WTS? Another by the way, I hate, hate, hate when teachers assign reading, assignments, send emails, etc. during break. I mean come on – class hasn’t even started yet. Just let me enjoy my time off.

Blooms on one of the trees I planted last year.

The weather has been beautiful in Denver. My plants and trees from last year are starting to bloom. I am hoping to start riding my bike to school. I am really slow and don’t really have a great bike for this but again, what are you gonna do? I hope the warm weather is here to stay, and I hope everyone get s a chance to enjoy it. In my neighborhood the bulbs are starting to bloom – it is my favorite spring event. What’s yours?

I can already start to see...

Weel I just wrapped up week six, only two more weeks till Spring Break . I am still struggling with the same things I have been in the past weeks and have not worked out in something like 6 weeks, and I again have vowed to make it better...

My trivia came in 5th this week - which sucks. I am a sore loser and it sucked. Always next week.

Tonight my husband and I are going to Table 6 with our friends for Restaurant week - really excited.

So that's the week but I thought I would change things up and blog about other things nursing students, or in the case nursing hopefuls want to know.

Getting In to Nursing Schools:
When I started looking into applying for nursing schools I was limited by my options because I didn't want to move and I needed an BSN in order to move on to get my Masters. (Some of the Masters programs I looked at have RN to Masters programs, but not very many). I have to admit I was completely overwhelmed. My undergrad degree is in Elementary Education and I didn't have any of the prerequisites. I took one prereq per semester for 2 years: Anatomy, Physiology, Stats, and Microbiology. These classes really intimidated me. I had never been a "science" person and assumed that I couldn't be. Turns out - I am. I did awesome and knew that I pretty much needed to nail these classes because the grades I received in these classes are the first thing CU looked at for admittance. I received 3 As and 1 B. Once I had finished up my prereqs I was finally able to apply.

Initially CU was my only choice. My husband was still in grad school and we really weren't in a position to move. There was a reason I didn't apply to Regis, but I can't remember it now. I applied and I was really frustrated at the whole process. According to the information they give they select applicants based on 1) your gpa in the 4 classes I mentioned above, 2) your overall gpa, and 2) your essay, no letters of recommendation, no test. I took a few prereqs with a person who had a BS in biology and a Masters in Public Health, but her gpa was lower than mine. In the eyes of the school I am more qualified than she is but to me she is way more qualified than me. However, I have yet to see her at school. I don't know if she got in. The essay I mentioned was a really basic entrance essay (in my case, but it changes). It asked about cultural differences, critical thinking, and one other I can't recall. But the thing with the essay was the length - it asked three questions and it had to be answered in one page. I felt is though they really didn't want to know anything about me but more or less, can this person write well.

At the time I applied, CU was selecting for the year, the class that started in June and the class that started in January. I submitted my application and sesveral months later I received word that I had not been accepted. BUT, they were changing they acceptance cycle and that they were only selecing the class starting in June and my application would be rolled over. Needless to say, I was devistated. Before I applied I had gone to their information session and was told they received something like 350 applications and accepted something like 210. So a pretty high acceptance rrate. After hearing the bad news, I called to see what I could have done, where I ranked, etc. I called and she said they had received an overwhelming number of applicants, something like 700, and because of the change in they process only accepted 100. A much smaller acceptance rate.

After going through a brief period of depression (why not me, I suck! if they don't who will... kind of thoughts), I pulled myself up via my bootsraps and made a list. The list was, places we would want to live, and schools that had BSN and CNM (Certified Nursee Midwife) programs - if we were moving, we were only going to do it once. When that listed was narrowed down - added to it were the prereqs that their programs called for, and other pertinent application information. What became the final list, was the most ridiculous list of hard to get in schools you can imagine. My top choice was UCSF (the only one that I applied to and didn't not get in), followed by OHSU (Oregon Health and Sciences University), Yale, Columbia, NYU, Penn State, and one of the universities in Chicago, I can't recall the name. If I though I was overwhelmed before - now I was really overwhelmed. These were some of the toughest schools to get into, and I had a whole new prereq list. I literally took a semster full of prereqs; Genetics, Nutrition, Human Development, Chemistry lab and the fun one I took for me, Spanish III. I could have taken a whole semester more of prereqs - research methods, the rest of human development, Penn wanted 1 more credit of chemistry than I had, etc.

But, in early October that I didn't need to take any more prereqs, that I had been accepted, and would be starting in January. I can't tell you why or how, why not the first time. I had the option to resubmit by essay but decided not to. My overall gpa was 3.69. For most people this is fine, and for me and my previous life, studying elementary education - gpa was the last thing I worried about. But it is in my life now, as I think about Masters programs, I am daunted once more.

My advice: be yourself. If you are able to retake bad grades, and you think it might help, not only your chances of admittance, but your knowledge, do it, and don't think twice about it. I think we all have classes that we took at 19, and hated and squeeked by with a C. Maybe this time you can get something more out of it. Follow instructions. Ask people to review your letter. Not only for grammar errors but also for content clarity, and compare to what they are asking. Is it addressing the questions being asked.

Another thing I want to say about the process for me was the idea of following my dreams. It is one thing to say I am going to be a good nurse for this reason, but I can't. I don't know what kind of nurse I want to be. What I can say is that I want to follow my dream, and that dream starts with you and you letting me in to your school. Now, let me in! And, of course, we can't do that, and it is frustrating. I wish we could say what we really want to say. I hope that this is helpful and good luck.

One more thing, one of the blogs I read addressed college admittance and the application process so eloquently, I really want to share. She is in a different stage in her life, but has really great insight. You can find the entry I am thinking of here. Also check out her other entries and story - it is inspiring, heart breaking and heart warming all at the same time.

Week Five

Despite last week being one of the worst weeks for me, I actually tested the best I have so far… What to even say about that I don’t know. I seriously crammed the night before my exams but didn’t do much else. I was completely stressed and promise I will not procrastinate…

I am still struggling with incorporating exercise into my routine. I know that this probably is a big reason why I have been so stressed but I just can’t seem to make it happen. It is top priority this week. And just to increase the stakes a bit more I am planning on starting marathon training. I use Nike+ training tools. I am hoping to run my first marathon in September or October. We’ll see how this week goes. A few weeks ago I said that I was going to stop watching TV. A lofty goal that was dropped within 24 hours of writing it down – however, I think I really need to not watch TV. This week I was engulfed in a show that I didn’t really even like. I know everyone needs brain breaks but this was a serious time waster. So, seriously, this week, no TV (with the exception of the Biggest Loser)!

This weekend I did some volunteer work with Project C.U.R.E. It was actually really great. We started off with learning about the medical supply needs of third-world countries and then about the incredible waste of our country. Literally, we toss tons of perfectly good medical supplies if they have been in a patient’s room and weren’t used, brought into surgery and not used, past their expiration date (some things really can’t be used past their expiration date). Their warehouse it packed full of medical supplies just waiting to be shipped to countries in need. Time went by really fast and I felt like we accomplished a lot. If you are looking for a great volunteer experience that doesn’t require a lot of time commitment, experience, this is a good one. And their administrative overhead is only 2% which is really great.

My awesome trivia team came in second again and I can’t be happier. We probably drank way too much and I was rocked on Thursday but hey what can you do? C’est la vie. One of my teammates is also a school friend that I met recently. I think we are becoming quite good friends. It is always nice to develop new friendships.

I have my first clinical tomorrow and am feeling really excited.

Hope you all have an awesome week. I am looking forward to Denver’s Restaurant Week – Jerome and I are going to Root Down, so excited.

Week 4 Recap

So this week I was seriously in a funk and it showed. I had my usual round of tests and on one of them I preformed pretty poorly. Not poor in everyone's book, but I certainly was not happy with my grade. That being said, I just could not motivate myself to 'do it' so to speak. I am starting to be really frustrated with myself. All I want in the world is to be a midwife, and even though nursing isn’t exactly what I want to be doing, it is a step in the direction I want to move. 6 months ago I was so excited about this and now that it is here I am really struggling. Not sure what my problem is.

Part of my midwifery dream includes having a full-service birthing clinic. I would love to be able to provide pre/post natal care, birthing classes, yoga, and of course a place to birth. I would love to be able to teach yoga, not that as a midwife I would have a ton of free time to teach yoga but I thought if I don’t get certified now I will probably never get certified. So I did some googling and found Core Power – if you are not familiar I recommend checking them out (they offer a free week). I had done lots of other classes mostly through my gym with different instructors but this was totally different. I really enjoyed it. I found out about their program and am hoping to start training in June. The training is pretty pricey but they offer a scholarship of sorts - if you clean the studio once a week for at least three months, you get half off the cost of the training program. You also get free membership while you are cleaning. So, timing may not work out since there is a wait list for the cleaning but nevertheless I am excited and looking forward to it.

Next month I had planned on starting training for my first marathon. I am looking forward to being overwhelmed at fitting in more into my schedule…

On a lighter note – my trivia team and I won 2nd place!! We are moving on up. Our bar tab this week was only $7 after our certificate from last week. This means we can actually start drinking more for less. Awesome, right?

This week was not great but I am aware and all I can say is that next week will be better. I hope you all have a wonderful week. I heard this in yoga this week and I really liked it so I am sharing. She said, “I hope you are happy, I hope you are well …can’t remember… I hope you know the true nature of your being.” I love that I hope that as you travel through this week that you know the true nature of your being and are able to love and be loved just as you truly are.

Week 2: This is awkward...

This is the second week I have been blogging about school but the third week of school.

So, really waking up at 6am is really not my thing. I do have to wakeup at 6 on days that I have to be at school at 8, and it is really not fun. I just seem to be more productive in the evenings. Maybe my goal should be staying up later instead of getting up earlier...? Never the less, I do think that I am getting a better handle on my time management skills.

I took three more tests this week. I did fine. There was public outcry regarding these exams. The one thing I learned about my colleagues this week is that they are really high anxiety. Several of my professors talked about the number of emails they received prior to the exams and the number of complaints they received after. I have never really been one to complain to professors. What else can you do but try harder next time. We just finished week three, and I expect it to get harder not easier, so just breathe, relax, and try harder. This is advice to myself as much as it is to any other students that might be out there.

We tried a new (new to us) trivia night at the Irish Rover and came in third place. We had been going to The Snug and the best we placed was fifth. The Snug has something like 40 teams and the Rover has something like 9. What can I say at the Rover we are big fish in a small pond and I don’t mind it a bit. We won a $10 bar tab.As a side note: I think one of the hardest/biggest things to learn about time management is learning what is important and making time for it. I know going to a bar with my trivia team may not seem like the best use of my time but I think it is. I was talking with one of my classmates on the bus and I was telling her that while I study in the evenings my husband will come in and say do you want to (fill in various activities)? For the most part I have been saying no. But at some point I am going to watch that movie, I am going to join him on a dog walk, I am going to run to McDonald's to get an ice cream cone, and that is OK! Spending time with my loved ones is important to me, doing fun things that don't involve school and involve reducing my stress are important to me. Sometimes doing absolutely nothing is important to me.

One of my favorite pastimes is reading, the non text book type of books. I finished Midwives, a novel. I know it is in my bio but I haven’t really mentioned that my career goal is to be a midwife. I like to read lots of books about birth, midwives, etc. This book is a novel but was pretty well researched and for all I know could have been based on a real-life story. I have read many memoirs and those stories and this novel are very similar.

As I said last week I joing CUSNA. I was wondering why we don't have a facebook page and was told that we weren't allowed. And because I don't like being told no, I did some sleuthing on my own. I learned that CUSNA is actually able to have a fb page, contrary to what we were told. So exciting. I am not a huge fb fan but think it is pretty vital for our organization and will improve event participation. Which is awesome because most of what we do is volunteer work.

I did do the Jillian Michaels video and it was awesome and hard. I work out pretty regularly but it has been a while since I have gone to an aerobics class. Working out on your own, or running is totally different than these types of cardio workouts. And according to Jillian, if I keep doing them I will have a rockin’ swimsuit ready body in no time. And the weather in Denver was absolutly gorgeous this weekend and I did an outdoor run, woohoo! It has been a while.

In lab I we practiced the head/neck and ears, eye, nose and throat exam. I saw the red light reflex and used an ear scope for the first time. I really enjoy lab.

Perhaps in the future I will write a whole post dedicated to my favorite time wasters. But this weekend my husband said he wanted to get rid of our internet service. This is because he doesn't want to watch TV. To him it is all or nothing. So I said, "just don't watch it." Then we went over the list of shows that we really enjoy and we'll keep watching them. The others, we won't. The list is Breaking Bad, Mad Men, and I watch the Biggest Loser but this will probably be my last season. About 3 hours after this discussion I heard a King of the HIll playing. But I think I might actually stick to the list. We'll see...

We waited too long and did not get reservations for our traditional Le Central Valentine's Day celebration. Which was in some ways relieving; we are tight for $ and I have an exam at 9am the following morning. Nevertheless, I was in a V-Day mood and watched Sleepless in Seattle (and cried) and baked heart-shaped sugar cookies. I hope everyone feels happy and loved this V-day. In addition, if you are able or interested I hope you support any V-Day celebrations in your area. <3

I hope everyone has a great week.