Busy taking care of ME
Hi, all!
Sorry it’s been so long since I’ve posted. Truthfully, I haven’t had anything nearly as interesting as being punched in the sternum happen, for a weeks now. Actually, that’s not true. My job is interesting everyday. I learn new things all the time, not necessarily textbook things, either. I love patient care.
Admittedly, I don’t love my classroom time so much. It’s part of our orientation, and it’s about my least favorite part. While I feel lucky to have the opportunity to relax in a classroom and learn at my own pace, I miss my patients, and I often feel like I’ll never learn to prioritize and manage my time well as long as I’m away from the bedside. My brain is currently on such an incredible and constant level of overload that I also feel like I’m just not absorbing as much of the highly technical information that I could be. I almost wish I could retake the class in a year or so.
Additionally, I never thought it would happen, but I am actually kind of itching to be off orientation. Everyone said it would be a natural process, but I truly believed I would have to be dragged away from my preceptor kicking and screaming and begging for mercy. Not so! I am a little shocked, admittedly, but moreso, I am feeling more and more ready each shift to be on my own. I can also tell because I get more and more perturbed when my preceptor(s) have to intervene for whatever reason. I’m starting to feel like I need to be left alone to do every.single.task, no matter how insignificant, so that I can learn to manage my time better and get the “big picture” before I’m really on my own. Anyone else get that feeling or am I being a petulant child? Probably both, really.
But alas, it’s what I get and damn, am I lucky to have such great coworkers and managers who really support this lengthy orientation process. I shouldn’t be complaining. I try to remember how good I have it. One quick glance around allnurses.com reminds me that I am really lucky; there are a lot of new grads out there (or so the website would have you think) who are being sabotaged and thrown to the wolves every single day. I”ve experienced none of that.
Aside from working, the most important activities in my life have focused on…ME. I am starting to notice that the best nurses on our unit have another thing in common: they take care of themselves, they do things they enjoy, and they always make time for a little pampering, no matter what (even if they have kids.) And I am happy to join the club, now that I have a decent steady income. (Damn, it royally rocks not to be a student anymore.) My husband and I have taken a couple of mini-vacations to nice hotels, eaten a pricey steak dinner, splurged for the better view, and basically have been enjoying ourselves all summer. Since last year’s summer was so worthless (I was working 40 hours a week in almost daily rotating shifts AND taking class AND going to clinical…) I have been trying to make up for it this summer. Success. Last weekend we went white water rafting, which was about the highlight of the entire season, if you ask me. I don’t know what we’ll do next…but I’m feeling the need for a good massage.
And while Sean over at mystrongmedicine.com is counting down to his beach vacation (how long is it now, Sean?) I am looking forward to a 2 week trip to Europe at the end of September. The best part? Paid time off.
I just love being a nurse.
Tags: learning, new nurse, nurse, nursing, orientation, vacation
This entry was posted on Sunday, July 12th, 2009 at 2:14 pm and is filed under first year, icu, nursing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
July 12th, 2009 at 4:26 pm
(holding my stomach while laughing)…
You and me both. I love being a nurse.
Yes It’s less than a month away now. I can smell the water.
As for you and orientation. We all end up in that scenario. We all want to jump off orientation and take our ‘rite of passage’.
Glad to hear things are still going well.
July 22nd, 2009 at 11:15 pm
[...] Carolyn from Brain Scramble takes us back to the crazy world of first year nursing, and reminds us to take some time for ourselves. [...]
July 22nd, 2009 at 11:26 pm
Hi Caroline –
I just read this article and thought of you! http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/07/22/a-nurses-very-bad-day/
— Brooke (from the gym)
July 22nd, 2009 at 11:37 pm
I just realized the author of that article posts ~biweekly, so maybe you’re already familiar…
July 23rd, 2009 at 9:50 am
Hi Caroline/Carolyn;
Pete Dowan here !
I realize that there is very little chance that this e-mail will result in anything, but that’s better than the zero chance if I didn’t try. I was googling for Nurse related blogs and I came across your site and thought I’d contact you.
I am a medically disabled songwriter from St Catharines, Ontario, Canada, and have written many songs about many different subjects and in several different styles, but one in particular was a result of my numerous times spent in various hospitals in my area.
One of the last times I came home I decided to try and write one for those who had cared for my well being during those trying times and I focused on the ones that were fresh in my memory. The song I wrote about (and for) them is called “LADIES IN WHITE”. They wore white uniforms and were all female (YES, I know that there ARE male nurses AND know that not many wear white any more… but besides how amazingly efficient and caring they were, that was what I remembered of them .. besides, since white is actually made up of all the colours of the spectrum, it therefore represents every colour). It is not rock or pop, rap or hip hop or even a ballad… it is just a happy, simple to sing-along-with, uptempo song.
I mention that I am medically disabled because various factors of my condition stop me from being able to use professional studios to record my songs, so I have to do them here, at home, in my basement, on donated equipment from musicians I used to work with. For the same reason, I also am unable to perform my music live.
I was wondering if you’d like to hear the song, since your blog is about and for nurses. I can send you an MP3, a short term link or it can be heard on my “MySpace” page … which is myspace.com/petedowan … the fifth song on the list. I’d love to hear your opinion on it.
I DO understand if you’d rather not.
Have a great day, and keep smiling.
Musically Yours,
Pete Dowan {:-) [pronounced like plowin' ]
pdowan@aol.com
July 30th, 2009 at 3:45 pm
I am going to refer back to this when I am in the depths of whatever hell await me next semester! Sounds awesome!!!
January 5th, 2010 at 1:04 pm
I love reading your blog! Its given me a lot of insight in to what awaits me at the end of this semester. It seems like you landed a wonderful job with an awesome group of co-workers that are helping you through the rough stuff. I hope to find the same. Keep at it!