This Thing Called Life

     This is the end of my second week in my new Triage role. At the end of the day, nursing is nursing but you still learn new things every day. Each day I clock in and check the messages, refill requests, prior authorization forms, and voicemails from patients. Throughout the day patients will call in and each call varies. Some patients are calling because they are in labor, have a UTI, yeast infection or BV. Other calls coming in are for pap results, genetic testing, ultrasounds, and biopsies. Everything I do from my desk is what I used to do on the floor. I assess patient symptoms over the phone and decide whether they need to try over the counter treatment, come in for an appointment, go to an Urgent Care, or head to to the emergency room.       At first when I accepted this position, I didn't know how it would play out. I'm used to running around doing multiple things at one time and always being busy. Surprisingly this is amazing. I'm not runnin...

      Lately I have been feeling like I am done being a nurse. Patients are rude, non-compliant, and have no respect or idea how hard nursing actually is. They show up late for their appointments and sometimes they don't even call to cancel they just don't show. They don't get labs done, scans done, or comply with diets we give them to help improve their conditions. The work load that comes with nursing is also stressful and frustrating. Constantly being told that there is new documentation that needs to be done in the patients chart as if what is already done isn't enough, drawing blood, random EKGs, answering phone calls, calling in prescriptions, prior authorizations for medications, scheduling and canceling appointments, referrals, and there is much more I'm probably missing.      When I went on vacation last week for an ENTIRE week, it made me realize there is so much more to life than working all the time and caring for patients who have no self respe...

     Recently I have been thinking about going back to school for Personal Trainer or a Physical Therapy Assistant. I love being a nurse and helping patients but I kind of want something new where I can still people. Nursing isn't like the shows were patients are humble and appreciative. Most of my patients are rude and disrespectful. Patients don't understand that it isn't my fault their insurance doesn't cover a medication or a treatment we do here in the office. They also get upset when they are the ones who are non compliant with their medication regimens and wonder why their blood pressure and/or blood glucose is through the roof. I feel like working with people who need to be up and moving will help me become more active and be creative with ways to help them regain their strength. I won't be able to start right away because I have too much debt but I just want to make a decision that way I can start working towards that new goal and chapter in my life.

     Recently within the last few weeks I have so tired of being a nurse. Between drawing blood, answering calls and patient questions, rooming patients and taking vitals, processing prior authorizations for medications and more, I am DONE. Some patients are non compliant with their medications but will complain about not feeling well. Others aren't patient enough to wait for lab work to come back or scan results. I have spent my 20s taking care of every one else but myself. By the time I get off from work, I don't have energy to work out. I don't even want to eat half the time. I just want to sleep. Nursing is not what shows and movies make it out to be. Nursing school doesn't show you the ropes of what happens behind the scenes when the nurses are doing more than just taking vitals. Plus I am the only nurse in the practice so I have no peers to ask for help or vent to. I love helping people but I hate being stressed and feeling my anxiety go through the roof. I was sw...

     The other day I went to Barnes and Noble with the guy I'm currently dating so he could pick up textbooks for his new semester and it made me sad that I was no longer in school. After LPN school I kept telling people it drained me and that it would be too expensive to go back. Plus I feared my anxiety and depression would hold me back. But today I looked at the college site that currently offers the LPN to BSN program I've always wanted to attend and I have decided I will go back and get my Bachelors because that has been my long term career goal for the longest time. Yes, that means more loans, care plans, tears, stress, and hair pulling but I will do it. My plan is to pay off my community college, enroll again, take the placement tests, and knock out the prerequisites I need to apply to the BSN program. My plan after paying off my community college is to ask if I can have Mondays and Wednesdays off or Tuesdays and Thursdays so I can take more than one class to get t...

     Working two jobs is something I never thought I would have to do again since I'm a nurse. When my former boyfriend was living with me he paid rent so instead of saving money, I put that money towards other bills and debt to get them paid off quicker. When he left me I was at a loss for words and now I'm realizing I need more money in order to stay afloat and stay ahead. I stress constantly due to my anxiety and now searching for another job has me even more stressed out. I need so many things for myself and for my house. There is no way I can afford to pay my bills and buy things I need (like a windshield for my car) with the amount of money I'm making. I'm not sure if I want to get a second part time nursing job like at a nursing home or if I want something different like waitressing or retail. My main goal is to get my car paid off, knock out my student loans, and buy the things I need and save some then I will quit the second job. I have worked so hard to get to...

     LPN school was stressful but taught me a lot. It was also expensive so of course I kept EVERYTHING from my program!

     Going from working two full time jobs and full time school at night to part time work and full time school is a major adjustment and I was not ready for what I have gotten myself into. Why did I stop doing both full time? I was very stressed, unhappy, and depressed. My grades were slipping and so was my attitude and motivation. So I took a leap of faith and decided to test out the "full time student" life. Let's just say that it is nothing like I hoped it would be.      I quit going to community college a while back because it seemed like a waste of my time and money. They were making me take pre-requisites before taking the actual pre-req I needed for nursing school. I found an LPN program near me and started this past January. It isn't hard but the work to make the grades can be exhausting. Before switching to a full time day student, I was working 7-3 then going to school in the evening 5:30-10:30 five days a week. I had no time for my fa...

     The last time I calculated how much I needed in order to pay for my A.A.S degree out of pocket was a lot. I think it was around $15,000. I jut went back onto my community college website and re-calculated my costs. It was near $11,000. I guess the last time I added it up I was being really cautious just in case I needed to pay more for certain things like books or my uniforms. This is kind of good news. It's still a lot of money but it isn't as much. I only have 6 pre-reqs left before I can apply to nursing program. I really hope I get accepted. I plan on getting my BSN from Sentara if you're employed with them it's about $9,000 and if you aren't it's about $13,000. My first semester of college I told myself I would do whatever I could do to pay out of pocket for school and materials and stay away from student loans. I really need to start saving more money in order for me to do that. I only have about $1500 in my savings now and that will pay for my micro-...

     My work hours are Monday through Friday 8a.m. until 4p.m. This morning my boss was already getting on my nerves at 8:02 a.m. He started asking me all of these questions and asking for the phone numbers so he could call some customers. Dude, I just got here. Can you at least let my computer get up and running?      The money I make here is great but it gets so annoying. And lately, the customers that have been calling to schedule or ask questions have really bothered me. Most of the time when people call to schedule they ask directly for my boss thinking they will get a sooner date for their boat to be painted or worked on. Guess what? MY job is to schedule boats. So when I tell you the next available date and you don't like it, talking to my boss doesn't make the boats before you disappear.      On a positive note, I start the nurse aide program in 26 days. Yes, I have a countdown in my head and on Facebook. I can't wait...

     Yesterday at the CNA informational session, I realized I'm making the right choice. The instructor told us pretty much everything we needed to know about the program. She even told us what our certification test was on. We will have a 70 question written part of the state exam. Then they call 2 people at a time to perform a 25 minutes skills part. The lecture and clinical portion of the program will help prepare us for the state board exam.      Our uniforms will consist of white scrubs and white shoes. We will also need a stethoscope, the textbook,workbook, and a 2 step TB test. They just started doing background checks so I will need to get one of those as well. The lecture part is a total of 80 hours and the clinical part is a total of 40. We go to real nursing homes to do the clinical portion. The only thing that sucks about starting this is that I have to wait until the fall semester to start. The good thing is that the evening times wi...

     When I actually sit and think about the classes I have already taken and still have left to take it really isn't that much at all. After the two classes I'm currently taking now are done, I have 6 classes left but 3 of them will be taken by themselves since they are the hardest. What I've also realized about the year and 11 months or so I have left before applying to the nursing program is that I will have to get some type of loan to pay for it. There is no way I will be able to save up $21,0000 in that amount of time. This really bums me out because I want to pay for everything out of pocket as much as possible.      The day I attended open house at the nursing campus, the teacher made it very clear that we should try our hardest not to juggle work with the program since it is so time consuming. My life is going to change drastically when I start this program. I'm so used to working all the time and not depending on others to loan me money....

     This semester I'm taking English 112 (College Comp 2) and Intro to Psychology. Before my semester started I was getting anxious and excited. My first day of these classes was last week and so far I like them for the most part.      My English teacher is kind of all over the place. She will go from talking about one thing to talking about another. She has already given us our syllabus but we can't start most of our papers because she has to give us topics when the time comes. For those of you who have not taken this class yet, this class is the class where you write research papers and long essays ( just a warning). I'm taking this class on Mondays only so it is a good thing that I have the whole week to get my homework/papers done for this class.      Intro to Psychology seems pretty cool. My teacher has already told us she is more of a "hands on" type of person so instead of using our books she would prefer to have clas...

Today I'm leaving work early to attend an orientation to healthcare at my community college. The only issue I'm having is that the campus is located in another city about 40 minutes away and it is the only campus that offers nursing. I'm really excited about it. With gas prices the way they are, I'm going to need to either move to that city to save money or work closer to the school so that I'm not going to all different cities spending hundreds in gas. I still haven't been accepted into the program since I have all of these other classes to take, but I have always been the type of person who plans ahead. I just want to be more than ready when it is time to cross a new bridge. It always seems like there is an obstacle in the way. Like at community college, you have to take these math essential courses just to take actual math classes like chemistry and stuff. I honestly think it is a way just for colleges to earn money. Anyways, happy hump day people and make th...

          Nursing school is obviously going to be very expensive. But I also need thousands of dollars just to take the co-requisites I have to have just to apply to the program. When I tell people I'm saving every penny, I mean it. Literally, I'm saving every coin and bill I get to go towards school. My biggest goal is to pay completely out of pocket for school or at least as much as possible, that way I don't have to get a loan and if I do, it will be a small one. You're probably wondering why I don't file a FAFSA and get pell grants and such. Well since my I "make to much" money, I only get about $300 from the government and that $300 will only be applied to my costs if I'm enrolled full time, which I can't since I work full time.            My biggest tip for saving is to make sure that school is your priority, not shopping or just wasting money on other things you don't have to have. I ...

I start Chemistry this fall at community college so that I can apply to  a University nursing school. I have set some academic goals for myself this semester. Even though I suck at math, I really want to try and excel in Chemistry so that when I take college Chemistry, I will kind of know what I'm doing. My academic goals are as follows: Have at LEAST a "B" average  STUDY Never miss a class Ask for help when I need it Be interested in it, since I will be taking it for a whole semester Enjoy it, Learning is FUN Do not fail this class. It will show up on my transcripts :/ I never took Chemistry in high school and Algebra and I do not get along. But I believe in myself and I want to go to nursing school so bad that I know I can achieve these goals as long as I put my mind to it.

I go to open house for nursing school in 8 days! I am so excited to have such a positive change in my life. Later this week I will be having a yard sale to hopefully make some money to put towards school. I've been saving here and there for a little while because I knew I would need money for community college, so since I'm transferring from there I will use that money too. The more I save and pay out of pocket, the better. Loans scare me but that is the only way to go since I'm not rich and neither are my parents. My only obstacle left to over come is finding a decent part time that pays pretty well and that will work with my schedule. I have always loved retail so maybe I can find a job at the mall or something. I would love to try serving or be a waitress but most places want people who are experienced. Luckily for me, I have barely any bills. I have to pay my phone bill, credit card bill, and have money for gas and car repairs. That's it. Thankfully my parents don...

For a 20 year old, I must say that I am VERY mature, sometimes too mature. I pay most of my bills by myself and I am very independent. Rarely ever do I rely on someone. I really want to make good grades at community college and transfer to Sentara College of Health Sciences for their Traditional BSN program so that I can become an RN. Reaching this goal is very important to me. I want to be successful so that eventually, when I have a family of my own, we can be financially stable. I don't want to become a registered nurse for the paycheck. Yes, the pay and job outlook look great for this career field, but I am mainly doing it because I LOVE helping people. I love volunteering and raising money for charities. Registered nursing will give me the opportunity to help others get better. The job will be hard and demanding at times, but it will all be worth it. I wish I could skip all of these prerequisites and go straight into the hands on part! I want to inspire others to take on caree...