not dead yet

Well, hello, long-forgotten blog! Really, it's not that I forgot you at all, it's just that: 1) nursing school is a total time-sucker; and 2) because nursing school requires all of my time, I really haven't had anything interesting to say. So I apologize for not filling this space with lots of blah, blah, blah about how all I did today was study and write some care plans. But for some reason, today I decided I needed to jot down some stuff. Why? Because at this time last year, I was just embarking on this long, weird adventure. And now, here I am, still on the island and only 2 semesters to go. I might just make it out of here alive ... and about 15 pounds heavier.

I'm now in my first semester as a senior nursing student! And so far, the only invasive thing I've done to a real, living patient was a vitamin K shot to a shiny new baby boy. "Welcome to the world, little guy, and here's your first dose of reality. It's all down hill from here." Let me just say, it is counter-intuitive to stick a sharp, pointy object into a baby. I stood there holding the needle above his little leg so long that my instructor finally said, "Okay, do it. You both have to get this over with before either of you can leave the hospital" Like pushing a kid off the high dive, next thing I knew I was stabbing a baby.
I have done invasive procedures on my fellow nursing students. We are all in a panic at this point in our education because most of us haven't had the opportunity to practice any of our fabulous new skills on real people. So.... (whisper voice) we "borrowed" some tools of the trade and have been practicing starting IVs on each other .... shhhh. Apparently, it's a Very Bad Thing to practice procedures on fellow students at our fine CON, so we are all sneaking around, trying to find private places where we can clandestinely stick needles up each other's arms. And because we are all new at this business, we have bruised needle tracks all up and down our arms. I told Mister about this illicit activity and he just rolled his eyes and wondered aloud when he would have to bail me out of jail. Blog, you may or may not remember the last time I was here I had started seeing a law enforcement officer. Well, he's still in the picture. Fortunately, he doesn't have jurisdiction where I live.

Last semester, I had clinical rotations in Psych, Pediatrics, and Labor & Delivery. Psych was incredibly boring. Mostly we just sat around and put together jig-saw puzzles. Peds was fun. I seriously enjoyed that rotation, so much so that I requested the pediatric emergency department for my senior practicum. Labor & Delivery was awesome - it is an incredible thing to see a child come into this world. I loved working in the nursery. OH, and one more thing in case you're wondering: NO. I STILL DO NOT WANT TO HAVE CHILDREN. If anything, that conviction was validated. But, my utmost respect goes out to all those women who go through this process WITHOUT DRUGS.

This semester, I get to spend time with the oldsters and the general med-surg folks. We are just getting started so I'm not quite sure how I feel about it, yet. Generally speaking, I like the elder folk, so I'm optimistic that summer semester will go by quickly and relatively pain-free.