As I write this post I am exhausted and sitting on the couch in a silent home (Kayla is at camp, Caitlin is at the beach, and Sarah is in Charlotte visiting her older brother). I am enjoying a bowl of frozen yogurt with blueberries except for the fact that I keep finding ants on my arm. I wish I was joking about that the ants, but I am totally not. We have an ant problem in the Ashburton kitchen and silly me left my computer on the counter. Who would have thought the ants would have climbed on my MacBook and then traveled with me to the living room. I guess they were confused about what kind of apple it was. Har har.
Today I worked my first 12 hour shift, solo. I felt bad for my nurse preceptor because I wasn't really sure what my role was and there was a slight learning curve. The one day during orientation that a nurse aid was supposed to "show me the ropes", she ended up just telling me about her boy friend and kid, then I ended up doing odd jobs for the nurses. Today I was basically thrown in with the wolves. I think it was good though because it forced me to learn everything quickly. Not only did I do the basic nurse aid tasks, but my preceptor called me into the rooms whenever she was doing wound care or discontinuing IV's so that I could do them. Did I mention that one of the nurses on the floor called in sick today too? We had extra patients, I had a real job and an unofficial role, AND most of our patients were completely immobile. I was running around like a mad man the whole time. One of the female patients made me feel completely gross. I feel horrible saying this, but she did. She was obese, incontinent, had edema (swelling of the legs that makes them rock hard), sloughing black skin, was dirty, smelly, etc etc etc. The worse part was that it was like she was embracing her state. She called me every 30 minutes to put her on the bed pan, to get her off the bed pan (then she said she couldn't use the bed pan. I asked her why and she acted like I was stupid for asking her that), to give her bath in bed; she asked for cookies, ice cream, for the telephone to be moved closer to her ear, for me to fill out her meal selections for the next day, for me to call the nurse. It was ridiculous. Physical therapy was supposed to work with her to get her out of bed, and when I went in the room after they had left I saw her in an awkward position with one shoe on, with her saying "they just left and they aren't coming back." She thought it was funny. The whole time we tried to help her she would complain and moan or say "oh save me Jesus," but then as if verbally slapping us in the face she would say thank you. At one point the nurse and I were assisting her to use the bathroom on the bed pan. The nurse rolled up the bed linens and when she did, a bunch of dead skin and dirt went flying into my face. It was the most disgusting thing ever. I don't mind packing or cleaning wounds, or even wiping people after they use the bathroom, but this really bothered me. It was purely bad hygiene. I took a shower as soon as I got home.
The rest of my patients were physically difficult, but mentally not. They were as compliant as they could be. There was one old man with a lot of medical problems who couldn't remember much. He started throwing up after dinner and said, "I am done. Look at me, I am falling apart," in the saddest, most sincere voice. His daughter was there and said, "no you aren't daddy, your stomach is just upset after dialysis" (kidney treatment). It was so sad. Another one of my patients was talking about her granddaughter in China and how she had something called a "blog" and asked me what it was. I laughed and told her. He granddaughter is teaching English there.
I think I would like to be an OR nurse. I love the cutting and sewing, and everything is sterile! Maybe I would have a hard time because it is so cold, but I could just layer up. It would be worth it to me, I think. Eh I guess I don't need to figure that out yet either. It is only the first day!
Sleep beckons!
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Friday, June 18, 2010
I am sitting on the porch, my favorite spot of the Ashburton House, and thought I would show off the AWESOME bracelet that Kayla gave me. It is from Uganda (she came back a few weeks ago). She only gave me the bracelet if I promised to pray for the Uganda children. I told her I would. Africa is such a different place than China... I think I would like to go there someday. I still want to do Mercy Ships, so maybe that will be my golden ticket. Also, please note the amazing necklace I am wearing made by Rebekah Loffer. My favorite jewelry pieces are things she has crafted for me... Did I mention she is a wonderful human being too? I will be living with her and Kate Rouse (also a lovely person) when I move back to Charlotte in August. I can't wait!!!
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Dance, Dance
I have a friend from Charlotte whose sister is spending the summer at a dance camp/school at Duke University. I had met her once, but because she is living in Raleigh we decided it would be fun to hang out. I figured if her brother was a fun guy, surely she would be too (she was!) Last night we drank lattes together at the Royal Bean, a coffee shop. The barista was actually a girl I met my freshman year at NCSU. Small world! After talking to my new friend about her summer dance school, I decided I was going to make my "I want to learn how to dance" a reality. I have tried signing up for classes at UNCC before, but the nursing curriculum made it impossible. When I came home from our outting, I told my roommate Caitlin, a trained dancer, that I wanted her to give me a lesson on Thursday/today. She agreed, and I am pleased to announce that I had my first dance lesson today! We put on our swim suits and plie'-ed, twirled, leapt, and jumped. It was fun, but I had to think a lot. Butt tight, pelvis tucked, shoulders relaxed, feet flat, all while having a string pull my head straight. I asked for Caitlin to give me homework to practice and had fun "showing off" to my other roommates. I look like a 3 year old. haha.
I also went to Bikram/hot yoga this morning. I was not a fan. I liked that it was warm, but not 100 degrees!!! It smelled too. The instructor was not very hands-on either. I feel like if I am going to pay someone to "lead my yoga practice", that I want them to adjust and correct my positioning. Oh well, lesson learned. I definitely sweat a lot, and soaked through my clothing. You would have thought I jumped in a pool. I guess that means I am "cleansed" or whatever. All I know is I felt gross during the class, and almost like I wanted to throw up. Funnnn.
I think my other roommate Kayla is cooking dinner tonight. She is a GREAT little chef. She is leaving in a few days for camp, so hopefully I can learn some of her cooking skills while she is still here. She gave me a bracelet from Uganda today but only if I promised to pray for the Ugandan people. I told her I would :)
Time to go to the grocery store! Later folks!
I also went to Bikram/hot yoga this morning. I was not a fan. I liked that it was warm, but not 100 degrees!!! It smelled too. The instructor was not very hands-on either. I feel like if I am going to pay someone to "lead my yoga practice", that I want them to adjust and correct my positioning. Oh well, lesson learned. I definitely sweat a lot, and soaked through my clothing. You would have thought I jumped in a pool. I guess that means I am "cleansed" or whatever. All I know is I felt gross during the class, and almost like I wanted to throw up. Funnnn.
I think my other roommate Kayla is cooking dinner tonight. She is a GREAT little chef. She is leaving in a few days for camp, so hopefully I can learn some of her cooking skills while she is still here. She gave me a bracelet from Uganda today but only if I promised to pray for the Ugandan people. I told her I would :)
Time to go to the grocery store! Later folks!
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
11 hours!
Sorry I am a day late with everything, but life is busy here at the Ashburton House.
I worked my first (almost) full shift yesterday/Monday. It was 11 hours, and surprisingly wasn't too bad. There were a few dead hours where I was walking around looking for something to do, but other than that I enjoyed it. The regular nurse aide's sat down and chatted while we had free time, which I think is acceptable, but I felt uncomfortable doing that on the clock. Maybe my views will change over time, but right now I prefer to be busy. The first patient I had was paralyzed from the chest down. He was an old insurance salesman, was divorced, negative, and depressed. I tried to hang out and talk with him as much as I could, but he was draining. Speaking of draining, at one point when I was talking to him he started to self-catheterize himself to use the restroom. He told me I could leave if I was embarrassed, but that he was used to everyone seeing everything. I don't feel uncomfortable with human anatomy or urine, but I do find it inappropriate that he didn't excuse himself from the conversation or notify me until after he had already started. Later, the same patient asked me if was mormon because I had mentioned I went to China for the summer. He said mormons often go to China when they are my age because they think the Chinese "need our help", he rolled his eyes as he said this and told me that we need China's help. I disagree.
Some other experiences I had were removing a Naso-gastric tube from a woman's nose, discontinuing an IV catheter, as well as taking vital signs and emptying urine bags. I had another patient who was an elderly man who started crying while I was in his room with another nurse. He had gotten his foot amputated on Thursday due to diabetes complications and said that it had all "just hit him." I wasn't sure how to be very therapeutic, so I stood next to the patient while the other nurse sat on his bed and rubbed his arm. The patient was from New York, and was a clean-cut man. His foot problems started out as an ingrown toenail that a pediatrist cut out, but then the foot continued to exhibit circulation problems and eventually turned black. This all happened within 6 months. I always assumed that only uncompliant diabetic patients were the ones that needed amputations. I see now that that is not true.
I had another male patient who was probably around 60. He was really sweet and was on the floor because he had been having gastric pain and was being held for further testing. The poor guy was not allowed to have any food by mouth, so every time I asked him if I could get him anything, he said he wanted a "big ole' cheeseburger." Haha. I ended up having a nice conversation with him about my career goals, and how ultimately I want to travel and perhaps even do missions overseas. When his friend and wife came to visit him later, he told them all about me and they all talked about how some folks from their Church just came back from a mission trip to Honduras. Before my shift ended, I said goodbye to them, and he winked at me saying: "Sarah, go do missions." As I closed the door he told his wife, "she is such a sweet girl..." It was really encouraging to hear that.
Speaking of mission work, a doctor at this hospital is going over to Uganda to set up an OR and teach the doctors how to perform surgeries. How cool is that? I also talked to one of the the traveling nurses again and she told me to work night shifts because the camaraderie is better. From what I have seen of this floor so far, I think the day-time camaraderie is fine to me! I do NOT want to work nights. No, no, no.
When I came home, my roommates were cooking dinner again for a host of guests. I went for a quick run to de-flate my mind, and then joined the group to dine. They had made hamburger pie, salad, and banana pudding with marmalade. I was weary of the hamburger pie, but I tried it and it wasn't bad. They all went out for "pint night" down town, but I decided to stay in and catch up with Sarah and another friend, and go to sleep. Working 12 hours is mentally tiring. My body can handle it, but my mind is ready to sleep.
Today I have the whole day off. YESS!! That is definitely a benefit of working 12 hour shifts is that you get 4 days off. I have all kinds of errands to run and tasks to take care of, but I have a feeling it will be a great day :)
I worked my first (almost) full shift yesterday/Monday. It was 11 hours, and surprisingly wasn't too bad. There were a few dead hours where I was walking around looking for something to do, but other than that I enjoyed it. The regular nurse aide's sat down and chatted while we had free time, which I think is acceptable, but I felt uncomfortable doing that on the clock. Maybe my views will change over time, but right now I prefer to be busy. The first patient I had was paralyzed from the chest down. He was an old insurance salesman, was divorced, negative, and depressed. I tried to hang out and talk with him as much as I could, but he was draining. Speaking of draining, at one point when I was talking to him he started to self-catheterize himself to use the restroom. He told me I could leave if I was embarrassed, but that he was used to everyone seeing everything. I don't feel uncomfortable with human anatomy or urine, but I do find it inappropriate that he didn't excuse himself from the conversation or notify me until after he had already started. Later, the same patient asked me if was mormon because I had mentioned I went to China for the summer. He said mormons often go to China when they are my age because they think the Chinese "need our help", he rolled his eyes as he said this and told me that we need China's help. I disagree.
Some other experiences I had were removing a Naso-gastric tube from a woman's nose, discontinuing an IV catheter, as well as taking vital signs and emptying urine bags. I had another patient who was an elderly man who started crying while I was in his room with another nurse. He had gotten his foot amputated on Thursday due to diabetes complications and said that it had all "just hit him." I wasn't sure how to be very therapeutic, so I stood next to the patient while the other nurse sat on his bed and rubbed his arm. The patient was from New York, and was a clean-cut man. His foot problems started out as an ingrown toenail that a pediatrist cut out, but then the foot continued to exhibit circulation problems and eventually turned black. This all happened within 6 months. I always assumed that only uncompliant diabetic patients were the ones that needed amputations. I see now that that is not true.
I had another male patient who was probably around 60. He was really sweet and was on the floor because he had been having gastric pain and was being held for further testing. The poor guy was not allowed to have any food by mouth, so every time I asked him if I could get him anything, he said he wanted a "big ole' cheeseburger." Haha. I ended up having a nice conversation with him about my career goals, and how ultimately I want to travel and perhaps even do missions overseas. When his friend and wife came to visit him later, he told them all about me and they all talked about how some folks from their Church just came back from a mission trip to Honduras. Before my shift ended, I said goodbye to them, and he winked at me saying: "Sarah, go do missions." As I closed the door he told his wife, "she is such a sweet girl..." It was really encouraging to hear that.
Speaking of mission work, a doctor at this hospital is going over to Uganda to set up an OR and teach the doctors how to perform surgeries. How cool is that? I also talked to one of the the traveling nurses again and she told me to work night shifts because the camaraderie is better. From what I have seen of this floor so far, I think the day-time camaraderie is fine to me! I do NOT want to work nights. No, no, no.
When I came home, my roommates were cooking dinner again for a host of guests. I went for a quick run to de-flate my mind, and then joined the group to dine. They had made hamburger pie, salad, and banana pudding with marmalade. I was weary of the hamburger pie, but I tried it and it wasn't bad. They all went out for "pint night" down town, but I decided to stay in and catch up with Sarah and another friend, and go to sleep. Working 12 hours is mentally tiring. My body can handle it, but my mind is ready to sleep.
Today I have the whole day off. YESS!! That is definitely a benefit of working 12 hour shifts is that you get 4 days off. I have all kinds of errands to run and tasks to take care of, but I have a feeling it will be a great day :)
Monday, June 14, 2010
Yesterday...
I feel like I have so much to say today...
First of all, let me tell you about my day yesterday. I went to a Church called Vintage 21 yesterday morning with my roommate and her family. Kayla's two little sisters and "Maw Maw" (grandma) were visiting because it was her sister's birthday and they went to see Beauty and the Beast the night before. It was nice to go to Church, but it wasn't the same as home. The Pastor reminded me of Rob Bell and seemed to preach a philosophy or living sacrifically which I enjoyed. I will probably go back, except I found out today that the nurse I am following works most Sundays and I have to work the same hours as her. BOO! After Church I had some lunch at home, and then went out to Umstead Park with a new friend for some hiking and slack-lining. For those of you who do not know, slack-lining is basically tight rope walking on rock climbing rope in between trees, barefoot. I had a lot of fun trying it out, but was very unsuccessful. I had to hold onto my friend the entire time while being mindful not to bite off my tongue. The heavens opened up while we were out there and we got drenched. A day later, my car seat is STILL wet. I drove home, took a quick shower, and then went out for dinner with my roommate Kayla and another new friend. I was pretty proud of myself for having planned the dinner. Looks like I am already building a small social circle for myself! That didn't take too long either!
First of all, let me tell you about my day yesterday. I went to a Church called Vintage 21 yesterday morning with my roommate and her family. Kayla's two little sisters and "Maw Maw" (grandma) were visiting because it was her sister's birthday and they went to see Beauty and the Beast the night before. It was nice to go to Church, but it wasn't the same as home. The Pastor reminded me of Rob Bell and seemed to preach a philosophy or living sacrifically which I enjoyed. I will probably go back, except I found out today that the nurse I am following works most Sundays and I have to work the same hours as her. BOO! After Church I had some lunch at home, and then went out to Umstead Park with a new friend for some hiking and slack-lining. For those of you who do not know, slack-lining is basically tight rope walking on rock climbing rope in between trees, barefoot. I had a lot of fun trying it out, but was very unsuccessful. I had to hold onto my friend the entire time while being mindful not to bite off my tongue. The heavens opened up while we were out there and we got drenched. A day later, my car seat is STILL wet. I drove home, took a quick shower, and then went out for dinner with my roommate Kayla and another new friend. I was pretty proud of myself for having planned the dinner. Looks like I am already building a small social circle for myself! That didn't take too long either!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Open Blog
Hey friends!
I have decided to go ahead and open up my blog to the world wide web (at least temporarily), so that I can apply for a scholarship. I found a random one for nursing students and the only requirement is that I have to post a blog about laser tattoo removal at some point. Weird, I know. So if you could help me out and share my blog with some friends, that would be great!
Thanks so much! Have a wonderful Sunday :)
Sarah
I have decided to go ahead and open up my blog to the world wide web (at least temporarily), so that I can apply for a scholarship. I found a random one for nursing students and the only requirement is that I have to post a blog about laser tattoo removal at some point. Weird, I know. So if you could help me out and share my blog with some friends, that would be great!
Thanks so much! Have a wonderful Sunday :)
Sarah
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Rain or Shine
This morning I ran the Susan G. Komen competitive 5k as a part of Duke Hospital's team (they signed me up for free!). The race began at Meredith College and we were supposed to park all the way at the RBC center and take a shuttle to the starting line. I only live 2+ miles from Meredith, so I contemplated walking, but my roommate Sarah insisted on driving me because of the required 6:30 am arrival time. The race was fun, and I finished 4th in my age group. Not bad! Afterward I walked around and collected a ton of freebees such as a lunch box, water bottles, pens, bananas, vitamin water, power bars, slap-bracelet reflectors, and go-green grocery bags. After I stocked up on goodies, I went to the Duke Hospital tent to help out. While I was there we took a team photo, and then I headed home. The jog back was extremely tricky due to my heavy bags. People must have thought I was crazy the way I had strapped them across my chest and tried to hurry home-it was hot!
I laid out in the sun with my other roommate Caitlin for a little while, and then headed off to a World Cup party. We didn't stay very long because Caitlin had plans with her sister, Kayla (my other roommate), and Kayla's sister, to go see Beauty and the Beast. I was given the option to tag along, but I really just wanted to chill out. After going to the grocery store, I cooked up dinner and enjoyed a quiet meal on the porch while it drizzled. I will probably go to bed extremely early tonight... I still don't feel like I have caught up from the week. While I am loving living with the girls, it is definitely nice to have a quiet evening every now and then :)
I laid out in the sun with my other roommate Caitlin for a little while, and then headed off to a World Cup party. We didn't stay very long because Caitlin had plans with her sister, Kayla (my other roommate), and Kayla's sister, to go see Beauty and the Beast. I was given the option to tag along, but I really just wanted to chill out. After going to the grocery store, I cooked up dinner and enjoyed a quiet meal on the porch while it drizzled. I will probably go to bed extremely early tonight... I still don't feel like I have caught up from the week. While I am loving living with the girls, it is definitely nice to have a quiet evening every now and then :)
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