This week is thankfulness week! And I am so thankful for the people in my life; those who encourage me; those who make me laugh; those who feed me; those who employ me; those who teach me; those who stick by me even when I may seem non-existent; those who love me even if we are 465 miles away; those who pray for me; those who are dedicated to watching me grow; those who are dedicated to helping me grow. I am so thankful for the situation and circumstances with which God has graced me. My life is like a revolving door; people come in and people go out; either way, God led their path to mine, and I am thankful for the impact each soul has had in my life. I am thankful for the me I have left to become the me I have become. In two years, I will be someone different, but a better different; I will be a nurse ready to take on the world and help the world's inhabitants in whatever way Jesus sees fit.
My heart is full of gratitude; words cannot express my thankfulness, so two simple ones will have to do: Thank you.
Thursday Nov 26 - Happy Thanksgiving!
School is out [temporarily] and the season of eating has arrived - and my stomach feels like it is going to blow up, still and I haven't eaten anything in a good five hours. Although I am excited the holidays have 'officially' arrived, I have two more weeks until I can take my study pants off and try to reestablish my social life. With the extra two days given to me so graciously by UNCP, I was able to be semi-productive and get some stuff done. The past two days have been spent beginning and finishing my paper for my teaching project which will debut next Wednesday. Below is a timeline of my semi-productiveness.
I have two projects due this next week: a nutrition poster project on herbs and spices and a teaching project on anticoagulant therapy for PVT. My nutrition project is worth 10% of my total grade whereas my teaching project is worth a pass/fail grade. Sometimes I want to rage - something on which I work so hard is worth none of my numerical grade, but can fail me out of my semester. I just wish it was worth a grade because it could possibly benefit my final grade, even just by a little bit. Not only do I want to rage, but I am also saddened by how little these projects are worth to my numerical identification because of how much I enjoy projects; every project is a chance for me to expose my creativity. I am able to temporarily migrate away from the linear thinking of studying and enter the realm of passion revealed through creativity. Confession: my heart belongs in the creative realm.
Want to get a taste of my nursing-school-projects; I will epitomize them through the epitome of nursing school: NCLEX questions.
a. hip pain that radiates down the leg
b. nausea
c. RUQ pain made worse by eating
d. hematemesis
e. angina pectoris
(2) The nurse understand which serum test is indicative of therapeutic heparin levels?
a. PT
b. aPTT
c. INR
d. CBC
(3) The nurse must teach the client who has begun warfarin (Coumadin) therapy to report which side effects to the provider immediately?
a. abnormal bruising
b. cold symptoms
c. dyspnea
d. pitting edema of the lower extremities
A question which pulls both my nutrition and teaching project together:
a. garlic
b. nutmeg
c. parsley
d. salt
Answers and rationals are posted at the end of the blog.
B r i n g i t o n !
Monday beings my second to last week as a first full-semester nursing student. As I reflect on the past semester, I am filled with gratitude. A lot has happened in the last semester of my life - I have learned the names, therapeutic uses and adverse effects of more drugs that I ever thought possible (and to know I have a long more ways to go kinda terrifies me); I have learned a full body assessment in my health assessment class, and am no longer too afraid of my final check off this Tuesday which includes two pages worth of assessments which must be memorized and carried out with less than three mistakes in less than sixty minutes for a pass/fail grade; I have started learning how to accept lower-than-desired grades and 'keep on swimming' to the next exam, planning for a better outcome than before; I have tackled many NCLEX-type questions and am beginning to understand what it means to 'think like a nurse'; I was blessed the opportunity to care for people every Wednesday during my clinical semester, and was blessed many ways in return; I have learned what it means to be a 'transcultural' nurse and to make sure to read the whole context of simple math problems 50x to make sure I didn't miss anything. I have fallen on my face (metaphorically) many times during the semester, but I have learned how to get up and 'shake it off,' smile and keep on moving forward. I have almost been late for class twice, have drank at least one cup of coffee each day (I don't want to do the math to see how many total that makes - it's an addiction), and have taken many many naps. Instead of carpet in my room, I now have books. I carry my stethoscope around everywhere and try to drink at least 8-10 glasses of water each day. I eat too much sugar and work out as much as my schedule will allow me. I try to work as much as I can to pay for my coffee and listen to 'too much' Christmas music.
I am blessed because I am breathing and making something of my life.
Jesus, you are the maker of my fate and the captain of my soul.
* * *
Answers and Rationals to questions above:
1. B, C, E. pain is located in the abdomen (RUQ) not the hip and leg; angina pectoris is cardiac chest pain which is not correlated with a PVT
2. B. aPTT (or PTT) is the test to determine if heparin dosage is therapeutic; PT and INR measure warfarin; CBC does not measure heparin levels
3. A. warfarin is an anticoagulant, a 'blood thinner' which, in too high of a dose, can cause spontaneous bleeding. The other listed side effects are not indicative of a warfarin adverse effect.
4. C. most green leafy foods have a high vitamin K level; salt, nutmeg and garlic have relatively low or no vitamin K
* * *
I am obsessed with more than just coffee:
26 days 'till Christmas!
2 Chronicles 15:7
But you, take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.