Dreaming about nursing school

OK, not dreaming as in wishing to be going to nursing school...rather, having nightmares about missing clinical shifts in nursing school.

A few nights ago, I dreamt that it was the first week of third year, and by Friday afternoon of that first week, I finally got around to looking at my class schedule (like that would ever happen in real life!!!).  And to my horror, I realized that I had missed a clinical shift on Thursday and I'd half-way missed the Friday shift, which was already in progress.  I had no excuse for the missed shifts -- just simply that I had not bothered to look at the schedule!  Yikes. That would not go over well with the clinical instructors -- and with good reason!

Anyhow, to make a long dream short, I finally realized that it was just a very bad dream, and woke up with great relief.  Blessed relief.  It is still only July, and third year classes are still several weeks away.  And, I have the fall schedule already printed off and am very much aware when my clinical orientation starts.

I just found it interesting that my brain is already thinking ahead to starting that dreaded schedule that third year promises to be.  It will be very interesting and I know I will learn tons, but getting through those eight months will be a marathon in itself. I'll just have to take it day by day, and not get all worked up about the big picture/schedule. 

One day at a time.

Lessons on Living, from the Dying

I came across an article recently in a French magazine, that talked about a palliative care nurse, Bronnie Ware, who came up with her list of what the top five regrets were of dying people she was working with. I was going to translate the five regrets into English and post them, but today I found an English version of the article.

I believe there is so much truth to the five statements.  Personally, the first regret puts my career change in perspective.  That it truly was 'ok' to change careers even though I already had a great one going, and that ultimately, its 'ok' to be happy.  It's truly OK.  Really!

The five regrets are as follows:

1. I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.
2. I wish I hadn't worked so hard.
3. I wish I'd had the courage to express my feelings.
4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.
5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.

If I were to add one more to the list, I'd say, "I wish I'd been more grateful for what I already have."  I mean, its great to keep dreaming, growing, learning and experiencing new things. That's very important.  But at the same time, I think its also important to periodically look at just where you are in life, who is in your life, and what you already have, and just simply be grateful for it all.  I think most people are more blessed than they realize.

The link to the full article is here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2012/feb/01/top-five-regrets-of-the-dying

If you're interested, Ms. Ware wrote a book the topic:

This is brilliant!!!

I saw this article on our national news broadcaster - CBC - website today.

What a genius idea this is: http://www.cbc.ca/news/yourcommunity/2013/07/cleft-lip-puppy-counsels-kids-with-facial-differences.html

This is a dog somewhere in the US, born with cleft-lip.  He had surgery to allow him to eat.  Now this puppy visits with and counsels kids with facial differences. 

Lentil is a French bulldog born with a cleft lip condition who spends his days boosting the self-esteem of kids with similar ailments.

Simply genius!!!  Way to go, whoever came up with this idea.  :-)  I am so proud of people who do things like this for others.  Proud of people who see beauty and potential in everything and everyone.




Go Team Lentil!!!

Summer (textbook!) Reading

I'll admit it, I'm missing school, now that I've had a couple months away from it.

I've ordered my fall textbooks, in order to get a head start on the readings...and the good news is that I'm currently on Chapter 4 of the maternity textbook.  The first few chapters are soooo dry and difficult to get through -- all about nursing theories regarding perinatal nursing.  It's just not my thing - I know people who simply love nursing theory.  Just let me roll my sleeves up and get to work, is my preferred course.

So just one more 'dry' chapter to go, and then it gets into the good stuff. 

The one textbook covers both perinatal nursing and paediatrics, both courses that will be taken in the fall term.  The textbook is about 2,000 pages long and weighs about 10 lb.  So my currently being in Chapter 4 is good, but it is only a drop in the bucket...

But I'm lovin' it!!!! 

And I so miss wearing scrubs!!!

One more day until summer vacation

For my kids that is!  So that means there is one more day of MY summer vacation, before the kids are home until September.

I had meant to get so much done during this time they were still in school and I was not.  I truly did.  It was all there in my mind's eye -- the clutter-free main floor and bedrooms, the sorted clothes that various kids had outgrown, the painting/decorating projects all done, the basement cleared to enough of a state where I could think about having some contractors go down there to give us ideas on how best to finish it, the super-level of fitness I'd have achieved by now.  S.I.G.H......

Sadly, most of that remains in my mind's eye.

OK, so I did get some painting and decorating projects done.  Two bathrooms and the family room, to be precise.  I did run more -- even did up to 10 km one day -- new record for me!!!  The de-clutter projects...well....that's an ongoing battle in our house.  The laundry room and kitchen did get majorly de-cluttered, but they're slowly creeping back to their cluttered state, with different clutter!  I somehow always forget that when I do get a room in order, entropy kicks in, and it goes back to its 'natural' state.  Why fight the laws of physics???  ;-)

So I guess it hasn't been a total loss and waste of time, but it's still not where I thought it would be.  But that's probably just reality. 

What did happen, though, is that I recovered from the huge work load that last semester was, between being a full-time student, starting clinical rotations, being a mom, wife and community volunteer.  The volunteering was the one thing that almost broke the proverbial camel's back last term, and is the one thing that will be eliminated in the coming four terms of nursing school.  I loved being a Guider with Girl Guides of Canada, but I have to be realistic about the work load for the remainder of nursing school.  I can only do so much.  There's many other responsibilities that trump volunteering, as much as I enjoy giving my time.  And I'm not 20 anymore!!! 

I'm rested, and actually ready to start the next semester, but alas, have to wait until September.

Today I plan to run, and finish the teacher's gifts.  How the last day of school takes me by surprise every. single. year. is completely beyond me.  I start thinking about what to get the various teachers in early June, come up with great ideas with the kids, and then suddenly, tomorrow is the last day of school and I've got nothing.  Aaacckkk.  I'm definitely not a mom who will be posting her home-made wonder creations on Pinterest...(as cool as I think that would be to do!)

And I have to mention, just because it is so important to me, how incredibly grateful I am to have a second summer to be at home with my children.  There's one more summer after this one that I won't be working...'cause after 4th year's done, its back to work for this lady.

Just this morning, I was thinking of what life would be like had I not been able to start this career-change, and was still working FT -- all the day camps that I'd have to have organized by now, the before/after camp care I'd be paying for, the stressed mornings of getting everyone ready to leave the house early and dragging kids to places they really didn't want to be at.  I realize this is a reality for many, and I've lived it myself.  And that is what makes me so grateful, knowing that I have the opportunity to be home in the summer, and just BE.

Here's to another "Hands Free Mama" summer.  www.handsfreemama.com

Have a wonderful day,
Kate

How time flies...

My goodness, I cannot believe its been so long since I last wrote on my (neglected!) blog.  School ended and I've been so busy trying to catch up on all the non-school-related stuff in my life.

What I also realized, was that its now been a full year since I permanently left my first career.  I wrote about my thoughts on this on my last day of work.  Some bloggers know how to make a neat little link -- I just copy/paste the entire link...  http://nurse2bmidcareerchange.blogspot.ca/2012/06/last-day-in-my-current-career.html

What a difference a year makes.  For the better. 

I've learned so much since I started nursing school.  I've grown as a person, I've experienced emotions on clinical shifts like I've never before experienced at any time, during my first career.  As a very emotional, feeling person, (not necessarily expressed outwardly, but very much alive on the inside!), I find it incredible that feeling and expressing emotion is part of my new career.  Both the negative and the positive feelings. 

It made me realize how completely devoid of feeling and caring my first career was.  My colleagues were always great, fun and intelligent people to work with (and I expect that to stay the same in my nursing career), I got to travel to some neat places on my beloved red diplomatic passport (yes, I LOVED that perk!), but the actual work was so individual, merely process-focused and deadline-driven. 

While there will be many parallels and many 'transferrable' skills that I'll bring to nursing from strategic communications, the core-focus, the PEOPLE, will be the biggest change.  I don't have my head in the clouds and think that every interaction will be pleasant -- I've got enough life experience to know the realities of that -- even in my non-people focused foreign policy strat comms career, I still had to deal with a huge variety of people.  But when the 'end product' is something like holding a newborn, healthy baby in my arms, or watching a tiny baby grow and thrive in the NICU and eventually leave in its parents arms -- that's satisfaction. 

I just never got that same thrill, joy or job-satisfaction when I saw my press release/backgrounder issued and it made the lead story on the national news, or press conference go really well.  It felt good, yes, like a job well-done, but empty.  I just wanted to do medical stuff and be a nurse...

Life is good.

Some fun for Friday

I'm sharing a link with you today -- a link I go to every few days, to see if there's an update.

These are great for a nursing-related laugh!!!

http://whatshouldwecallnursing.tumblr.com/

ENJOY!