Sep. 23rd, 2008 03:19 pm Injections!
I PASSED MY DOSAGE EXAM!!! Woot!! That's the one where I have to get 100% to pass and 4 shots to do so or else I fail the class....I'm just glad I passed it!!!
Today I did my first injection! The injection pad was a great patient and didn't cry too much! :) It was a scary experience stabbing the gel blob that I can only imagine how next week is going to be went we're stabbing each other....The 1 1/2 needles scare me and I had the feeling of injections! Oh well. I guess I'll get use to it! What a day!
Sep. 19th, 2008 11:24 pm Typical Day
I don't think I could live with any funnier people! Joel is hilarious and a sweetheart rolled into one. Yesterday we practiced our ballroom dancing, and I have to say that I felt like a princess especially as I was wearing Britt's tiara!
My wing is going so well right now! I hope its not the honeymoon period however that could be reality.....
I'm already procrastinating on homework and it's only two weeks into the semester.....oh well.
I like a boy. I'm giggly therefore I know its official. I like him a lot. Is it reciprocated? No clue but that's not going to stop me! I am pursuing my passions and goals in life. If he fits in as part of the puzzle, then it's about damn time! :) If not, I'm okay with that too.
Dad got a job in the new company!!! It made me so happy to hear that. Big sigh of relief. It was scary to think that we might not have been able to get the tuition bill and morgage paid. It's a higher position than he originally had so that's a perk. Just hope he doesn't work too much and stress out!
It's been a good week and I am still happy happy happy! I'm blessed and grateful for the good things God has given me.
Sep. 14th, 2008 05:33 pm Happiness!
Life is good! I am happy and grateful for the blessings God has given me! The weather makes me happy! My friends make me happy! And I make me happy! Today is a happy day!
Sep. 14th, 2008 05:31 pm Clinical week one
Friday was another really overwhelming day for me. There was nothing anyone could say to settle my nerves and fears. I simply had to experience and see if working with the patients was really going to be the stereotype I had laid out in my mind. Ends up that nearly everything thing I expected turned out to be something different. The patients aren’t hostile and creepy like Hannibal Lecter and I felt much safer than I though I would. I still have some reservation due to the minimal time I got to spend on the actual ward, however overall my anxiousness has decreased significantly.
I don’t think I will ever loss the image of Barb escorting each of us to the ward we would be working on. Two by two we loss members of the group until it was Megan and I’s turn to swipe our cards and step out of our comfort zone. It was definitely awkward walking passed the large group of patients in the main lounge area for the first time. The staring buts into you and you can’t help but wonder what everyone is thinking as two new faces walk on to the ward.
First, Megan and I were introduced to the nurses we would be working with, Paula, Richard, Dr. Campbell, Kate, and Sue. They were all so nice and very comforting. Paula took Megan and I to show us where the break room was located however as she was explaining about the kitchen, Richard ran by yelling for help. Megan and my face must have showed panic because Paula just smiled and said “everything is okay I am sure however I should go and check.” Paula took us to her office and asked us to wait there. Megan and I just stared at each other. I could tell that she was as worried as I was but what could we do? Paula came back after a few minutes and explained that a patient had grabbed a picture frame from one of the nurses and they had to react quickly because it could have turned into a large problem. She reassured us that they were taking care of the situation and that Megan and I could now head down to the gym to participate in class with the patients.
When we reached the gym, one of the patients offered me his chair and went to go grab another on from himself. A few individuals came up and introduced themselves and asked me my name. Very polite. As the class began, Richard demonstrated different stretches and the patients would copy him. A majority of the class had smiles on their faces. When Richard asked Megan and me to introduce ourselves and to share something we enjoy to do, the group applauded and welcomed us to their group. I could feel my guard shrinking slowly. I was still alert and aware of what was going on around me, however the fear and panic was leaving me. I soon became more comfortable to ask the patient’s their name and what fun things they like to do on a regular day.
One of the patients was telling me how he loved to do art at the hospital. I commented that I like to do art too however I am not very good at it. Another patient, who over heard our conversation, shook his finger at me and said “art can be anything. You can’t be bad at it because no matter what you create it’s beautiful in its own way.” I was taken back because I did not expect to be receiving advice on being more positive and confident in my capabilities by a man who has been diagnosed as being criminally insane.
After we were done stretching, one of the medical staff came into the gym and asked three of the patients, who regular participate in a ballroom dance class, if they would like to practice their steps; the Foxtrot basic and box. I found this a little ironic because only three days prior, I took my first dance class on campus where I learned how to do those two steps. I volunteered to help the instructor by being the patients’ partner. When I danced with the first client, I could tell dancing with me was making him extra nervous. I can say that his uncertainty and visible fear made me more comfortable because I knew that between the two or us I had more control.
I was surprised to realize I was having fun ballroom dancing with these patients. I am still struggling to grasp my feelings about dancing with men who have committed crimes that I can’t even comprehend. Half my brain says “watch out, they are the bad guy,” while the other side says “it’s okay, they aren’t hurting anyone now.” One big thing that I learned about myself through this interaction was that I have the nurse quality in me. Since I started the nursing program, I have constantly doubted if nursing is right for me however on Friday I saw “Nurse Alex” come out and became comfortable with that idea. One of the patients did not want to dance with me when the instructor asked him to. The apprehensive side of my head said “thank goodness because dancing with him would be terrifying” however the nurse side of me wanted to do what was best for the patient and set aside my own anxiousness. I soon found myself encouraging the patient to come and dance with me against the desire of that other side of my head. I can’t fully explain it. I just kicked into nursing gear and left my fear at the door. I proved to myself that I can do this and that I really do enjoy the process. It was a good feeling.
The rest of the day flew by. I appreciated our guest speaker who came in and told us about his struggle in managing his mental illness. His story was inspirational and I doubt that I could demonstrate half of the strength he has throughout his life. His story got me really thinking about the difference between bad people and good people with an unfortunate illness that caused them to do bad things. I think that as I find out what crimes my patients have committed, this controversy will come up again however I am waiting the face that when it comes. Friday was an overwhelming day but a great one none the less. I expect to be challenged throughout this clinical rotation however I am ready for it.
Sep. 8th, 2008 10:41 am Junior Year Begins!
FIRST DAY BACK TO SCHOOL!!!! Oh the nursing life! It's back and in full force. Already have homework and I'm scrambling around to get everything done. I am praying it turns out to be an amazing semester!!
Clinicals officially start Thursday. They really just throw us in there....I'm going to be at Western State working 7am-3pm. Wish me luck!!
Funny story I want to put down and remember for a long time. While we were checking in residents, Keith decided it would be funny to sit on top of me on the couch. About a sec after he planted his huge self on top of me, my cell phone is my pocket rang on vibrate! He stood up faster than I ever thought anyone could! Man, did I laugh! That will teach him!
Sep. 3rd, 2008 08:47 am Move in
They are coming!! Today a few will roll in, but tomorrow is officially the day when everyone moves back on to campus! I can't believe it's already here! I'm not sure I'm ready for it but I guess I'll have to be. Nothings going to stop time...
Aug. 30th, 2008 09:22 am Liz's Visit to PLU
Most people know my cousin Elizabeth because she's so amazing! Since we're the same age we just head on over and meet each others friends like we've known them forever. I love it. I meet new people while showing her who I am close to.
Elizabeth drove down to PLU yesterday to visit and have a girly sleepover with me. First I gave her a grand tour of the campus! She was shocked by how small the school is (in comparison to her school....the UW) On our walk we passed the football team come back from practice and Scott Westering said "hi ladies" to us. Liz was shocked that I have gotten to meet our football coach and that it was so no chalante for me. If she meet the Husky head coach she'd freak out since he's famous at her school. It was funny to realize the difference!
After the tour, we drove to have dinner together at T.G.I. Fridays butnot before Liz's encounter with Keith....I introduced Keith to Liz and he started talking about the size of the rooms around campus since Liz was surprised at the size. Keith comment that Ordal's rooms are the biggest on campus since they have bay windows. Liz's response....."It there water near your school with windows over looking a bay?" I couldn't save her after that one....
Dinner was alot of fun. We had fun talking and catching each other up on life. Once we were finished we ran across the street to Red Robins because Danyelle and a group of friends were eating there, celebrating her birthday. I decided to sneek up on the table and put my hands over Kelley Ryan's eyes. He had no idea and think I scared him a good deal!! It was pretty funny! He claims that I need to watch my back now but I think he's bluffing!
Anywoo, we visited the b-day group and headed out to Liz's car.....As she started backing out of her parking spot and was about to put the car in to drive to leave, this family swarmed the car oblivious to the fact they were in the way. There was an older woman directly in front of Liz's car about 2 feet from the hood who finally realized we were trying to leave. Right as she was giving Liz and I a smile and a wave of thanks, Liz adjusted her foot on the brake which cause the car to jerk forward at the woman! Her face was priceless! The happy little smile switched to panick and "oh shit" in a flash!!! It was the funniest thing that I think I have ever seen in my life!! Liz felt terrible while laughed my ass off!!!! HAHAHA!!!! Still gets me!
Once we got back to the hall Liz helped me with my beautiful beach bucket door decorations....She was super helpful.
Next thing we knew, Danyelle and 3 of her friends were at my door to see if we wanted to play a board game. Catherine and Carrie Stout were there puls Krista. The game we started to play was called Qualf....you draw cards and have to do the crazy things on the card. I think the most memorable card of the night for me was the one that told me "for the duration of the game, bark angrly at any living non-player that comes within 15 feet of the board." Well given that we were playing the game in the study room on 8th floor, once the entire football got back to the floor and flocked passed us down the hall, I had to bark angrly at each one of them! So embarassing but so funny!!! Tyler's brother, Zach actually walked in the room and asked "are you barking at me and the rest of my teammates?" I got to explain myself but the experience was throroughly ridiculous!!
The football players are great guys! We challenged two of them to try and drink a cup of water backwards, meaning put your mouth of the opposite side then you usually would. They made the night fun and are so much more respectful than the soccer guys....
So you would think that the night couldn't get anymore eventful.....well that would have been true but then Liz decided she needed to remove her black nail polish. She tried rubbing that stuff off for sometime until she ran out of her own nail polish remover....then I stepped in and made her soak her nails in a dish with my nail polish remover. We had it everywhere! Under her nails, under her cuticles, on my sink, all over our hands! I grabbed Qtips and start the removal process....We laughed so hard because of how ridiculous we looked!
It was a good night! My cuz kicks butt and I hope she comes to visit again soon!
Aug. 28th, 2008 10:17 pm Urban Scramble
So yesterday and today was Common Leadership Training. A lot of things are repeated from last weeks regular RA training...It's annoying but oh well. I love hanging out with the other leaders around campus so it's worth it.
Today was something new though that I can say I really enjoyed! All the leaders were divided in to small groups. Mine was group "star" as named by Jake! Ended up that we had a competition/scavenger hunt around the greater Tacoma area trying to rack up points. The second our group had our packet, we raced to figure out the clues and get the game going. Once we got on the road I think we realized that we should have taken some more time creating a game plan and establishing our values as a group. Did the points really matter to us? Or did we want to slow down and just enjoy the places? Long story short, we decided that teamwork and each other's company was the most important aspect. Had we realized it earier, we could really focused and visited the places we really wanted to enjoy rather than run around and see something for a few minutes before shooting off to the next stop.
Overall the experience taught me alot. I learned how to utilize and appreciate the different strengths each member of our team brought to our group. I know that for me the toughest thing for me was slowing down my pace to adapt to the physical limitations of my teammate. My patience was tested but I appreciate the lesson I learned.
When our group traveled to Hill Top, we visited Martin Luther King Way. Our whole group was in awe of the goregous murals and the park we found there. As we were standing on the sidewalk, a Hill Top resident came up to us and told us that we needed to get lost. We were not welcome and she wanted us to leave immediately. At first I couldn't understand where she was comign from. I was angry that she labeled me as a over privledged, white woman taking pictures of her community as though they were animals in the zoo. She didn't take the time to consider my intentions and realize the open person that I am. Later once we returned to school, Jake mentioned something that stuck with me. He told a story of how his cousins were riding there bikes around PLU and Campus Safety chased them off as PYs up to no good. They were seen as outsider and looked upon negatively despite their true intent. That woman that yelled at us today saw us as an outsider threating her community and it's integrity. She judged a book by its cover just like we all do when an untraditional member joins our regular group.
I haven't really decided how to take what I learned today and apply it to life. I realized that we judge the outsider before giving them a shot but I don't know how to ammend the problem. I'd like to think that I am a pretty open person and try to include everyone equally but I see stronger prejuidice in my peers. Lead by example is a biggy but there's got to be more we can do. John de Mars mentions hosting community events on campus that invited the "outside community" inwards. It was a good day. I have alot to digest.
Aug. 25th, 2008 12:27 am Broke Car Plus Church w/ Eric
Oh the weekend....my mom and grandma drove down to Tacoma to drop me off my car, only to find out that it was broken and that my dad needed to fix something with the brakes, change the oil, change the tail lights, and rotate the tires....I ended up driving the car home and staying over night. Although I should have been at school getting stuff done, it was nice to be home for a whole 12 hours. I got to cuddle with my babies and sleep in my own bed!!!
When I got back down to school, Eric and I went to church together. Little did I know that the church was in North Seattle....We got to Seattle super early so went out to dinner together. The church service was pretty cool. Contemperary which isn't my usual style but the band was amazing! Eric and I had a long drive back was was alot of fun. We accidently shot on to I-5 north instead of south which was an adventure....then we were running out of gas so had to stop and fill up. A bum harassed usfor our change....Then Eric and I decided to "break the law" by having him drive across the double white lines on 405!! After that I felt rebellious so decided to throw a inch by inch piece of paper out the wind to litter! I'm a criminal I tell you!
Once we got back to the school I went to see Eric's room. It made me sad once I walked into it because it really hit me that I wasn't in Foss anymore with the same amazing RA staff. I have always dreaded change and new-ness. Oh well. Not much I can do about it.... Anywoo, Eric and I laid listening to music before he walked me back to T-stad. A new development is that T-stad has a brand new spinkler system....I dared Eric to run through them and before I knew it he sprinted off! Best part was when he was trying to step over another one of the sprinkler, crossing the walkway, but I pushed him into it. Made it look like he peed his pants!!! I laughed alot all night with the kid! He's a great friend I'd like to keep around for a long time!
Aug. 22nd, 2008 12:16 pm RA Conflict Resolved.
Things panned out! I started my morning off talking to Jeff Olsen Kringle. I just explained how discouraged I was after my staff meeting yesterday and that I didn't know how to fully approach the situation to get it back on the right track. We talked it out. He's a great person to bounce ideas off of and I really appreciate his genuineness.
Anywoo, I left my talk with him straight to my staff meeting. Melissa opened it up for conversation and I raised my hand and explained that although the day before was frustrating and not as much was accomplished as we would have liked, it wasn't a wash because we learned something about our group dynamic. I asked for everyone to step back and ask themselves what learning outcomes we want our residents to takefrom our programs and then we should structure or community development around those ideals.
Everyone was super receptive! They agreed that I had a good point that the plan was effective. As cheesy as this sounds, I saw their eyes light up once they realized success was possible. It was like I saw renewed faith on their faces. It was a good feeling to have lead my staff to that point.
By the end of our meeting, we had everything established, while remaining on good terms with one another! My fellow staff members are excited to be a member of T-stad! Polar opposite of yesterday.
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