Well then...

Well since I haven't been able to write on this blog in a few days I wanted to stop in and say hi again. I am still at work and will be going on and off writing on here because 1) I don't want to get in trouble and 2) there will be people calling for me.

I wanted to start this blog because my new years resolution was to keep a semi vlog (video blog)for this past year and I haven't kept that up so hence this blog. I wanted to paint myself a picture of how my year goes especially when I thought it was going to be my last year in college. I am going to be a nurse... eventually... but my tracks came to a halt this past May because my grades in one class were not enough to pass to the next level of nursing school. To tell you the truth I am sort of relieved now because I get to work a bit more and earn some very needed money! There are many people that keep telling me that it sucks that I am not with them in the nursing program and I do miss being with my "people" but I think this was meant to be. I am one of those people that say "What ever happens, happens for a reason!" I don't know if you believe that but I think that too many circumstances have happened in my life to not believe in that statement.

So besides nursing school I have to also work on myself and all my relationships with family and friends. I get to spend more time with my boyfriend who always feels left out during school semesters where I barely get enough time to spend time with myself. Once I am in nursing school my body and soul are devout soldiers to everything nursing. And if that is not the attitude one takes in my nursing school you get kicked out faster than you can say "help!" They have no respect for your own private lives or personal injuries. My nursing school (and I think almost 99% of nursing schools are like this now) is very demanding of your life and time and if you do not spend every waking minute trying to stay ahead you will definitely be left behind.

I don't know if there are any current nursing students out there that may share the same feelings but nursing school is not for wimps! I think you have to have a very thick layer of skin so that many things will not get to you and have you break down. And for any future nursing students out there: don't let anyone put you down! Yes nursing is crazy and there is A LOT to do during nursing school and for the rest of your nursing career. But once you get to that rotation that you know will be the one you want to be doing for the rest of your life, it is SOOOOOOOO worth it.

I will give you my "Ahh! I love nursing!" moment that happened about a year ago.
It all started out on my Mother/Baby rotation at a local hospital. Half of my group went up to the mother/baby unit and half of us went to the delivery unit. I was in the latter group. Well I got paired up with "Lexi", RN (fake name of course) and she was great! She got me doing many things and there was a woman who was in labor for an odd amount of hours. The soon to be mom and her husband had been trying to get pregnant for awhile so they were very excited that this day had come. As I was following Lexi and helping our "mom" I got to see many things which I will not go into detail. A few hours after I got into the unit (maybe around 9:30 am) the doctor saw very little progress in the delivery. The baby was not moving into the pelvis far enough and they did not want to have the mom push because the baby's HR (heart rate) was too low. Therefore, they chose to do a C-section (where they deliver the baby through the abdomen) and off we all went with our little blue hats and little blue shoes on towards the OR.

Now let me tell you, other than TV, I have never seen the inside of an OR! So there I am standing like a deer in front of headlights not having any clue what to do or where to go I just observe. I love observing what people do and how they interact... it's amazing how much you can know about a person if you just watch them like at a park or at the airport. Anyway, I kept getting in the way of doctors and nurses who were sterile so I kept moving from one corner to the other. As time went on I kind of got the feeling of how everything worked inside the OR; basically if you are not a "legal" part of the group, stay flat against the wall! That's what I did until I needed to get the husband who had been anxiously waiting right outside until his wife was being prepped for surgery. When I went to get him I also observed him: he seemed very happy yet scared and kind of had the same look I probably had: a deer in headlights. I directed him to the chair next to his wife and said she was a little groggy from the drugs.

Sooner than I thought the doctors had her belly open and her uterus exposed. It was the most awesome thing I have ever seen. Unfortunately, she had a severe cut and it turned very bad all too quickly. She would not stop bleeding and they could not get enough blood to transfuse. At the same time, the baby was a little too low in the mom's pelvis for the doctors to pull him out. In addition, Lexi the RN called NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) who are supposed to be called in these types of cases, did not come down until AFTER the baby was born. The anesthesia nurse and Lexi actually had to get the baby to breathe, get him warm, and get a pulse. The baby was so blue and non-responsive. At this point, I had become hands-on involved with the baby and was supposed to keep track at what time it was born, what his APGAR's (two numbers that tell how healthy the baby is one minute after they are born and then at five minutes). After all the chaos, the baby breathed and let out a cry of "I'm here! Don't worry mom and dad! I made it!"

I was so relieved the baby was ok and now it was mom's turn to be ok. At that time, the dad was relieved yet wondering why his wife was not as awake as she should be. As time went on, the doctors and surgeons found out about the severe bleeding and the husband was told to go with the baby up to NICU or to wait in the waiting room. To make an even longer story short, we did not get out of the OR until almost 12:30 pm! We were in there for so long that I was getting lightheaded because I had not gotten anything to eat or drink for over 6 hours since I got to clinical and my legs were tired of standing there. Within this time, I had basically become Lexi's helper because she had way too many things to do such as chart everything that was going on, vitals among other things, and also she would have to do some of the tech things like clean up the floor and count up all the sponges.

Now to the sponges: apparently in a usual C-section only about 10 to 15 sponges are used. In this one, they used up more than 60 sponges! That is how much blood she put out!

Well there is a happy end to this story (in my head) because she lived to see her new long awaited baby boy and help her husband to raise him.

I cannot tell you how much that experience has helped me as my individual personal life and how I became a lover of labor and delivery! I love sending the mom and dad with a new "bundle of joy" and the fact that I helped to deliver a brand new life! It's an amazing joy to know you helped bring a life into this crazy world.

Well many hours have passed after I started this post and it is already the end of my shift! Yay! I get to go home... until I have to come back tomorrow!

It was great to write out that story because although I have told my family and friends that story, I just want to spread the word about how lovely and amazing and awesome it is to deliver a brand new baby!

I am now tired and a little hungry because I never got a break... but I did eat a late lunch so a few graham crackers and cheese got my tummy full for a bit.

Well I have to go so I will finish my work and drive home. I hope that this blog was not too long!

I will try to go online every day to do this blog. I'm looking forward to writing again!

Oh and I haven't really read anyone else's blogs because I have NO idea how to look at other peoeple's blogs. Where do I go to just search and read different blogs? If you can let me know! Thanks!

Wherever you are or doing hope you have a great Saturday night!

Take care,
KSBL