Ummmmmmmmmmm.......................

So can we all say overwhelmed???

Ok, so orientation was fine, just LONG. We got about 100 trees worth of handouts each, went through a few "stations" where we learned about the different components of the class (lecture, small group lab, college lab and clinical), met most of the instructors...

Then we get started with classes. I explained it to J this way- usually, in other classes, they gently ease you into the semester- you get to leave early the first couple of classes, they hold your hand a little, remind you of what you're supposed to be doing- but this class? More like jump in the deep end and swim as best as you can! In their defense, the instructors started us on the path to organization during orientation, but WOW! And it's not like you can brain-dump the info from the first test once that first test is over- oh no, you add to it and hone it throughout the whole semester!

Speaking of the first test. Ugh. My personal philosophy is that I'm NOT wasting my time, money and time away from my family to get a C. To me there are 3 grades- A, B and C, and if you get a C you may as well be failing. Well, guess who got a big, fat C? And I really worked hard for it, that's the bad part! The unofficial nursing-school "saying" is "74 or out the door". I got a 76. Me- a 76! That's only 2 points from "out the door"!!! We were told way back during orientation that if we're the type of student that has to get an A, then we have to get used to not getting them. How on earth do I get used to making mediocre grades? And to be working my tail off and ONLY getting a C???

So I'm going to try studying differently for this upcoming second test. I honestly don't know how else to study- for the first test I went through the pages and pages of study guides and made note cards for each and every bullet point on them. The only other way I can think of studying is to just re-read my notes and their handouts, but I'm not really a visual learner.

Ok, so I had my first clinical last week! I was SCARED TO DEATH, and yes, that should be all caps! The nursing home I did my STNA clinicals was really nice and clean and nice, then I got a job at a local nursing home over the summer and quit after one shift. My perception of nursing homes is not the best, lets just leave it at that. Well, this one has not one, but 3 "resident" pets! How cool is that, what great therapy for the residents! And it didn't smell! It was well lit, there were no rows of pitiful residents sitting in their wheelchairs up and down the halls, no one wandering aimlessly around- everyone was attended to and taken care of and had a place to be!

We did lots of introductory stuff and toured the facility, then we did our first task. We are going to be doing a Therapeutic Communication paper in the next couple of weeks and we had to pick a resident and "interview" them. I ended up with the sweetest lady, I couldn't have picked better! I'm not sure I got the therapeutic part of the interview done as well as I could have, but I'm going to try to meet with her again when we go back this week.

We also did a group head-to-toe assessment, which was a LOT easier in a group than done alone! The logistics of it are still kinda sketchy for me- it's hard to know when you should move them to get different data (lung sounds, skin integrity...) and when you cant (if they have a condition that limits their movement...), but I'm hoping that comes with time.

Finally we were assigned our patient for the quarter. My clinical instructor is tough, she gave all of us total-care patients- they need almost everything done for them. This is going to be really hard, there are a LOT of things I'll have to do that I've only done for my own children, but how better to learn, right? So I'll go in this week and try not to look too much like a novice and do my best with my patient!

The big news this week was the lottery for winter quarter registration! Already we're worrying about the next class, I can barely see past the next test! There are 100 students in the program and we're randomly assigned numbers that we'll use to register. I have some kind of crappy luck- I got #90! With our crazy life, I have to pretty much take whichever classes and clinicals are left! And, to top it off, the day of registration is the 2nd day of MANDATORY orientation for my new job and I cant be there! Thankfully we're allowed a proctor to register for us, I'm hoping my instructor will let J be mine, it'd be too complicated to explain to anyone else what classes and times will fit our schedules!

I'll let you know how everything goes, think positive thoughts for me!