How I survived Anatomy and Physiology

Anatomy and physiology. I searched for months around the internet before going into college for nursing, and the biggest challenge that everyone spoke about? This single class. Yes, they complained about clinicals and the nightmarish pharmacology tests, but this was the single piece of nursing school that stuck out. When I finally went to my first day of A&P I, I honestly half expected a meaner, nastier Trunchbull to be standing at the head of the class. You know, the disgusting principal from Matilda...

I remember having nightmares with her in them. Instead, I was greeted with a wonderful professor who seemed a tad timid, at first, but certainly was passionate about her subject. I'd like to share with you some things that I wish I had known going into this class the first time around:

1. It's only a nightmare if you make it one. This class is really just like any other. You get what you put out. If you don't come to class, or if you decide not to study too much or at all, then you are going to have much to show at the end. It's basic logic. You put in the work, and you get rewarded with a good grade in the end.
2. Use all available resources! By resources, I'm talking about more than you textbook and lab book. I'm talking, using the lab any chance you get. There will be a lot of models to know and not enough time IN CLASS to know them. Therefore, you will need to put in more effort outside of class to really be familiar with them.
3. Find out how you learn best NOW. Everyone has SOMETHING that helps them learn. For some people it can be as simple as reading the textbook and reviewing the notes. For others, it can be flash cards, or a simple game. For me it's music. This semester I used a song to help me learn the bones of the body as well as the muscles. I couldn't use a song to really point out the muscles to me, but it at least gave me a word bank on the test itself. Find your method BEFORE you enter those doors. You want to find a good study plan and stick with it!
4. Study Groups! These can be hit or miss. Some people find they get off topic too much and do more talking than studying, but if you can get your group focused, this can be the absolute BEST way to study! If you don't know something, you have a wealth of knowledge surrounding you, and if they don't know? You have something to find out together, and I guarantee you, by the end of it, you'll know it by heart. It's also nice to have someone there that can quiz you. You can look at terms all you want, but it's wonderful to have someone there who can come up with questions you may not have thought about.
5. Get your sleep! This is one that you should already know, but I will reinforce it because it's important. Cramming for a test the night before, all night, is a sure way to fail. Don't believe me? Ask anyone who's done it. Even if they've never failed, they probably don't have an A or B in the class and, trying to get into nursing school, you can't afford to having anything less. So if you find you forgot about a test until last minute, don't be tempted. Review your notes, let me repeat that, REVIEW your notes, then get a good nights rest! Get up a little earlier if you need to and go over them again and I know you'll do better on the test than if you had given into that temptation.
6. Keep your study sessions SHORT! I watched a study skills lecture online once that put to words something I already knew. When you sit down to study, you're really attentive the first bit, then you start to get that brain fog. EVERYONE knows what I'm talking about, that fog that makes it hard for you to focus and comprehend the information. That, my friends, should be your cue to take a 15 minute break. No more no less, but that break MUST be taken. I like to review my notes before a big exam, but I always make sure that I time it so I have 15 minutes before the exam to take a quick break. The worst thing you can do to yourself is go into the exam with that fog looming over you. I did it once this year, psychology, and failed that exam. I was frustrated that I couldn't comprehend the questions, and stressed because of the timer that wouldn't stop so I could clear my head. Not a good feeling!
7. Finally, Don't freak yourself out! Everyone should have a bit of stress going into an exam. This is normal and actually helps you. Keep your goal in mind and work your butt off for it, but don't over do it. This is easier said than done. The beginning of the semester, I literally cried and started tallying points on my lab reports in chemistry scared I wasn't going to pass. I nearly cried during the first exam. Needlessly. I had myself worked up over nothing. You can do anything you believe you can do. If you freak and constantly tell yourself you're stupid or that there's no way you'll pass a test, then you're right. You are stupid and there is no way you'll pass that test. STOP THAT! Break the cycle and put forth your best effort. Remember, your best effort is whatever you believe it to be. I believe I am capable of A's. Did I come close to straight A's in high school? HA! My first two years of college? HAHA! I got overwhelmed and settled myself in to the fact that I am a C student and can't get straight A's. So what did I get? Mostly C's. Hmmm... My first semester here I had something I wanted more that anything, a nursing acceptance letter. I knew I needed good grades to get in. If I really was a C student, then I should've even bothered trying. No one will take someone who can't get above a C in their generals. I finally had something to work for, and I went into the semester telling myself that I will get there, no matter what. I CAN get the grades needed. I'm a smart person. Before you think it, no, you're not dumb. If you were dumb, then you wouldn't have a high school degree, the college wouldn't have accepted you, and you wouldn't even be trying. If you're dumb then why are you in college? Because you know you can do this, you just need the confidence to accept that thought. You aren't bragging, you aren't showing off, you're accepting yourself for who you are, and you are a very intelligent individual who is capable of getting the grade you go after. You still have to put the work in, of course, but I imagine you'll find test taking and studying a TON easier.

These are my secrets. Nothing special, nothing fancy. Just an order of self confidence and a great support group. You can do this. You can do ANYTHING. This is a challenge, and that's what it's suppose to be. Embrace that and love it! If you go into nursing for the right intentions, then this class should be an amazing journey! Not an insurmountable nightmare. Just take a deep breath and jump in head first. As long as you're prepared mentally and physically, then there's no reason why you'd drown.

Keep working hard and NEVER give up!

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

Finals and full schedule

As of today, I have finished 3 out of my 4 finals. I still have to take my anatomy and physiology final tomorrow, then I'll finally be finished with this semester! I was finally able to get my last couple classes. I'm taking medical terminology. My adviser said it would be a huge help in nursing, and every nursing student will testify that you should take every leg up you can get! I'm also taking study skill online. I'll wait and see if it's worth adding to the load, but I'm told it's a fairly easy class, and could potentially help me.

I will go off and do what everyone has been looking for, my guide to anatomy and physiology. I will also be doing one for chemistry, but I feel A&P is more important right now.

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

Paperwork, an end in sight, and a new schedule!

So, my school is officially the absolute worst school ever when it comes to paperwork. Every single thing I've handed them has gotten screwed up one way or another except my nursing application (knock on wood!). The worst of all has been my immunization records. The campus I'm on is a satellite of a larger campus. This site doesn't require immunizations unless the program itself does. Well, the nursing program does and I didn't realize this. I ended up getting a letter in the mail telling me that if I didn't get my records turned in I wouldn't be able to register for classes. Luckily I happened to have the paperwork with me, so I turned them into the school the following day. A week later, I went in and sat down to register for classes. Guess what! The hold was still there. I explained all this to my adviser who said it should've gone through. She opened up my file and gee! They were sitting right on top!

 "Oh! These aren't suppose to be here!"

Great! Well, she took down the list of classes I had ready, which wasn't my whole list, but good enough, then said she'd send them over and register me once the hold was lifted. Another week goes by and the hold never lifts. 1st call I made to her she said something about them never returning her emails. Second call I made to her she said they're faxing them into the computer system. 3rd call I made to her, she said they're going to just override the hold and register me for classes. All well and good, but here I sit with 2 more classes to sign up for and I still have that stupid hold! I finally got the direct number for the health services on the main campus, so hopefully I can get all of this sorted out...UGH!

Anyways, so this semester is slowly coming to an end. All in all I have to say it went pretty well. I'm still not doing the best in psychology, but it really could be a lot worse. I'll do another post on advice for getting through Anatomy and Physiology since it really warrants it, but all of this really just comes down to having a good focus. I really really really want into this nursing program, so I'm more willing to work my butt off to get there. I do have to say, though, it will be a relief to get that acceptance letter and not have the weight of the world on me next semester! I'm literally daydreaming of the day I can post my letter on here for you guys to see! :)

So, my next set of classes? Much of the same. I'm going on to Anatomy and Physiology 2, which I've been told is a bit easier, but we'll see about that. I'll also be going into Organic and Biochemistry, which actually sounds like fun and I'll have my favorite instructor! Ok, so I really do like all of my instructors (except psychology), but my chemistry instructor is awesome because he actually understands how much a person can learn at once, the pointlessness of needless memorization, and how stupid it is to expect a perfect lab report for full points. Yeah, he's the bomb! :P I'll be going onto College Algebra as well, which is the final math class I'll have to take, thankfully!

Those are the classes I have so far. I also want to sign up for medical terminology, which isn't required for my major, but a lot of people have said it's really helpful once you get into the program. In order to get both of my grants, I'll have to add on one more class, so I'll probably do something dumb like study skills online. Or maybe lifetime fitness and wellness. We'll see. I first want to dig my adviser's brain and see what she thinks would be a nice simple online class. I say online because my schedule's full. I can't fit another class anywhere. I do have the option of driving 45 min. and taking an evening course of English Composition 2. I'll have to think on that...

All in all this semester has had it's ups and downs, but I'm already starting to miss it. (Pretty sadistic when final exams are on the horizon!) Oh well.

Stay safe and keep studying!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

**Update: Called the Health Dept. this morning and found out the hold never should've been there in the first place. She removed it and everything is back to normal! :)

The Nurse's Cap

I've been doing quite a bit of research on the nurse's cap. It's not part of the uniform for the actual job, but it still holds a symbol to many nursing students and graduates. Something interesting I found out was that, since some of the first nurses were actually nuns, the nurse's cap actually first served as sort of a habit for them. One thing's for certain, though, you almost can't find a story book, or Halloween costume, or even nurse doll that doesn't don the nurse's cap. I don't know why I care so much about it, but it is a part of the history of nursing, which I will be very much a part of soon, so I guess it will be a part of my life. I was looking at pictures from the pinning ceremony in 2010 and saw that only the older generation were wearing the caps. I guess I may have to make a splash and keep it alive! Besides, they really don't look half bad! ;)

BTW, anyone have any thoughts on the capes? They would be AWESOME to wear in the workplace!

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

Application Process

I got my papers in order for the application process and thought I would walk through what goes into it, at least for my school. I'm applying for the Associates RN, so it's a 2 year program that only starts in the fall. On October 1st they start accepting the packets, which include your high school transcripts, your ACT/SAT scores, any other college transcripts, and scores from the entrance exam for the college if needed. From what I've heard from other people, the program is more of a first come first served rather than GPA based, although that's used if it comes down to one person or another. All we need to do is fill out the application, which has nothing more that your name, address, phone number, email, and what program you are applying for, then send that with your transcript packet to the main campus...and wait. I'll be sending mine out tomorrow, so I've got my fingers crossed. They said I should know by about the end of December, early January.

To anyone else out there sending in their applications, GOOD LUCK! See you in nursing school! ;)

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

Top 5 Ipad apps for Nursing Students!

 So I received my brand new Ipad 2 the other day! Totally excited to see all I can do with this baby through nursing school! I already have utilized it a ton in Anatomy! I grabbed a couple of really cool apps that I think EVERYONE should have through nursing school and the science pre-reqs.

1. Cell and Cell Structure. This app may not be useful for too long, but for $3, it's great for students who may not have had any life science before going into Anatomy and Physiology. It has a couple games you can play to help you reinforce the information as well as amazing videos that give you a realistic inside look of a Eukaryotic and Prokaryotic cell.

2. Drawing Book. This one is almost indispensable. For $2 you now have the ability to draw and save pictures on your Ipad. So far, I have utilized this one for Anatomy by making flash cards by drawing the molecular formulas for the different sugars and proteins for my up coming test. It would be great in class, if you're allowed, to make diagrams or quick notes on it.

3. Netter's Anatomy Atlas for Ipad. This app has the steepest price tag of them all, but anyone going into a medical field will find that this app's usefulness with essentially pay for itself and then some. It's price tag is a whopping $89.99, but it comes with 531 main anatomy plates, 40 bonus plates (If you register the app) and if you find the hidden skulls in the main plates, you unlock 10 more plates. You can also spend an additional $8.99 (why not, right! ;) ) and get 30 more extremely useful plates which include basics like body planes, terms of movement, body cavities, and more. This is the greatest anatomy app I have ever seen, on computer or book or any medium, really. This would be my top priority if I could only get one app.

4. NCLEX-RN Question Bank. Yes, I know. I still have another 3 years before I will be taking the NCLEX, but even before you start to study for that test, why not use it in your nursing courses? This app as a group of categories that you can choose from, like Management and Leadership, Critical Care, Pharmocology, Adult Health, and more. These exams will give you a wonderful chance to apply the skills you just learned to realistic situations you will be thrown into later in your career, or in questions once you DO take the NCLEX.

5. Lab Values Pro. Another $3 app, but it houses quite a bit of information that will come in handy later on in nursing school. It has medical abbreviations and medical prefix/suffix dictionaries, but the one that will come in handy the most is the lab reference values. A great (and cheap) reference for all medical students!

I'm sure there are a ton more useful apps out there, and I'm sure there are more I'll find and use later once I'm in nursing school, but for now, these are the best I've found. If you've found some good ones, let me know! Hoping to get a ton of use out of my Ipad!

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

What is a nurse?

I had to take my son to the urgent care center a little while ago for a throat infection and something we encountered there really made me stop and think. Everyone on the staff there was very warm and welcoming except for one woman, the nurse that checked us in and out. Procedure wise she did nothing wrong, she asked all the questions she was suppose to and gathered all the information the doctor  needed. The thing that struck me was her almost robotic attitude. I remember she asked me if my son had ever had an ear infection. I told her no, then said something like "yet" and kind of laughed it off. This woman didn't so much as glance in my direction, she just kept right on moving.

Now, had it been a very busy day, I would understand. Nurses unfortunately don't always have the time for any social protocol, especially in either the ER and the Urgent Care. We were the only ones there. When we left, we were still the only ones there, no one else had signed in. It almost made me cry for that woman. I was reminded of those instructors in grade school who were awful to students. It was either because they hated their job, in which case they should've thought twice about their decision to enter the education sector, or they had forgotten the drive or purpose of being a teacher. This woman was going through one of those two pathways. Given how old she looked, I'd guess she'd been a nurse for awhile and has forgotten the purpose of a nurse.

A nurse's job consists of many things: Dispensing medication, writing up care plans, delivering messages to and from the doctors, and more. Everything a nurse does can be taught in school or on the floor, except the most important point: How to CARE for a patient. You can fill them with meds, start their IV, even bring them a glass of water, but you will still be considered a poor nurse without any kind of emotional treatment.

How many times have you heard about a patient who has gone into the hospital with the doctors telling the family that they only have a few months to live, only to pull through and be here still years later? What is it that kept him going, while someone else might go in and not make it? I would be willing to bet there is either a strong supportive family behind him, or an excellent nurse, or both! When I say an excellent nurse, I don't mean one that dutifully made sure he had all of his meds at exactly the time he needed them, or had all of his procedures go smoothly, I mean on that fought with him. The human will can be an amazing thing, but when we're under serious strain or stress from an illness of some sort, we sometimes need a little reminder to kick it in gear. We need a cheering section. Our priority to the patient should be to be that cheering section. Even if they have a wonderful family, we should still be there to fight along side them. This alone, could be the difference between life or death for the patient.

What does this matter with my son, though? Sure, whether or not the nurses were supportive and caring there wouldn't have made a difference in whether or not my son lived. He got his antibiotics and feels much better now. It still makes all the difference in the world. I had no clue what was happening to my son and I was scared to death. It turned out to be nothing, but I wanted so bad to have a nurse that was happy and upbeat, one who would lift me out of my "I don't know what's going to happen" stage. If she had just offered me a bit of that, I would've handled my son's ear piercing screams that much better. Our patient's condition doesn't just affect them, it also affects their friends and family. Sometimes they need someone to laugh with, or cry with, or just someone to remind them that today is just one more day they have.

"Being a nurse isn't about grades, it's about being who we are. No book can teach you how to cry with a patient. No class can teach you how to tell their family that their parents have died, or are dying. No professor can teach how to find dignity in giving someone a bed bath. A nurse is not about the pills or charting. It's about being able to love people when they're at their weakest moments."

-Miss Katrina Rose

Being a nurse is love above all else. Don't forget this important lesson and carry it with you through the years. Always be an excellent nurse, never a poor nurse!

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

End of Week 2!

So, week 2 has come to a close today. I have a test next Wednesday in Anatomy and Physiology, but the class itself is turning out to not be the nightmare everyone says it is. I don't know if I have an easier professor or if it just comes naturally to me, but it really is turning out to be my easiest class of them all. Chemistry is my second easiest. This is hilarious considering my counselor was afraid I wouldn't be able to handle chemistry and A&P together, since they're such "tough classes". I also got some awesome news that I'll pass on here. The first school I went to was a large university in Minnesota. The likelihood of me getting into nursing school there was slim to none. They were saying you needed a 3.8 or 3.9 G.P.A. just to get onto the waiting lists. It was beyond disgusting. Here? 3.0. I know, my heart just about leaped with joy. I will certainly still be trying to get as high a G.P.A. as I can, but knowing that I don't have to cry over the 1 point that I missed on my lab report for chemistry makes me want to cry. (I'm sure there are people out there who know what I mean.)

I can seriously see myself opening up my acceptance letter in just a few short months...man I need to keep grounded! :P

Keep studying and work tough!

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

School has begun!

I just finished my first week of school and am breathing a HUGE sigh of relief. I had heard so much online from other sources about Anatomy and Physiology being the nightmare course of nursing, so I was understandably very nervous to be going into it while simultaneously taking a second lab science, chemistry. I'll just let you know how they went from the top:

Monday:

I started out with Algebra 2. I'm not that great with math, so this will certainly prove to be a rather challenging course for me, but my professor is wonderful! He fully explains things and makes them super easy to understand. I don't really foresee any issues arising from this class, hopefully! The only thing that will take some getting used to is the fact that the class meets once a week for 3 hours and 45 minutes! ugh! It's enough to drive ANYONE insane!

From there I went to the lecture portion of my Chemistry class. I'm taking basic inorganic chemistry. I never took it in high school, opting instead to take advanced biology. I kind of wish I did take it in high school, but my professor I have for this course is awesome. He's a no nonsense kind of guy and doesn't believe in memorizing stupid things, like the periodic table and metric conversion tables. All those things will be provided for tests and quizzes. It's going to be a bit of a challenge, but I really feel confidant about this class. As long as I keep up and don't slack off I should be fine.

Wednesday:

I started out the day bright and early with Anatomy and Physiology 1. This class is a HEAVY memorization class. if you aren't so great with that, then I would highly suggest you either look into something else or get your study skills engraved in gold for this. For me personally, I've never really had issues with memorization, especially when it's something I enjoy. This class, for me, is something that I would love to learn anyways. The human body just fascinates me (which is why I decided to take Biology in the first place). In our first class, I was the only student to get our quiz 100% correct on material we just went over. I'm taking that as an excellent sign, since almost everyone in there (about 20 students) are hoping to get into nursing, or are in nursing now.

After lecture, I went to the lab part of my chemistry class. It was AWFUL! It wasn't hard or anything, just time consuming as hell! We are in there for 2 hours and 45 minutes and we needed almost ALL of the time! We were doing a lab on density and we had to weigh 9 blocks, each made out of a different material, then measure their length, witdth, and depth to get their volume. Then we had to weigh 5 metal cylinders made out of different materials and weigh a container of a metal block and a small medium and large block. Then take the cylinders and use displacement to find the volume. Not so difficult, except we had to do EVERY measurement 3 times with 3 different instruments. Needless to say, I had awful nightmares about a giant box of rulers and a container of blocks, attempting to measure them all before time ran out! lol! All in all, though, it'll be a fairly easy lab class. Our professor is pretty lax about lab reports and how they're written, which is good.

I also have a psychology class online, but it'll be a breeze, or so I feel. So far all I've done is take a few quizzes on the first chapter and am working on the application question, which is super easy. I suppose this may get tougher, but we'll see what happens as the semester progresses.

All in all I'm very happy with how this semester is going. I left my final class on Wednesday breathing a sigh of relief! Everything is as it should be!

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey!

The Nerd in Me!

So...looking for motivation to get through this rough semester. Nursing itself will be a huge motivation, but it will be a year before I would start nursing school and 3 years before I can take the NCLEX and actually become an RN. SO, I decided a tattoo commemorating my soon to come acceptance letter (I know, I'm really cocky) is completely called for. It's going on my chest and will be a constant reminder about how nerdy my DH has truly made me...

My Beautiful Future Tattoo

Ladies and gentlemen, I do believe that Captain Picard would be very proud of my accomplishments. They need nurses on Starfleet, right?

Anyone else do anything special to commemorate their acceptance into nursing school?


~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

Class Schedule!

I was actually able to get into the classes I needed and wanted! I'm so excited right now! I'm only taking 4 classes, but they're going to be a fairly large workload. They add up to 15 credit hours, which is pretty good. I'll be taking psychology, Algebra 2, Elementary chemistry, and Anatomy and Physiology 1. I tried to find my professors online, but could only find 3/4. The ones I did find, though, all got excellent comments and ratings. I'm not working a job outside the home, but I am dealing with housework and kids, so this could be an interesting semester. This will be the one that determines if I'm going to nursing school next year or not. We'll just have to see...Has anyone else taken two sciences together? How'd it pan out for you?

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

Thank You Lord For Midwives!

I thought maybe, while I waited to see what happens with school, I could explain a little about where I would like to go with nursing and my own personal experience with why. Like I've mentioned, I have 2 beautiful kids. My DD is 2 1/2, will be 3 in October and my DS is about 8 months. My DD was born at home unassisted, meaning the only people there were me, my husband, and my DD. My DS was also born at home, but we had a midwife present the second time around. I've never had a hospital birth, so I don't really have personal experience to draw from, but the home birth was the greatest experience. Once the baby was born, it was so nice to just relax and actually sleep in my own bed. Both of my kids were born quick, my DD coming in 4 1/2 hours and my DS coming in something crazy like 1 1/2. I don't think I would've made it to the hospital anyways, therefore I would certainly prefer a home birth over a car birth.

Now, the reason I decided on the home birth was simple. It's a natural process. My body knows how to digest food to give me energy and nutrients. My body knows how to expel wastes it doesn't need. My body knows how to rid itself of bod food or excess food. If my body can by smart enough to make me shiver to generate energy to warm up, why couldn't it be smart enough to continue our generation without complications? I truly believe that a lot of the complications come up because of the many unnecessary factors we throw its way. Do we really need to test for genetic problems before birth? Would you really be heartless enough to say, "I can't take care of a down syndrome child, let's abort."? If you can, then you shouldn't be having kids to start with. And how about all the pain meds and pitocin, and whatever else they feel is "necessary" to effectively give birth. Once in a while something really truly does go wrong. When it does, I'm very happy we have doctors who can step in and help out, but until that something goes wrong, they need to step back and let our bodies handle things.

If you look in the background there, you can see our midwife. I unfortunately didn't get an actual picture of her. This was the day my DS was born. Those of you who had kids. After you went through the whole ordeal of birth, wouldn't it be awesome to just climb into your bed with your new baby and get to know him/her in the quiet of your own home? It really is a safe and wonderful route for those with healthy normal pregnancies. Once my kids get to be a little older, I would love to become a midwife and give the same care I received and empower women to take over their care and make it the experience they truly want. Yes child birth is painful, but studies have shown that an epidural not only prolongs labor, but gives you a much higher chance of a cesarean section. Is that really worth that risk? I don't believe it is.

How does the old saying go? If it's not broke, don't fix it!

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

Overworked nurses?

I read somewhere the other day that there are hospitals requiring mandatory overtime. Most shifts for nurses are 12 hours already. I understand that there is a shortage of nurses right now, but doesn't that become dangerous? You can push yourself to work for quite awhile, but there comes a point where, even though you can continue to walk and talk, you WILL start to make mistakes. That's just a fact of life. Nurses may not be in the operating room or anything like that, but there are things that they could do that could harm the patient or even kill them. Mixing up medications, giving the wrong dose, even giving something to a patient that is allergic to it. When we are given a responsibility that could mean life or death, that should put our work load in our own hands. If after completing my 12 hour shift I find that I'm way too tired to keep going, does it really make sense to, instead of giving me an option to stay, to just make it mandatory? Any thoughts on this?

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

Hey! It's me! :P

This is totally what I hope to be doing someday! :)

~THE Future Nurse Chelsey

Ugh!

So, I went to my college's orientation today. I was told it would be from 9 am to 12pm. I had to get a last second babysitter for the kids. The person I found had to leave at about 12:30, so I would have to head back pretty soon after it was over. When I go there, it was so backed up and busy that we ended up starting a half an hour late. When it came time to sign up for classes I had to literally run. Unfortunately I can't sign up for classes online, so I'll have to go back on monday to sign up. By that time, almost all of the classes I need at the times I need will be full. I may have to wait another semester to go back. Disappointing, but not going to stop me!

~THE Future Nurse Moudry

Everyone has to start somewhere!

So, I have college experience. I started out going to Minnesota State University Mankato for music, Vocal education to be exact. Then I got pregnant. My husband suggested transferring online, so I did. University of Pheonix (NOT a school I would reccomend). I spent too much time and money there on an almost completed IT degree. Some financial issues later and I drop out. Now I want to go back.

I start school at the end of August as a gen ed student. I have a lot of my generals out of the way, luckily, but I still have to take chemistry and a couple math classes. I'll be spending the next year trying to boost my GPA as high as possible to get into nursing school.

So now the big question. Why nursing? For the most part it's a thankless job, it's incredibly stressful, almost no one appreciates your work, especially the doctors, and the pay by no means makes up for it. It's because nurses are heroes. They don't face a dangerous gunfight to save a kidnapped little girl, they don't brave a deadly fire to save a family from burning, they don't do anything dangerous at all. So how can I call them heroes? Aren't doctors the ones saving lives and helping others?


I believe this answers all of those questions and more. Nurses have impacts on their patients that can last longer than you can imagine. I want to be one of those heroes. I'm not doing this for the money or the title. I'm doing this for me. I'm doing this because I want to help others the way they do everyday. I welcome each and everyone of you to follow me on my journey from a wonderful job as a stay at home mother to an RN. I'm not in nursing school yet...YET...but I WILL be!

"Constant attention by a good nurse may be just as important as a major operation by a surgeon."  ~Dag Hammarskjold

 If you guys have any questions or things you'd like to see me address on here, let me know! I'm going to do my best to make this as informative and detailed as possible. Once I get my first semester classes I'll put up my second blog on what I'll be taking. Thanks for reading!


~THE Future Nurse Chelsey