It All Changes...

When you become a nursing student, your life changes. I know. Everyone says that. But as a nursing student who just passed her first semester, I can honestly say that my life has changed. And here is how.

I was a full-time student prior to starting nursing school. I studied and did a lot of homework. Or at least I thought it was a lot. Nursing school is a whole new arena. I study longer and harder, I ask more questions, I over-think concepts. I make sure that I get concepts clarified.

My home life is different. As a wife and mother, my priorities have changed. Laundry doesn't get done quite as often. I do minor cleaning vs. the deep kind. Long gone are the elaborate meals I used to make. Rather than doing all these things, I try to use my time for my family. It's more important for me to play with my kids and spend time with my husband than having a pristine house. I am sure my neat-freak mother has a coronary every time she comes over, but I don't care.

I don't get much "me time." Studying alone in my room is not me-time. When you're in school 3-4 days a week and studying the rest of the time, me-time just doesn't happen often. So I try to schedule in some things that make me feel good. Like watching my guilty pleasure shows, ie Grey's, Scandal, and Days of our Lives.

My last post was about not knowing what to do with myself. So after saying all that and writing this, I know what to do. Spend time with my kiddos, get my house organized and clean, cook delicious meals, read, watch TV, go to the water park, and just enjoy these short weeks before it's back to the grind.

For those about to start nursing school in the fall, take the time to organize your life. Start a routine. Set a cleaning, laundry, whatever schedule. Follow it. It takes 5 minutes to throw a load of laundry in, 10 minutes to fold and put away. Dust on Monday, vacuum on Tuesdays. Hell, vacuum at 2am when you're up thinking about patient X and how to prioritize their care plan.

I Don't Know What To Do With Myself!

I took my last final on May 7th. That is almost 3 weeks ago. THREE WEEKS AGO! Since then, I have had this strange feeling. It's a nagging feeling, like I keep forgetting something. I am not thinking of nursing diagnoses or what interventions are appropriate for which patient, or prioritizing my patients' needs. After a whole semester of thinking about all of this, it's strange to NOT think about all this.

So I have decided I need to find something to occupy my time until my next semester begins at the end of August. And what did I come up with, you might ask. Reading ahead. No, seriously! I download second semester's syllabi and I am getting ready to read ahead. What is wrong with me?

Give Me Your Ideas!

No, really. So far I have written 11 blog posts. I have ideas, but I want to hear/read yours. I would love input! I want to tailor my blog towards my readers and make this blog more enjoyable for you.

So...let me know what you think. Do you want suggestions to survive nursing school? Do you want to hear more about my program? Do you want to read about X, Y, and Z? Please leave your thoughts in the comment section!


One last thing...if you are a male reader of my blog and you're in nursing school, I would especially love to hear from you. I would love to have a guy be a guest blogger on here. Thanks!