Well, this semester is finally coming to a close. Only 2 more days of clinical left and 1 final exam in a few weeks. I can't even express how ecstatic I am to only have to drive an hour to the hospital for clinicals 2 more times. As my final spring semester comes to an end, I have realized that there are aspects of nursing that I do like, and certain departments where it's much more enjoyable. If I have to be a Med/Surg floor nurse for the rest of my life, I will jump off a skyscraper. That's definitely not for me. However, the ER, ICU, and OR are the 3 departments where I truly enjoyed myself and I liked the variety that comes along with being a nurse in those areas. This is also the first semester in over a year that I haven't been freaking out about finals and calculating exactly what percentage of an A I need on my finals to pass my classes. I forgot how nice it is to not be under immense amounts of stress.
Next semester I get to try my hand at being a pediatric (student) nurse and a mental health (student) nurse. I'm excited to work with kids, though I'd be happy to work with anyone under the age of 60, and I'm looking forward to a change. Then, in December, I graduate. Crazy. College really does fly by and I've spent most of it stressing about grades and hating my major. Quite a way to spend 4 years of my life. Post-graduation I get the pleasure of attempting to pass the NCLEX and beginning to pay off the ridiculous amount of loans I've accumulated...yay? Moving back to Illinois and being with my family and friends again will be wonderful and I'm even just looking forward to doing that over this summer. If summer even happens. It's been in the 40's here and gloomy as hell for the last few weeks and I'm starting to think Mother Nature is just kind of a temperamental bitch....just like some people I know.
Over the last 4 months, I have learned a few things about myself as a result of working at the hospital and just being in Milwaukee. I've learned that I need to have a lot more confidence in myself and, being essentially on my own while taking care of patients, I have gained that confidence in myself and in my abilities. I used to constantly second guess what I was doing and look to my instructor for guidance and answers. Now I can do things myself, have better judgement as far as making decisions during patient care, and know my strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes you need to be thrown into a situation that's completely new to you just to realize how strong you actually are and how much you are capable of, and that's what this semester has done for me. I've also learned that it's difficult to be in a long distance relationship, but if both parties put in the effort to make it work, it will work. I've gotten to see my boyfriend usually about once a week since January because we both make trips back and forth, even if it's just for the night. It's definitely not ideal or easy, but it does make us stronger in my opinion. You learn to make the most of the time you get together and communication becomes extremely important (though that's important to us even when we're in the same state). This was also my first year living in a real apartment instead of the dorms, and having my car up in Wisconsin with me. I've learned to do a lot more for myself and take care of things on my own, though sometimes I do need advice/assistance from people. It's a big change from living in a dorm where everything is pretty much taken care of for you. I love having an apartment and next semester I'm really hoping to live on my own. Roommates suck. It's said that college is where you're supposed to create your life and gain independence and this is the first year that I really feel like I've accomplished those things.
All I can say is I'm happy that in a few weeks I'll be free for the summer and it better start warming up!!!
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