Psychology & Snow

I'm so over the snow. We got another 4 inches or so overnight, not much I know, but they have done a bad job of plowing so the roads are pretty slick - not fun. Also its frickin' freezing out there... a high of 20 today, brrrr! Spring break is next week but I have a feeling its not going to feel like spring! Oh well....

Another week of the semester is done - this was the first of 4 at the Psych/Behavioral Unit at Mercy Hospital in Council Bluffs, Iowa... I was on the children's side this week - which I thought was going to be fun, but it was honestly pretty boring.

I was hoping to work with adolescents, but there was mostly kids, all under the age of 10 (and there wasn't very many of them). The two days consisted of doing a lot of puzzles, playing Simon says, watching some cartoons and a movie made probably before I was born on how milk is made... We did get to participate/observe in a couple group therapy sessions - which were interesting, but I did not find them terribly thereapeutic. I am interested to go next week and see how things change when there is more kids and teenagers on the unit - then I switch sides and work with the adults for 2 weeks.

So far, don't want to be a psych nurse but I'll keep you all posted :)


"Psychology which explains everything explains nothing, and we are still in doubt” ~Marianne Moore (American Poet 1887-1972)~

//2 mobile uploads//

Omaha Skyline.
Sign I see driving to & from school.

Rotation 1 (out of 3) of Semester 2 (out of 3) = DONE!

I just finished filling out the "graduation and degree" application... yikes, but YAY that must mean its getting closer to being over! A little bit closer anyways :)

As the last day of the med-surg rotation came to an end on Thursday - I was honestly more sad then glad… which was NOT the case in most other rotations! This last week of the rotation presented me with challenges unlike the first three weeks. I have never cared for a person at the end of their life, or who had just been given a poor prognosis for life. It was a sobering experience and an honor to be a part of something so important to a family... I did get to work with IV's which was new for me as well. Still havn't gotten to try starting one on a real person yet though - a couple classmates got to try but no one got it.

Next week brings Psych rotation... heard mixed reviews about it... it is going to be MUCH different because we do not get to provide a lot of care, but mostly work on therapuetic communication... we'll see.



"The most beautiful people we have known are those who have known defeat, known suffering, known struggle, known loss, and have found their way out of the depths. These persons have an appreciation, a sensitivity and an understanding of life that fills them with compassion, gentleness, and a deep loving concern. Beautiful people do not just happen." ~Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross~

Best Valentines Day Ever!

Really, it was the best ever. I will admit, when I left the planning up to Jeremy I was skeptic... But to my surprise he had the entire day planned out!   We woke up a little early for a weekend and hopped into his truck, me still not sure where we were going.... he turned on a "Valentines Day Playlist" and we were off... to massages!  The place was totally decked out, with rose pedals all over the floor, a chocolate fountain, and they gave us gift bags with mini bottles of champagne and some chocolates - it was a relaxing hour, it had been way too long since I'd had a massage, and was Jeremy's first time (he liked it!).    

After going home and changing into "fancy clothes" we were off to our next stop... wine tasting in Iowa!   It was a tiny little winery in a tiny little

 town, but it was a lot of fun.  A husband and wife ran the place, and besides the 3 younger couples including us, they knew every person who came in to buy their wine by name.  

After tasting 8 different wines, we bought a couple bottles and were off to get drinks and then dinner downtown at Omaha's most well known restaurant - Sullivans Steakhouse.  It was amazing food - we both agreed that it rivaled Daniel's Steakhouse back in Bellevue!   I had a filet mignon oscar style and with mushrooms that seriously amazed me every bite!  Jeremy had a NY strip that he enjoyed immensely as well... he promises me we can go back sometime, we'll just have to save up some money first seeing as its also Omaha's most expensive restaurant!  Oh well, we had a blast :) 

SNOW DAY

TGIF :) Its snowing like crazy here in Omaha... and yes it was just 3 days ago that I was wearing my sunglasses and t-shirt outside... crazy Midwest...














*Snow day! Creighton campus closed at 12:30, got outta class early.











*Stairs from my garage to my apt... good thing I had my uggs on, the snow was about 6-8 inches deep!



I guess it will clear up by tomorrow - Valentines Day <3 - Jeremy says we have plans, but its a surprise to me so we'll see what he's got up his sleeve! Lots of love to you all.


"The greatest thing you'll ever learn
Is to love and be loved in return."
~From "Unforgettable with Love" by Natalie Cole~

Surgery!

Yesterday and today were great! I'm pretty not excited for tomorrow - but anyways, about my great days....

Yesterday I only had class for like 3 hours in the afternoon so not only did I get to sleep in but when I woke up it was SUNNY and warm! I actually went to class with no jacket and my sunglasses on :) Then I just did a little homework and made dinner, it was a relaxing day. Today was long, but fun. I got to watch a CABG surgery...

[CABG = Coronary Artery Bypass Graft]
Wikipedia defines it as: a surgical procedure performed to relieve angina and reduce the risk of death from coronary artery disease. Arteries or veins from elsewhere in the patient's body are grafted to the coronary arteries to bypass atherosclerotic narrowings and improve the blood supply to the coronary circulation supplying the myocardium (heart muscle). This surgery is usually performed with the heart stopped, necessitating the usage of cardiopulmonary bypass; techniques are available to perform CABG on a beating heart, so-called "off-pump" surgery.

*the room kinda looked just like this!

For the first few hours (yes hours, it lasted from about 8:30am until after 2pm) I did not get to see much because I am too short, and was not "scrubbed in" and so could not get close to the patient... After that I was allowed to go up near the patients head, where anesthesiologist sits (and had previously needed direct access too), and stand above the bed and look down into the open chest of the patient. It was amazing! I got an up close and personal view of the heart, and the surgeons doing their work. What precision and technique that takes - not to mention patience! I was so impressed by the whole surgery from watching the nurses set up the room, to watching the heart stop beating as it went on bypass, to the new nurse doing the charting. The whole team was like a well oiled machine (with a couple of us students thrown in there watching it all - I was the only nursing student, but there was 3 med students and an anesthesiology student).

So I guess being an OR nurse is not out of the question for me, which is a nice surprise :) I was getting a little nervous with not really liking much yet.... Though there is still a little bit of time left until I have to decide!

BUSY!

Another busy Monday today, especially since Jeremy and I just returned late last night from a quick trip to Seattle for my "older sister" Amanda's wedding to Mike.  I say "older sister" because her family was like a second family to me - all throughout my childhood I was over at their house or Ali (Amanda's little sister, my age) was at mine.  I have great memories, and continue to make great memories with that family!    What a blast that wedding reception was, and the actual ceremony was beautiful.  Amanda looked amazing, and SO happy, can't ask for much for then that :)   However, I got no homework done and we left our apartment in a hurry and of course its a mess. I hate leaving a mess, but even more hate coming back to a mess!  Oh well - school comes first, right Dad?  

Speaking of school... Clinical went well last week, on Thursday I had 2 patients in my care. One got discharged around 10am, but while he was there it was fun having to coordinate and plan my time more carefully. It also made the day seem more realistic, and made it go by quicker!   I am very excited for this week because on Weds I get to observe in the operating room!  I get to watch a whole surgery - I don't get to know yet, because as you might have guessed not all surgeries are known ahead of time.  I'm hoping for something cool though :)   

Okay back to making dinner and catching up on laundry and homework... 

Hope everyone is doing well!

"Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it" - Henry David Thoreau

Sunday already?!

Gosh this weekend flew by, unfortunately!  Back to the grind tomorrow... its going to be another long week I'm afraid!  But this weekend has been great ---> 

Yesterday as Jeremy and I went to go workout, I mentioned that we should have gotten tickets to the Brad Paisley/Dierks Bentley* concert that was happening that night, and he said yeah that would have been fun as he pulled an envelope out of his center console and handed it to me.. Inside were 2 tickets to the concert!!  I was SO EXCITED.   So we went to that last night and it was awesome. Three great performers, all played and sang great!  I took a million pictures (of course) so I'll put those up soon :)  

Oh and for those of you who don't know who the singers are I mentioned, here is a little clip of Dierks Bentley singing my current favorite song by him, "Feel that Fire":

*The headliner was Brad Paisley who sings songs like "Waiting on a Woman", "Online", "Whiskey Lullaby" and "Mud on the Tires" -- the first opener was Darius Rucker who used to be the lead singer of a band popular in the 90's called Hootie and the Blowfish, he sang one of their hits last night "Let her Cry" which was awesome!   Oh and the middle person is the one in the clip above, he also sings songs like "What was I Thinking" and "Free and Easy".