Cardiac cath nurse priorities

NCLEX Course Challenges: Supporting Nursing Students on Their Journey
The NCLEX (National Council Licensure Examination) is a crucial step in a nursing student's career, marking the transition from student to licensed professional. However, preparing for the exam can be a daunting task, with many students facing significant challenges along the way. In this blog, we'll explore the common challenges nursing students encounter while taking NCLEX courses and offer valuable insights and strategies to overcome them.
Challenge 1: Time Management
Nursing students often struggle to balance their coursework, clinical rotations, and personal responsibilities, leaving little time for NCLEX preparation. Effective time management is crucial to stay on top of studies and exam prep.Solution:

• Create a study schedule and stick to it
• Prioritize tasks and focus on high-yield topics
• Use productivity tools and apps to stay organized

Challenge 2: Content Overload
The NCLEX exam covers a vast range of topics, making it difficult for students to retain all the information.Solution:

• Break down content into manageable chunks
• Focus on high-priority topics and question types
• Use active learning techniques like flashcards and practice questions

Challenge 3: Test Anxiety
Test anxiety is a common phenomenon among nursing students, affecting their performance and overall well-being.Solution:

• Practice relaxation techniques like deep breathing and meditation
• Develop a positive mindset and self-care routine
• Take practice exams to build confidence and familiarity

Challenge 4: Limited Resources
Access to quality study materials, instructors, and support can be limited, hindering students' ability to prepare effectively.Solution:

• Utilize online resources and study groups
• Seek guidance from experienced instructors or mentors
• Leverage technology and mobile apps for study support

Challenge 5: Self-Doubt and Fear of Failure
Fear of failure and self-doubt can creep in, causing students to question their abilities and second-guess their decision to become a nurse.Solution:

• Reframe negative thoughts and focus on strengths
• Celebrate small victories and progress
• Seek support from peers, mentors, and loved ones

If you need personalised help to pass any of your nursing exam, class assignment or even want to handover full courses, contact hiraedu's helper via contact details as: WhatsApp: +1 (213) 594-5657 OR Call: +1 727 456 9641
NCLEX course challenges are a natural part of the nursing student journey, but they don't have to define your success. By acknowledging these challenges and implementing effective strategies, you can overcome obstacles and achieve your goal of becoming a licensed nurse. Remember, stay focused, prioritize self-care, and believe in your abilities – you got this!

Im a surgical nurse and i’ve experienced POTS symptoms for the last 4 years and ended up referring to see a private cardiologist after it got pushed off as anxiety by doctors and GP for so long and have only just been put on a waiting list at the hospital to see both cardiology and neurology, only because now my symptoms have progressed and worsened/more multiple A&E visits with blackouts and seizures. The private cardiologist i saw was an older cardiologist who barely had much knowledge on other symptoms of POTS bar the cardiac symptoms, he refused to call it POTS and told me ‘it’s a little bit of dizziness you’ll be fine just take the meds and sort your lifestyle’ which was really insensitive considering everything ive been through. When we received the private report he put the diagnosis as ‘in line with POTS and dis regulation of the nervous system’ and wouldn’t actually call it what it was for some unknown reason. Eventhough i recieved something, he gave me no help or recommendations truly or referred me for actual tests, to a specialist etc. I am aware this page is for people who mostly have received a formal diagnosis. I feel no further forward and feel really unheard and it’s caused my mental health to deteriorate so much. Has anybody else experienced anything similar when it comes to medical professionals?

I am a 41 year old female. I’m 5’3 and 140lbs. No surgical history. Im not on any medication. Baseline HR runs high in the 100’s and my blood pressure runs on the low side. Recent cholesterol tests are all within normal healthy ranges. I’m a registered nurse. I suffer from pretty bad anxiety. My health anxiety has worsened after losing my mother to a sudden heart attack and then needing to be on ECMO and ultimately dying.
Three days ago I woke up with a very stiff neck on my left side and pain in my upper back and shoulder. Again all my left side. Can you see where this is going? Haha it’s made worse by lying on that side and turning my neck to the left and certain movements but it’s always present as a dull ache for the past 3 days.
I know the signs of a heart attack. I know when I would need to go to the hospital. I’m just terrified everything is cardiac related now after losing my mom. I did a fair amount of gardening and yard work and I think that it’s prob a pulled muscle of some sort. I used a heat pack and that seems to help a lot.
I’m consumed with the fear that I’m going to die like my mom. I talk to a therapist about this but it’s still so difficult.
Is this most likely a pulled muscle? I have no other cardiac symptoms (no non typical, “women” heart attack symptoms either) I’m a nurse so I know I cannot be guaranteed that if someone says I’m prob fine that I won’t drop dead tomorrow from heart attack haha but I’m looking for even a shred of reassurance to help me back from my anxiety ledge.
I really appreciate any input.

The game opens with constant gunfire and artillery shells bursting, the sound of men yelling as gunfire stifles the darkness of the night. We focus in on a platoon of troops in a foxhole, like lightning a shell hits close to, wiping out most of the men. As the ringing of the remaining ears clear they realize they need to retreat as they can no longer stay in the tight, cramped, flooded hole they've found themselves in and the only way back is up.
Every player must roll a d10, the player with the lowest role finds a piece of wood stuck within their leg, not bleeding but obstructing the ability to run without help, the players decide to deal with the issue there and then or deal with assisting the injured player in the retreat to try and fix it in a safer location.
As the players leave the foxhole a machine gun fire begins to target the group
Triggers a sequence
Flairs shoot lighting up the battlefield as you hear a whistle from the enemy blows They're crossing no man's land.
This sequence where the players must make a 200-250yd dash for a trench behind the foxhole.
Players take priority in turn rotation

Fleeing is (Mov x 5 =x yd) 

Every player must make a dex roll on their turn
-a critical success allows them to run uninhibited
-a regular success causes equipment to get snagged on barbed wire causing them to get slowed
-a failure causes you pouches or bags to rip dropping a small amount of ammunition
-a critical failure causes you to get cut by barbed wire dealing 1d4 damage
Players carrying injured role with penalty die
On the machine guns turn roll to full auto at players but role with triple penalty dice due to multiple shots, out of range, and fast targets. You can decide volley size and damage per shot, BE NICE it's just the beginning
Once all players have made it across no mans land they will arrive at the door of a rather large bunker, they bang on the door and request assistance. After a bit of pleas a slot on the large door opens with a bun barrel sticking out. A rather shooken young man asks the players to tell him “where are you from” clearly trying to see if the players are enemies. A player can say anything but the second the man hears perfect english or french he swings open the door. The players see a young man with a shotgun, couldnt be over 20 years old. He commands the players to get in fast. As all the players enter he immediately goes to slam the door shut seeming to struggle to do so.
You meet Bert Newman a strapping young man from new york a very charming quick witted kid, he's always there to boost morale and is always ready to get work done. Its best to slowly show off his personality with small talk while he leads you down the winding halls.
After a few turns and twists you arrive at a sort of check point with a man with a british bren gun points his barrel down the hall, directly at Bert and the players.
You meet Rook a very large man sporting a very clean uniform, he seems concerned and Isn't too welcoming to the new residents, hes a harsh with his words, and presents himself as no nonsense, he does have a soft spot for Bert, able to handle his constant cracks and stories. I recommend making some dialogue for them to have every now and then to show their relationship.
After the players are done interacting have rook notice the player with the injury if it hasnt been taken care of he’ll direct the players to go to the infirmary to get fixed up. Have Bert offer to show them where to go. On the way to the infirmary try to keep engaging with the players as Bert
As the players arrive they will notice a large room with a few injured men, a very poor sight to behold. Once you arrive at the entrance you will meet a beautiful young lady dressed in a nurses gown
This is Louise, say hi to Louise :D. A pretty woman with a caring face, but with a hint of concern and fear.
She welcomes you and immediately notices the protruding fragments sticking out of the injured player, she looks back up and tells them to take a seat. The players can interact with Bert more, with each other, or Louise. Try to have Bert and Louise interact if you can, they are great friends.
After the player is patched up they can leave. They can follow Bert back to rook where Rook will give you the task to retrieve barbed wire from the armory as they want to start adding more defenses for the door incase of being invaded. Bert will again offer to guide the players
You begin your journey to the armory, once again try to interact if you can, mention what could have brought Bert to the war and his family. At a certain point Bert will trip a grenade wire trap, everyone roles a dex or dodge role. Bert is killed in the blast anyplayer that fails gets knocked to prone, you can determine if they were close enough to take damage. After all the dust clears the players see Bert's body slumped against a wall lifeless,they can't save him. If the players decide to search him they will find a mostly burnt map of the bunker, some ammo for a shotgun and a letter addressed to what you can assume is his family.
If the players continue to go and retrieve the barbed wire they will get a chance to change their weapons if they choose. As they return they notice Bert’s body is now gone, with a blood trail leading around an separate hallway
Thank you for reading!!!

After 6 years me and my ex(25F) broke up because she wanted to “live her twenties”. Somewhere down the line we diverged from each other. I wanted to get a job as a midlevel medical professional and she was a nurse already. Her background has to deal with hyper hands off parents who seemingly don’t care about anything past “how much money do you make” and “are you fat” there kids were a status symbol at most. (Yeah there Asian) now I’m currently talking to a new girl and she does not have the same issues as the previous girl and we have the same priorities in life as well as principals and my issue is that there is a 5 year age gap between us. I wanted to know if the age gap is something I should be concerned about from a pure bases of “that’s a a huge age gap” or is it even that huge of an age gap?
TL;DR: is the age gap between me(26M) and this new girl(21F) that significant of an age gap? We have a lot aligned but I don’t want to be one of those couples who’s talked about like “that’s a big age gap”.

Hi! I have 2.5 years of adult ICU cardiac experience. I recently switched took a PEDS icu float position. I knew that it was going to be a learning curve but I was assured that I would get “easy” patients. I had 4 weeks of orientation. 2 weeks in a PICU and 2 weeks in a NICU. We never did any IVs, admissions, transfers, drips while on orientation.
Now that I’m off orientation I’m getting all of that. While I’m doing well and getting by, I’m solely relying on my adult experience and feel like my licenses is on the line because I don’t feel super prepared. I’ve been on my own since March but I’m getting anxious every time I go to work. No one is super helpful bc they know I’m the float nurse but at the same time things are so different. I floated to 5 different units within the first month. I don’t feel grounded. I love the peds population though. So not sure if I should just let time pass or go somewhere else?
Also, I take the most critical patients on my adult ICU and I’m PRN there so I’m a great nurse. I’m just feeling defeated in this new role.
Any advice?

I 29F live with my mom, older brother by 6 yrs and 95yr old grandma. I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety from about 20yrs old and have probably been living with it since I was a child but didn't know what it was. Since I was a child I have had a lot of responsibility placed on me as the "gifted kid" that would "save and protect" the family and hold it together. Now, I wasn't aware I was being put into that role until I got to live and work abroad and had some time to reflect and also talk to peers to realise that most people don't live their childhood, teens and twenties supporting their family of adults - especially not as the youngest member of the household.
That job abroad felt like it was the first time doing something for myself and by myself but quickly became supporting the family financially and at every beck and call from abroad. My mom would vent to me about whatever is daunting on her emotionally, stressing her financially etc and being so used to it - I always made it become my problem to fix it. This lead to a problem where, I have no savings, no property that isn't tied to/shared with someone else, and I am constantly mentally drained and emotionally exhausted till I just don't have the mental capacity to work on my own goals and aspirations. Further stressing me out is I actually have a lot of big goals and aspirations and expectations I set to myself. Being so far behind, esp when it seems like its mostly not my fault (apart from my enabling it etc) doesn't do wonders for my mental health.
The usual pattern in my life is as soon as the slightest good thing happens, or even just a shift in my mental health (say motivation comes from somewhere and I really start to put plans into action) - something much worse happens that forces me back into my abyss. Except, it gets deeper and deeper every time. I'll spare you several examples.
So upon my realisation that I was probably "parentified", that my mom is far too reliant on me as a second breadwinner and that I am functionally her husband - I wrote her a letter saying I was pulling the plug on all that, that they all needed to learn how to live without relying on me because I don't even want kids and don't see why I am supporting adults when I don't even live there at the moment. I was going to express that they are fundamentally holding me back and that it has to and would stop.
Unfortunately, before I could finish that letter, mom calls to say she was diagnosed with cancer. Now this too would be somehow my issue to fix cause my brother though working always made less than me and he was extremely unwilling to take care of mom. Even to just take her to doctors appointments he couldn't be bothered to do, preferring to just work instead. While I was abroad I had to ask my friends and mom had to ask her friends for that kind of support and I eventually hired a caregiver that I sent money back home (in addition to my usual financial aid). Eventually it would come to pass that mom would need chemo and the possibility she may not survive. I was afraid to come home lest all the burden of this naturally high stress situation fell on me - but at the same time what if she doesn't make it and I never saw her again?
I couldn't afford a roundtrip airfare and the arrangement with my job was if I terminated at the end of my contract without renewing I could go home at my employer's expense. I decided to quit and come home after a less than hopeful conversation with my mom's oncologist. This meant financially we'd be reliant on mom's regular burdened by debt income, her insurance and my brother's income (this never happened btw) to get by since I am now jobless.
What I feared happening happened exactly AND more! Not only did the caregiver I hired eventually walk off the job which made me mom's primary caregiver, her nurse, her chauffer, personal assistant and courier. I also became the housekeeper, the shot caller, the household manager, the cook, the plumber... you get the idea. On top of that, my brother would be a regular thorn in the side because he would throw tantrums when I needed the car to do things for mom (mom and I own the car but mom started to let him drive it while I was away since he recently got his license). He was highly uncooperative with handling his own personal responsibilities (eg taking care of his cats), as well as anything where I would need extra help with mom. My grandma also would complicate things ( she has always been a narcistic bitch and no one in the family likes her but mom insists she has to stay cause mom is a pushover - you see who I get it from yes. Grandma would actively compete with my mom for pity points, faking sickness, deliberately making herself sick, exerting herself unnecessarily to then feign weakness and guilt trip me - all because she wanted the same attention that I gave the cancer patient.
Mom too, would put me under emotional duress cause in all this she also wanted me to do everything and be happy about it even if I had to pretend. She would start to make demands, oddly specific meal requests of someone who does not cook at all, demand having access to me at all times of day, and if I were to take free time out of the house by myself, she would insist I need to do something for the house or for her while I was out esp if I was going to use her car (the car we both own, that when we bought she told me it was mine and the car that is officially willed to me - yes that one). We also had several arguments where I learned she always thought that cause I was the "smart one" she expected that I could be fully left to my devices and I'd turn out fine and she could rely on me to take care of my deadbeat, driven-less, lazy, lonely, woman-blaming incel and approaching sexually deviant brother after she eventually passes. Cause she is confident that he may never learn to fully adult. And she is likely right by her own fault was she coddles him and shields him from every form of consequence of his action or inaction and is very hesitant about any kind of tough love for him but when it comes to me - even with the slightest of things/benefits she will quickly withhold because "I am inherently more privileged" than he is.
In all of this, my friends when I reach out for support never want to show up. They don't want to deal with any of my problems. No one wants to let me stay even for a week to get a break from my household. Most of them anyway I can't even trust cause they see me as their scapegoat for female touch and affection and since I am no longer willing to pity their loneliness they have gone extremely cold and some try to skirt around touching me inappropriately when they're around me.
Now, I also live in a poor country where pay is always shit. I still only have a bachelors in something that pays extra shit at entry level esp in my country. Peers in my country have very different interests than me usually which is how I am still with the same circle of misfits I have from high school as friends. There's not really anything to do at home that interests me - career wise or entertainment wise. Which is why getting out was such a high priority. But as you can see that's always been and continues to be put on the back burner.
Now that mom is doing much better, its back to looking at exiting cause I will not ever feel better if I stay in this house or even in that country. And my family can thank themselves for finally pushing me to the point where I really don't care what happens to them once I am confidently gone.
So I have shit family, shit friends, no job, my family is actively trying to strip me of any kind of power or leverage with what I do own, changing the conversation as necessary if it means I stay trapped. All because I unfortunately expressed that I want out and that I am not of the opinion that family is everything or blood is thicker than water. Once I get a job, it probably won't pay well enough to rent and apparently the car I part own isn't really mine while I live in my mom's house (which is also legally, partially mine) by her logic. Public transit is very expensive, so if I rent without a car that's even more money I'd have to make. I'd also have to accept the risks that come with public transit in a murder-loving country esp a murder-against-women-loving country vs just brute forcing the mental trauma of staying at that pitiful excuse of a home.
This was a lot longer than planned and if you read all of that, thank you. Sincerely. If you have any tips on how to cope in a high stress, high pressure environment besides hobbies, meditation and exercise - enlighten me. If you skipped to the end, I am not doing a TLDR. I will just wish you blessings and I hope that your life is on a better trend than mine ever was.

About a year ago, I started having a change in my bowel habits. I went from going 2-3/day with normal solid stool, to 8-20/day with loose/yellow/floating/mucous combination stool. No matter what I eat I continue to go straight to the bathroom. My stomach pains were unbearable at times and I have a constant fear of not making it to the bathroom on time every single day. I could not go out to eat with family. There was no eating before going anywhere. No trips anywhere, nothing. I finally went to the doctor about 3 months in. I went to my primary care to get a referral for a GI doctor. At my primary care appointment, they drew labs to check my white blood cell count, electrolytes, gallbladder labs, and even checked to see if my thyroid was causing any of this. Then they hit me with giving them a stool sample to check for C-diff… I am a nurse and knew what types of stool C-diff can look like, and i DEFINITELY know what it smells like. I knew I didn’t have it and I never turned in my stool sample. I just thought it was a total waste of time. My other labs came back normal, everything did. She referred me to a GI doctor and the earliest appointment was 3 months away. I waited and continued to try and deal with this completely awful new way of life. I changed my diet to absolutely no sugar, no gluten, no dairy, and high protein/fiber STRICT diet…. This of course did nothing for me. The time has come and I go to the GI appointment, finally. I went on to tell them all of my issues I had been having for the past 6 months. There was the stomach pain, change in bowl habits, constantly having to have a bowel movement, the cololook of the stool, and the 10 pounds of weight loss that had taken place since this has started. They checked the same labs on me as my primary care doc did, did an ultrasound of my abdomen/pelvis, and gave me a stool testing kit. I told them I didn’t have C-diff, but they wanted to check anyways. They also scheduled for me to have colonoscopy and an upper GI scope. The only problem was that the earliest possible appointment was 6 months away…. I begged for them to find a way for it to be pushed up because I had started becoming depressed, developed anxiety, and became a total recluse. I even started taking anxiety medication solely because of this. They said since my ultrasound was normal (other than extreme gas in my abdomen) and my labs didn’t reflect anything serious, they can’t move it up due to being so booked up. I drove home and cried the whole way home. I’ve never felt so defeated in my life. I took my stool sample items and threw them away. The only thought I had was, “what a waste of my time”. I thought nothing was going to be normal again. I had forgotten what even normal was. I decided to call my primary care doctor to see if she could refer me to another GI office. They did, and the earliest appointment was 3 months away…. Yes, another delay. I waited and waited. Still no socializing, staying home, going to work ONLY, barely eating, more weight loss, and now the presence of blood that started to appear in my stool…. Did I mention that I had been taking a box/more of immodium every month in order to be able to work my full time night shift ICU nurse job…??? Yep… not kidding, and every NP/doctor I had talked to thus far knew this… Finally, after 9 months I had my appointment with the other GI office. They again did the same as the other office except order an ultrasound. The only thing different was they told me that I would be priority over anyone on receiving a colonoscopy due to my s/s. They scheduled it 2 weeks away which was their earliest appointment possible at the time. I was so relieved it was unreal. I was finally taken seriously. They also said they MUST have a stool sample on me before I had the scope done. So i grabbed the supplies they gave me and went home to have a BM, placed it into the fridge (absolutely disgusting), and then drove it up to the clinic the next day. 3 days went by and I had a phone call. They called to tell me my labs came back normal, but that I tested positive for C-diff…… I couldn’t speak. I was in such shock and disbelief. They also called to tell me that they were canceling my scope and sending in 2 weeks worth of Vancomycin that I need to take 4/times. I cried and cried and cried. I just knew it wasn’t C-diff and they had gotten my samples mixed. I was so disgusted and angry at them for canceling my scope because I knew that would give me the answers that I needed to possibly get back to normal again. I got over it. Started taking the antibiotics, and stopped taking the immodium. My bowel movements decreased. Stomach pains went away. Blood stopped appearing in my stool. I was almost back to my old self…. Then after the Vanc was done and I had completed the prescribed course, all of my awful, no good symptoms I had before the meds… started again in full force. I have now lost 7 pounds in 3 days. I have not stopped going to the bathroom. I have very pale yellow colored stools. I now have 20 bowl movements a day. I have intense, not being able to even breathe stomach pains. And now a toilet bowl full of blood with a select few of those bowel movements. I called the GI office and they told me they are sending me in a 10 day dose of some other medication that I have yet to figure out due to this occurring today and the med not even being able to be picked up from the pharmacy yet. I am disappointed and mad. I can’t do this anymore. I can barely preform my job which takes ALL of my focus and energy and doesn’t share those things with anything. I have talked myself out of going to the emergency room every time, I guess that’s the nurse in me. I am miserable. I’m going to take these meds and if this doesn’t help I’m telling them I am headed to the emergency room and I don’t care what happens. I just will not let this be me for the rest of my life. I can’t do this another day. Please… can someone help me. I have had C-diff for a total of a year and only known I’ve had this for 1-2 months now. Please tell there is hope of getting rid of this. Anything is helpful at this point…. (Yes I take probiotics and prebiotics. Intake fiber. Even drink Kefer. I also eat yogurt with probiotics every day. None of this helps.) * I also have pictures of my stool that I did show each and every doc * - I know that is insanely weird but I just wanted to be take seriously…..

I’m 27 with no degree yet. After so many years of barely scraping by, my main priority is making a livable wage. The thing is, I have always struggled in school. I have a very hard time with math. I also have an information processing disorder that makes it so it takes me about twice as long as your average person to memorize information. Long story short, I recently found out I am blessed enough to still have a college fund that would cover about 2-3 years of tuition and housing. I feel as though I need to put it to good use. I’ve been looking into healthcare (radiology tech, nursing, dental hygiene) but I have to admit I am so intimidated by the possibility of having to do complex math or not being “good enough” to get in to school let alone graduate. I am hoping to make at least 50k/year from the degree I choose. Any suggestions are so deeply appreciated. Thank you.

Hi everyone; I am a nurse looking to transition into the role of medical sales here in the Greenville area. Does anyone know how realistic that is here? I keep seeing positions for surrounding areas that are just a bit too far.
Any medical device companies that are prevalent in Greenville? I have experience in the cardiac ICU currently with 5 years of healthcare experience.

FTM 16 weeks pregnant. In laws live on the east coast and want to book flights ahead of time around the time of our due date to be here ready to meet the baby when born. I’m generally a pretty private person. I’m also genuinely scared about the labor ahead and how torn up my body may be after the fact. Being a FTM, I really don’t know what to expect or how my recovery will go. I went through IVF for this pregnancy, so the whole process was quite traumatic. Probably partly due to that, I’m also scared about my in laws passing flu or other things to my baby after coming off a plane.
My in laws are very nice people, but can be overbearing. My FIL doesn’t really understand boundaries (he once followed me into the bathroom instead of getting the message that we were done chatting). I wouldn’t expect either of them to be hugely helpful with the types of things I’d want help with (cooking, cleaning), and think they’ll just want to pass the baby around. I also think it would be so stressful for me to have them in town during the home stretch of pregnancy, just waiting for me to have the baby.
I’ve expressed to my husband that I would like to tell them we will let them know when we’re ready for visitors and that we don’t know when the baby will come or how long after that we’d be ready for visitors. My husband is on board and supportive, but so nervous about offending and upsetting his parents. The conversation was broached the other day, and my FIL was shocked that we might want to bond as a family before having visitors. My parents are local too, so he immediately made the comparison and asked if my parents would also wait to meet the baby. My response is anyone who is coming over is coming to help me, not to meet the baby. And the priority will be my comfort, not fairness. I absolutely cannot be tits out nursing in front of my in laws as that would be mortifying for me.
One compromise that was suggested was to allow them to book plane tickets for 2-4 weeks after the due date. They would stay in a hotel. I still worry about how I’ll be doing and how much time we’ll have to ourselves to bond as a family, depending on when I end up actually delivering.
For those who’ve been in a similar position, how soon after having the baby we’re you feeling well enough to have out of town visitors over? 2 weeks? 4 weeks? I think it’s probably different for everyone which is why I’d like to decide after I’ve had the baby and have a better idea of what I’m dealing with recovery-wise.
Any good suggestions on how to approach the conversation or compromise? I really do want to have a good long term relationship with my in laws, and also want the same for my baby with her grandparents. I know I’m lucky to have in laws that care and are excited, and I feel guilty pushing them away. Is it selfish to ask them to wait until we feel ready?
ETA - Wow I wasn’t expecting so many responses! Thank you all for your helpful input and advice. I’ll do my best to continue to advocate for myself and baby!

hi guys! meron kaming gc for those who have qualified for nursing sa UST! comment nalang kayo rito and we’ll add you 🫶
also, to our CoN seniors, if you have any tips or advice for us incoming freshies, feel free to share your insights (or scare us away) hehe
congrats future thomasian student nurses!

This is somewhat my throw away account, mainly because Reddit will not allow me to delete, and regarding the stent at 38, my LAD was nearing 90%I have something going on that has me highly concerned (FWIW, I also have dedicated most of my adult life to healthcare, and so has my partner (cath lab), but this is one of those stories where I am a little worried about appearing foolish in front of my colleagues and physicians. Last year, I had one hell of a health scare. My family has an extensive cardiac history (as in early cornoary artery diseas, many of which have lead to heart attacks at young ages. I cannot name a single male that has made it past 65. I can get into more details about poor lifestyle choices if needed, but don’t want to go down a rabbit hole just yet. I’ll provide more info if needed.
I noticed the other day that my right carotid artery was thumping. I felt my left side and it was barely palpable. I had my partner feel it as well and she could also barely feel it. Today, I got a little pain behind my left ear and slightly into my jaw on my way to the store, and immediately felt brain fog (on a side note I have also been off of buprenorphine for a week, and I have hardly been able to move due to chronic back pain that it was helping with (I won’t get into the spine issues). I can hear no bruits through a stethoscope, and neither can she. The pulse is VERY faint though. Do the docs of Reddit feel I should be concerned? I am a worrier by nature and it is really affecting me. Is there a possibility that theres a L Carotid blockage? Obviously I worry about strokes, but I don’t want to seem like a hypochondriac showing up around people we work with to have it be nothing. I also don’t want to kill over, or have a stroke, and leave my kids and family.
Edit: The blockage in the LAD was discovered because I demanded a CTA after some of the weird things I have seen WITH MY OWN EYES post covid; I was completely asymptomatic. My lifestyle has not been the best and I have been more unkind to my body far more than I have treated it as I should. TO my knowledge my carotids were not checked. I found no evidence of them being looked at in my chart, but then again I also only found discharge instructions for my cath.

Underwent SAVR to get an Inspiris Resilia valve one week ago. Couldn’t have asked for a better experience or outcome. Some highlights:
Day 1 - surgery + ICU
Only scary thing of the entire day was getting my arterial catheter placed in my wrist. Made me super nauseous and anxious, but that was quickly resolved with a shot of Versed. I went into the OR very relaxed.
Surgery went very smoothly. My aortic root was within normal range and my arteries were clear, so this was a simple valve replacement with no other complications. I was extubated in the OR and woke up in the ICU in the next hour. Evidently, I was cracking jokes and asked my ICU nurse if they replaced my heart with a baked potato (I was in a Denver hospital, so of course it would be a South Park joke.)
The ICU nurses were super attentive to getting my pain under control and keeping it under control. I was given Tylenol and Oxycodone as my base medicines, with on-demand doses of Dilaudid and Toradol. They checked me at least every hour, so I didn’t really get any sleep, except for the occasional Dilaudid hit knocking me out. Toradol did an amazing job of blunting the internal pain, which they said was mostly from the chest drain.
Day 2 - ICU + move to cardiac floor
Cardiac Rehab came first thing that morning with the fanciest walker I’ve ever seen. It had places for my chest drain suction box, Foley catheter bag, oxygen tank, and battery-powered oxygen sensor. The walk was a bit of a challenge, but I made it almost to the end of the hall and back.
I was returned and set in my chair and they started removing everything from my bed to start getting the room ready for the next patient. My move was delayed due to some late discharges, so I asked to be put back in bed, they were happy to oblige.
I was finally moved into my room and weighed in. I was expecting to weigh less, but had gained 14 POUNDS (!!!) since day 1. Evidently, this is entirely normal, and comes from the amount of fluid they pump into you from surgery, plus your weaker heart in its immediate post-op state. I was started on Lasix and Potassium to get all that extra water out of me.
Towards the end of the day, I finally got my room in the cardiac main floor, and met a nice nurse and CNA that would be my nurses for the next two nights. They were diligent about staying on top of my Tylenol and Oxycodone, and I did not need any more Dilaudid or Toradol.
Since I only needed oral medication every four hours, I got a really good night of sleep.
Day 3 - removal of chest things etc.
In the late morning, they announced they were going to pull my pacing wires and chest drain. I was terrified of the pain and they kept reassuring me it wouldn’t be too bad. They pulled the pacing wire, which hurt and tickled a little because the end of it had a coiled wire, much like the spring you’d see in a ball point pen, and that spring comes out like a corkscrew and you do feel it.
They had me wait for 45 minutes and came back to do the chest drain. The nurse had me practice deep breaths and holding my breath, then took out the drain. To my surprise, it did not hurt as bad as I expected, it came out quickly, and I felt instant relief afterwards. I was able to take deeper breaths and within hours, I was out in the hall without a walker, only with my PT nurse’s hand on a chest belt that had my sternum pillow cinched tight.
Day 4 - feeling really good
I’m walking the halls without a walker and no assistance. My surgeon came to see me and we started talking as I walked back to my room. He informed me that everything went well, but they saw some periodic arrhythmia that they might need to shock or send me home with meds, possibly with an extra night stay.
The nicest CNA named Daysi — the abuela everyone wishes they had — assists me in taking my first shower, which felt amazing. I have no restrictions with my incision, which is held together with glue. It is much shorter than I expected, not visible at all through the top of my gown or a v-neck shirt.
Day 5 - going home
I’m walking the halls and run into my surgeon’s PA, who tells me I’m cleared for release and he’ll come talk to me in a bit. Surgeon comes by and says my heart rhythm is good, so I’m not only going home without any extra meds, I’m cleared to have a daily cup of regular coffee and chocolate again if I want.
I’m all packed and being wheeled out right after lunch. It surprises me how easy it is to get into the car.
Days 6-7 - improving at home
I’m finding stairs to be relatively easy. By day 7, it’s actually easier for me to climb stairs than immediately before surgery. I’ve cut my Oxycodone dose in half and will walk a little over a mile, split over 4 short walks outside today. Took my first shower by myself, made my own breakfast and lunch, even folded some laundry.
I am so grateful for my surgeon Jess Joymon and the entire care team at St Joseph Hospital in Denver. I could not have asked for a better outcome or care throughout the process, so much so that I’m feeling really good about my decision to get a tissue valve at age 57. I’m not all that scared of doing this again if/when the tissue valve needs to be replaced.

I have been a new grad nurse for almost 3 months. When I was on days I was with one primary preceptor and at least 4 random back-up preceptors when my primary preceptor was not available. Things went well and my primary preceptor said I was progressing as expected. When I was on nights my night shift preceptor had different expectations for me. She said I would need to work on knowing cardiac drips, what these are for, and how to know when the patient doesn’t tolerate coming off these meds. One of the night shift charge nurses also told me they were concerned about my critical thinking. The charge nurse and my preceptor thought I struggled with critical care concepts and raised their concern about me being safe when off orientation. I have 3 weeks left of orientation, and yesterday I had a meeting with the unit director who said it would be best for me to be transferred to PCU for at least 6 months until I am determined competent enough to move back to the ICU, since there were some people who raised their concerns to him. I have never made any medication error before, probably because I always asked my preceptor to double check what I was doing to make sure I did the right thing. I understand where they are coming from, but I have been very upset over this thinking I am a loser who is not competent enough. I just wanted to vent here and ask if any of you had the same experience and how you embraced it.

Sharing my story to increase awareness about possible MA outcomes and support those in a similar situation:
I have been “uncoupling” with my partner for nearly 6 months but last week I had a positive urine test, after a few days of cramping and no period.
I was anxious to complete an MA quickly. It’s not the right time for my partner & I, financially, mentally, physically. I live in a legal state but was overwhelmed by the options. I do not have a PCP so I decided to order pills using HeyJane.
Using their sliding scale, I paid $350 including expedited shipping and received my pills about 3.5 days after ordering. I was nervous to start treatment, after reading so many stories here, and stocked up on all of the diapers and ginger chews I could.
I took Mife and first round of Miso on Friday PM. 24 hours later I had not started bleeding. I took an extra dose of Miso and still was not bleeding 24 hours later.
The nurse at HeyJane prompted me to take another urine test in case it was a chemical pregnancy. My test was positive. The nurse said my symptoms (mild cramping, some fatigue, gas) were not aligned with an ectopic pregnancy.
Next the nurse encouraged me to see a OBGYN within 48 hours, or go to urgent care, to get an ultrasound to see why I was not bleeding. I’m currently waiting to schedule an appointment with my local clinic.
I was eager to complete the MA quickly but I didn’t expect the anxiety and defeat of an unsuccessful treatment. I didn’t expect I’d ever have to say the words “abortion” over the phone to a nurse or go into a clinic. I’m lucky to have supportive friends and a partner to be there for me, but the hoops and emotional labor of legally terminating a pregnancy took me by surprise.
I have some relief that a doctor will help me get through this. I had no idea that the pills could be unsuccessful. In retrospect, I would probably call a doctor first. I hoped I’d never have to have an ultrasound but ultimately that information can inform providers on the best way to support you.
I hope anyone who finds themselves in this position finds courage to reach out to friends and local providers, and know that you are not alone. Know that the knowledge you gain from this experience will help others. Know that your health is the priority and you need to do what’s best for you. Abortion shouldn’t be a scary word and there is bravery in what you are doing.

We cannot build 3.5M homes or whatever number of millions the government is projecting. Its impossible. The math is not racist it also doesn’t lie. The numbers don’t work. It took us 30 years to build the last 5.8M homes, the CMHC says we need 5.8M homes to re-establish affordability in our housing sector by 2030. It’s 2024. Unless we suspend human rights like they do in the Middle East and flood the country with Indian workers who work 24 hrs a day 7 days a week and even die like they unfortunately do in the Middle East, even then it’s impossible to build that many homes.
Source: https://financialpost.com/real-estate/canada-cant-build-millions-homes-7-years-fix-affordability
So now we now the supply side is impossible, regardless of what the prime minister and his team believes. This is the same group of people who will tell you there are 40 genders and gender is just a social construct. There’s only two chromosomes though x and y. You don’t get as many letters as you want. Since we’re now accepting reality and not the fairy tale world of the prime minister and his imbeciles what can we do quickly to fix things based on what we can control in the supply and demand equation? We can control the demand.
The best way to control that demand is by mass deportations. Under normal circumstances I think that’d be wrong but these are not normal circumstances. We had mass immigration, the counter to that is mass deportations. The government of Canada in one year alone increased the population by 3%. This was not seen in the developed world in over half a century.
Source: https://www.nationalobserver.com/2024/03/28/news/canadas-2023-population-growth-rate-highest-1957
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/240327/dq240327c-eng.htm#
Egypt has been experiencing economic problems as of late and has decided to prioritize Egyptians over the entire world. They’ve deported thousands of Sudanese citizens this year alone. The people of Sudan are fleeing war and famine. Indians from Punjab and other foreigners here are not they should be deported.
https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/investigations/2024/04/25/exclusive-inside-egypt-secret-scheme-detain-deport-thousands-sudan-refugees
In Ethiopia 18,000 people are being deported because they have illegal permits or outdated permits. Here we have possibly 500,000 undocumented people. They should be deported.
https://ethionegari.com/2024/04/27/ethiopia-deports-over-18-thousand-foreign-nationals/
Saudi Arabia acknowledging that their citizens are their priority and not the entire world, they’ve deported more than 500,000 people illegally in the country since 2017.
https://theconversation.com/half-a-million-ethiopian-migrants-have-been-deported-from-saudi-arabia-in-5-years-what-they-go-through-195378
During Obama’s 8 years in office as commander in chief the US deported 5.3M people. All illegals all non permanent foreign workers.
https://www.statesman.com/story/news/politics/politifact/2024/01/07/politifact-obama-deported-more-people-than-trump-did/72120774007/
Let’s take a look at India, where their citizens are now saying they will do a hunger strike instead of go back. Not only does India deport people back to their country even if they’re running from a genocide they discriminate people from getting citizenship based on religion. Muslims are not on the list of accepted religions, which is wrong. A German masters student went to a protest to support calling this out, which I as a Canadian agree with they cancelled his visa and kicked him out of India.
https://www.aljazeera.com/amp/news/2024/3/27/rohingya-in-india-accuse-modi-of-double-standards-on-citizenship-law
https://amp.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3257845/india-lambasted-deporting-rohingya-refugees-myanmar-violation-international-law
https://www.euronews.com/2019/12/24/german-student-kicked-out-of-india-after-joining-anti-modi-protests
Pakistan has announced they are deporting 1.7M people staying in the country illegally. They’re doing so in the name of “public safety” and their economy.
https://foreignpolicy.com/2023/11/01/pakistan-deports-million-afghans-undocumented-migrants/
In Israel they had an illegal population of 50,000-60,000 African migrants. They addressed it by signing agreements with Rwanda and Uganda. Illegal migrants got $3500 and the chance to go back to their home country or they’d be sent back to Uganda or Rwanda.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/237176
I’m not against immigration. Targeted immigration of high skilled professionals (doctors and nurses) who can get licensed here in Canada is great. This improves our healthcare crisis. If you can’t get licensed here though you shouldn’t be here. We need to prioritize Canadians first. The citizens of Canada, not China not India, not the US, not Israel. It’s also why I don’t support Israel sending Palestinians here for us to clean up their mess. We didn’t participate in that war. If Russia bears full responsibility for fixing Ukraine as the US says, Israel should have to fix Gaza, and pay for their healthcare needs it should not fall on Canada.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-69011247#
https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/israel-s-allies-warn-against-displacing-palestinians-in-gaza-to-places-like-canada-1.6709389
I’m Canadian first, I’m not a Ukranian, Khalistan, Israel, China, Mexico first Canadian. I’m Canadian first for this beautiful country and my people (fellow canadians) and everything second. We need to deport all illegals, end birthright citizenship to people born in Canada where atleast one parent doesn’t hold citizenship (ends anchor baby problem) and address our housing and healthcare crisis. Then and only then should we analyze our country’s needs and figure out a plan to permanent residence and citizenship based on those needs. Canadians can walk to McDonald’s we don’t need to provide citizenship and PR for Uber drivers. Walking to McDonald’s and picking up your food can decrease your need for hospital services later. We have 1M people in Canada today whose main form of income is gig work (uber, uber eats, door dash, skip the dishes). That’s a failure of government and the economy.
https://globalnews.ca/news/10333867/canadians-gig-work-gig-economy/
We also need to promote Canadian nationalism. Come to Canada bring the cool parts of your culture but assimilate. We also need country caps immediately to maintain Canadian culture and diversity. How the government allowed more than 40% of student visas to go to India alone is racist. It should be investigated. It’s absolutely unacceptable. How they also got 27% of all PR’s in one year over the rest of the world is also unacceptable and needs to be investigated.
Source: https://www.gzeromedia.com/the-graphic-truth-indians-hold-40-of-canadian-student-visas
https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/corporate/transparency/committees/cimm-dec-05-2023/india.html#
No country should make up more than 7% of the total pool in any year and we should decrease all inflows of people for the next few years. What about the boomers? Fuck them for now. We’re in a population trap for the first time in modern history, everyone including immigrants is about to experience a massive decline in living standards and GDP per capita as we continuously see in Canada now. How do you escape the population trap and improve living standards? You decrease the amount of people you bring in. I’m not some xenophobic freak saying this, economists are and the bank of Canada is too. Enough is enough.
Source: https://financialpost.com/news/economy/what-is-population-trap-how-do-you-get-out
https://www.immigration.ca/canada-in-a-population-trap-say-bank-experts/
https://financialpost.com/news/canada-in-population-trap-economists-warn
https://www.bankofcanada.ca/2024/03/time-to-break-the-glass-fixing-canadas-productivity-problem/

The audacity talaga ng ibang tao na Mang insulto ng iba. Gets ko na we're the lowest of the food chain. Fine. To hear it from doctors. Fine. From patients and SO. Okay lang din, lunukin na lang. But from the nursing staff na ikaw na nga halos gumagawa ng trabaho nila??
To give context, clerks from my school were pulled out for our case presentation, so may ibang school nag cover ng post namin (this is a public hospital kaya maraming other schools) what I usually do for that post is to monitor patients VS every 1 hour, so okay may nag cover na. When I came back, I continued the format from the monitoring sa nag sub na clerk. This particular nurse checked it and put her stamp on it (kasi it's their job, so they made us do it Pero sila ang pipirma para kunwari sila gumawa), nag reklamo sya sa akin bakit ganito ang format and she mentioned what her preferred format. Sabi ko sige, referring that I'll do it on the next monitoring. Pero during that time, ang dami bigla ng admitted patients and syempre priority yung baseline VS ng bagong dating (esp newborn). I decked 5 patients sunod-sunod and didn't have time to revise the format ni madam nurse at pwede namang siya na lang mag revise diba, I did the manual labor naman na. I was Preduty rin so uuwi na rin naman ako ng 5pm, I just endorsed to the next clerk kung ano format dapat. BUT NOOO this nurse had the audacity na sugurin ako sa dressing room, duro-duruin ako infront of the other staff din sa dressing room and told me na hindi ako makaintindi for someone na supposed to be mag doctor. "Tumango-tango ka pa di mo naman pala naiintindihan, mag dodoctor ka pa naman."
I was so shocked di ako naka imik. I am not a confrontational person and never in my 1 year of clerkship experienced na duro-duruin at insultuhin ng nurse especially if ako na nga tong gumagawa ng trabaho nya ng walang bayad. I am not looking down on nurses ha, I respect them and they are important to the team Pero may iba talagang porket clerk pa lang kami ay abusuhin at insultuhin. Unlike them, di kami bayad ha. Walang hazard pay. In fact, kami pa nag babayad to submerged ourselves to this kind of torture in the name of experience. Sana lang treat us like equals, or if masakit sa loob nyong equals tayo, treat us like a person. Be professional naman. Di yung para kaming asong kalye na sisigawan, kulang nalang tadyakan

Does anyone else have medical anxiety/surgical anxiety and what did you do to make it to surgery? My first panic attack was an allergic reaction to Reglan but I’ve had many since then. I’ve also had multiple surgeries but have insisted that my last few surgeries were done with locals after having been given meds I was allergic to while under anesthesia and a nurse who refused to cath me even though I had been given a lot of iv fluids but wasn’t cleared to get out of bed for hours in the recovery room post anesthesia. It’s so bad, I walked out of a hernia surgery with diastasis recti repair like literally was checking in at the hospital and got up and walked out. I’m in so much pain right now but it’s a battle between that and the anxiety.

Hi all! I’m 27 years old with my BSN. I’ve had 4 years of experience in bedside inpatient psych. 3 of these years are in Medical Psych at a well-known hospital in Boston. This means I do have basic knowledge of med-surg nursing as we practice these skills on my floor as well. I’m at a crossroads as I’m seeking to advance my career but I am not convinced whether or not PMHNP route is the best fit for me. I know that there is high demand in this field but I’m swayed by the quality of the profession itself given the ease of obtaining these degrees. Also, I am not so excited thinking about the emotional toll of following patients that lack resources and the knowledge that I can’t do much for them except prescribe medications. Bedside psych nursing is easier in this manner as we just care for patients for a temporary period. What makes it harder to decide against PMHNP is that my current bedside job is ideal (schedule is super flexible and I am able to earn close to 100k working 32 hrs night shift with 2 semesters of teaching psych clinical once a week). This is the ideal job to be back in online school. Although, i am looking to switch to acute care with the end goal of being a CRNA for the work life balance, substantive compensation and challenge of the profession. I recently shadowed in a cardiac icu and the practice excites me. Ultimately CRNA is a more ideal goal it seems than a PMHNP degree that won’t really make much more than I’m making now.
Some things to be considered are the fact that I am married and planning to have children by the time I am 35. Please share your advice or experience on balancing time with spouse, family, self and being dedicated to being a skilled CRNA or being in school while trying to have kids. Looking forward to your input!