Hitting a Wall...

Writer's block...'cue the scary music!!!!'  

We've all been in the clutches of writer's block, even those who don't write every day...
Remember that paper that was due in a week and you had to get something on the page?

That cursor seemed to mock you as it blinked on the clean white paper in your word processor (or when I was a little younger the blank pieces of paper mocked me with the faint blue lines wanting me to fill it with words).

What do you do to curb writer's block?

There are lots of ways to keep from writer's block, maybe that is misleading in that you'll never be free of its clutches.  But you can step away and take a breath, maybe start a new project, or re-read an old project (or a good/naughty book).  

So, my advice for writer's block is simply...walk away from the wall and find a ladder to bring back to climb over it.

It's not something big.  Not the biggest revelation ever in the universe, but it's something I've actually utilized to keep writing.

So, get to writing and if you reach a wall...find a ladder!

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy official Mother's Day to all you mommies out there!

Something to Think About

"We do not have to visit a madhouse to find disordered minds; our planet is the mental institution of the universe." - Goethe

Closing out Nurse's Week!

I've spent my week working as an ER nurse and a MICU nurse and I must say that I still love being a nurse!  So, how did I choose nursing to begin with? Well it's a long story but I'll strive to make it short-ish.

We are asked to pick a csreer pretty early in life and by all accounts that isn't really fair.  I've not lived enough by this time to say with certainty that I will be happy being and doing whatever it is I chose at the tender age of 17 or 18.  Let's face it at that age I'm more interested in what is happening now and the futire is a concept that doesn't faze me.  But I knew one thing-a nurse I didn't want to be.

My first major was biology.  I love science in general so I thought WTH.  Next I attempted English Education and then business.  College isn't cheap so some point in there I got wrangled into the idea that with a nursing degree you can pretty much do whatever you want.  Still wasn't convinced but I did it. 

I'll never forget my first clinical...overwhelmed, scared and almost in tears. But before I left the nursing home that day I nodded my head and said...Finally.

After years of searching (6 to be exact) I'd finally stumbled upon something I could see myself doing for countless numbers of hours and years.  I love writing, always have, but I also love nursing and that is something that I think is special: loving what you do.

Happy Nurses week to all you nurses out there!

Celebrating Nurses Week

So what does a nurse do? 

Well that depends on what kind of nurse we're talking about.

First, we have CNAs which aren't technically a liscensed person but just as important (if not more so) than other members of a nursing team.  A nurse aid helps patients complete normal everyday tasks which may be difficult or impossible while that person is sick.  An aide can make or break a shift.

Second, we have LPNs who work giving medications, giving patient care, and more.  I wouldn't have survived my first shift had it not been for my LPN.  So they are also an important member iof the nursing team.

Third we have the RN who can work in a variety of settings do skills such as IV starts, invasive hemodynamic monitoring and so much more! 

And though we may go by different titles one thing we share is the role of csregiver because we care.  We care for a patient's mental, emotional and spiritual health.  Caring may be the most important trait of a nurse because we are caring for people who are usually at their most vulnerable and weakest.  They need us to care because they want to get better.  A nurse thay doesn't care is not really a nurse.

Whoops!

Testament to how busy I am I mistakenly celebrated mother's day yesterday! That being said Happy late Cinco de Mayo! 

Anywho! For nurses week I'm going to do a post a day about those awesome people we call nurses.  So if you are a nurse then Happy Nurses week!

Tomorrow I will shed a little light on what nurses do!  So check back for more awesomeness tomorrow!

Something to Think About...

“Our mothers always remain the strangest, craziest people we've ever met.”
― Marguerite Duras

Happy Mother's Day!