Change in path

Well, it's been like a year since I posted anything on this blog and I figured that it might be good to get writing again. It would probably be good to try to write and process during moments of procrastination rather than just surfing the net or looking at Facebook!

So since I last posted I found out that I didn't get into the nursing program I applied to and after lots of reflection, I decided that I really wanted to pursue being a PA instead of nursing. So a few more pre-reqs added to the list and here I am 3 more classes away from being done (after this term is over). I'm in the midst of the second term of chemistry and the first term of biology and I'm really feeling wiped out. I'm tired of having to juggle work, school, studying and my relationship. I just want to get in somewhere so that I can put all of my attention towards school and not have to work on top of everything else. And my wiped out feeling is definitely impacting my grades. I got B's on my first 2 biology tests and this is material that I've already studied in my other classes! I need to buck up and keep going.

It's like that last stretch before you get to the top of a mountain. Many people give up just before they reach the summit. Of course I have a number of mountains to climb before I get to where I want to be, but I need to really focus and keep putting one foot in front of the other so that I can get to the top of THIS mountain...winter term 2011...with A's.

Anticipation

I'm still waiting to hear from OHSU...keep your fingers crossed and I'll post when I know something!

life stuff

I'm in the holding pattern of the school application process, waiting to get the letter from the school saying yay or nay. Yes that's right...THE school. I know that I'm totally disobeying every "how to get into college 101" book that you are supposed to apply to a number of places, but I do have my strategy.

Basically OHSU doesn't require a year of chemistry. I'm not sure why but they don't. And I haven't taken any chemistry since high school. Most other accelerated bachelor's programs do require a year of chemistry. So I've applied to OHSU and if I don't get in I'll take the year of chemistry to open up more options for the next application go around, where I WILL apply to a number of programs. Plus I plan to do some volunteer work and try to take Spanish too. All that and continue my insane work schedule of early bird shifts 32 hours/week. Will I ever be able to stay up until 11PM without practically passing out asleep sometime in the future? I sure hope so!

So in the meantime I've got an early case of carpal tunnel that I'm battling due to my wonderful typing filled work shifts, the bureaucratic mess of having to deal with workman's comp, spring fever, and varying relationship stress factors (that I won't get into here) that are adding to my normal mix of living on the border between holding it together and losing it. Like I said to my coworker the other day..."Calgon, take me away!" OK wait a minute, I'm totally showing my age. Do they even still sell Calgon?

My latest nursing school pondering...how do nurses learn to give shots? I would imagine that practicing on each other might be challenging, but how else do they do it? Anyone know?

OK study break over, time to get back to the Anatomy lab final preparations!

Interesting facts

OK to kill 2 birds with one stone (that's kind of a gruesome expression isn't it?) I'm going to write some facts here that might be of interest. Keep in mind that I have an Anatomy and Physiology lecture midterm next week that's going to cover metabolism, the urinary system, and fluids and electrolytes. Woo hoo! After this test we get to get into the good stuff, the reproductive systems!

*Appetite is not just regulated by the stomach. Insulin secreted by the pancreas, ghrelin secreted by the stomach, PYY, CCK and leptin secreted by the small intestine, leptin secreted by adipose cells and PYY secreted by the large intestine all play a role in either increasing or decreasing appetite, depending on the situation. These secretions are hormones by the way.

*The kidneys have a LOT of functions besides just making pee. Please note that making pee is not a scientific expression! The kidneys filter our blood plasma, which is a way of getting the waste out that will eventually become urine. They also regulate the osmolarity of our body fluids, our blood volume and blood pressure, they secrete hormones (renin and erythropoietin), detoxify free radicals and drugs, and finally they stimulate making glucose from non-carbohydrate precursors. This process is called gluconeogenesis.

*My favorite new body part=juxtamedullary nephron!

*Total body water for a young, 150 pound male= 40 liters!

*Hypernatremia is when there is too much sodium in the blood. Hyponatremia is when there is too little sodium in the blood.

*Potassium is really important. Eat your Special K!

Am I ready for this test...ummmmm no. But now I'll remember all this stuff and you all just learned some new things too.

Slacking...or not

Well I've definitely been slacking in the blog writing department, but not so much in my regular life. In fact I just finished a stretch of almost 3 weeks with non-stop tests, quizzes and assignments to do. The good news is that I've done well on pretty much everything. So sorry if I haven't been writing. Although perhaps this is one of the reasons I've been slacking. Is anyone actually reading this blog?!

School-wise I am about 1/3 of my way through this term. A&P is turning out to still be super hard and interesting and nutrition is easy and interesting. OHSU has all my stuff and now I have to wait until early April to know if I'm in or not. I have to get my act together to register at Portland State University where I will take my statistics class spring term. Out of all the classes I have to take, statistics is the one that scares me the most. When I was in grad school, it was the one class that I took that I got a B in. I already have a tutor lined up though and hopefully that plus taking the class with my friend will help me to at least get a B.

Work is work. There are so many things about my job that are good for me and yet the nature of the work is wearing on me. I'm tired of hearing about everyone's problems. Or at least the ones that to me seem petty but to the callers seem life or death. My patience is thin and I'm trying to keep a positive attitude, but it's hard. I'll be glad to leave that chapter of my work life behind. I feel like I did when I quit my last restaurant job after grad school and said "I'll never work in a restaurant again". I can't wait until I can say the same thing about mental health.

Updates

Well I finished my OHSU application and sent it in. The only thing missing, which I think is kind of ridiculous, is one transcript from my first year of college. I transferred to University of VT, where I graduate from, and it's listed on that transcript which classes I took at Boston College, but doesn't have the grades. I called OHSU and they said that they want this transcript. I wasn't prepared for this so now I have to order that and send it in late. I was assured that this would not impact my application, to have this arrive late, but here's hoping they were telling the truth about that. I mean come on...this was from back in 1986!

Other than that I'm trying to get going on the new term. I took my first A&P lab quiz and got 100%. I took my first A&P lecture quiz and didn't do as well as I wanted to, I got 8 out of 10 correct. I have another one coming up tomorrow so need to get 100%! And then I took my first nutrition exam online and got a 92%. So as long as I can do ok on the next Anatomy and Physiology lecture quiz, I'll be feeling ok about things.

Work is work. I really hope I can start school in July so that I can quit. And oh yeah, my school is having a financial aid workshop day at the end of January, so I'm going to go and get some help with filling out my financial aid forms!

OHSU application

The due date to apply to Oregon Health and Science University's accelerated bachelor's nursing program is January 15. I am working on my application now and anxiously awaiting my transcripts. I think that's going to be the thing that holds me up is waiting for them. I've got three I need, from University of Vermont, Colorado State University and Portland Community College. Keep your fingers crossed that they arrive on time!

I'm almost done with my essay too. Perhaps I'll post it after I send in my application. Wish me luck!