today has been six weeks since I had open heart surgery and it really has been quite the adventure. no more lifting restrictions or riding in the back seat of the car or sleeping upright. surgery gave me my life back. of course it wasn't all fun & games but it was pretty close to it. I blame all the prayers and laughs along with an amazing cheer section... open heart surgery was fun, peaceful, exciting, a learning experience, and really just great!
ha.haha.hahaha.
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
all my friends and family know I'm slightly competitive as in totally and completely stupidly competitive. anything can be turned into a competition... like recovering from open heart surgery.
so this lady was my roommate in ICU. we'll just call her roomie... this is the documentation of our strange interactions and how I totally got my butt kicked.
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Aaron and I said good-bye to our Omaha apartment last night [after 6 hours of cleaning barf]... #308 at the Green Lodge. We loved our first little home and will miss it a lot!
Monday, June 10, 2013
news alert pills are hard to swallow...
literally and figuratively!
I'm not the best pill taker. My mom use to have me practice with Skittles or M&Ms cause my younger siblings were swallowing pills and I was still taking the liquid - we won't mention how old I was :) anyways figuratively speaking...
How many time have I talked with patients about the importance of medication compliance and yet I (a nurse I might add) really struggled with having to take all of these new medications! It was a mental battle for me. What was the deal?!
pan·ic (noun)
1. Sudden uncontrollable fear or anxiety, often causing wildly unthinking behavior.
I started having lots of anxiety and panic attacks shortly after everything started. These emotions were entirely new and I hated that I couldn't control them. All of the sudden it was like I couldn't think or breathe... I felt like I was going to die... nothing helped... I couldn't function... it was absolutely crippling. I felt like I was crazy. I stopped driving, I didn't want to be left alone, and I hated being around people I didn't know. I felt trapped. Sometimes it lasted for a couple minutes but other times it would last over an hour. It sucked!
What really made me feel crazy was having to take medication for the anxiety and panic attacks BUT it gave me my life back. I could function and think. I'm so thankful for coworkers, family, and friends who were supportive. Xanax (anti-anxiety) didn't work so I tried Ativan (anti-anxiety) before switching to Lexapro (anti-depressant).
As a nurse, I understood what each medication did and why it was important that I take it. I still complained just about every time I took pills. We tried to make it fun... I had Katy Perry songs as the alarms for when to take them and stored them in a zebra print box. Still hated it but I took them with an unhappy heart :) And it wasn't just the "crazy" pills but it was the baby aspirin and the iron supplement and the pain pills and the stool softeners.
Now I get it... and now I know. I used to be shocked when patients would just stop taking their medications or take them differently than prescribed... not any more. If I didn't feel that pressure to not be a hypocrite I probably would do the same. I still don't quite understand WHY it's so hard to "swallow" pills I just know it was for me. Any thoughts?!
So here is to transparency and destroying assumptions about medications. I have had a great team of providers who have worked with me on treating my health issues. I am sooooo excited to see the number of pills I have to take diminishing :) :)
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| Cheers to some (not so) delicious Milk of Magnesia |
to explain medications to the patient including side effects, what the medication does, and why the patient needs to specifically take it. Also include the time frame the patient will need to be on the med.
do NOT assume why a patient is taking a med... ask them
to discuss med compliance with patients & acknowledge that taking medications sucks especially a lot of them... of course in a more professional manner :)
Friday, June 7, 2013
"not all of us can do great things. but we can do small things with great love"
a shout out to all health care providers ~ the work you do matters! I know all too well how frustrating and chaotic a shift can be or how few the thank you's are. But please know that you truly are blessings to your patients. You make a difference.
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
I've been a cardiac nurse for two years, worked on a cardiac floor for four years, and am specializing in cardiology for graduate school. I absolutely loooove the human heart - I think it's fascinating!
handing in my scrubs for a hospital gown was really ironic
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