My Day So Far

Good Day, World.

Yes, it is 4:30 in the afternoon, and yes, I am just waking up for the day...oh the toils of the night shift. Thankfully, last night wasn't so bad. A lot of my patients slept through the night without so much as a noise. But, as if I were living in a nightmare - something was up with the call lights last night. They would chime incessantly but no lights would be on. I can still hear them now.... *shudder*...

Everything went fine and almost no disasters until... (did I really think we'd get off that easy?)...This poor guy...his catheter came out...with the balloon still inflated. Poor, poor man. It's not much of a story, but I'll tell it anyway. First of all, he wasn't even one of my patients..but that's neither here nor there...
Anyway, this guy is what we label a "Fall Risk". He's a little weak and wobbly on his feet and we don't like for him to get up without assistance, so we have a bed alarm hooked up so that when he gets out of bed, it goes off. So I'm in the hall at around, oh, 5:30 this morning, trying to get everything done before the day shift comes in (they're very picky) when I hear the alarm go off. I didn't see anyone else head into the room, so I decided to take action and make sure everything is ok. Much to my delight (insert sarcastic tone here) there is a nice trail of blood allll over the floor and all over his gown. He's standing in the middle of the room, and I slowly begin to put the pieces together once I see the Foley catheter laying on the floor - with the 30 mL balloon still inflated....For anyone who knows what a 10mL balloon looks like inflated, imagine the 30mLs....For those of you who don't know, imagine trying to pee a kiwi. Either way, I sat him down, gave him a towel, and alerted his poor, pregnant nurse. We called the nurse supervisor to come and assess the situation and reinsert the catheter and all was well. The greatest thing about it though, was when we asked him if he was in pain, his reply: "Not at all." My hat is off you to, sir - congratulations, you have the capacity to pee a kiwi.

Even though I love my job, I'm definitely happy that I have some time off coming up. It is time for a break. I like to think that I'm a compassionate person with plenty of patience for my patients (pun kind of intended), but I've caught myself being a little short with them lately - which is a huge warning sign for me that I need a break. I know that I'm not called to care for the elderly, and I still love them all the same, it's just that my patience wears much thinner, much quicker with them than with the younger ones. They don't always understand what you're doing, and don't always care to know, so that makes it hard. And for me, since I'm so much younger, I hold no credibility with them. There's a Jesus characteristic I need: Equal love for all, young and old, that does not discrimiate - that is always patient, and always kind.

So, here's my rundown for Tuesday:

Eat: ugh...no stars... Working the night shift really makes eating normal hard. When I get off work at 7am, I want a cheeseburger, not cereal. I haven't done terrible today, just not as well as I should: 0 Stars

Sleep: I think I slept a solid 4 1/2 hours and I'm about to go back for a few more, so we'll say: 1/2 star.

Exercise: no. didn't make it to the gym today. But tomorrow is another day. No stars.

Mental/Emotional: I've been in a good mood lately, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't have a lot on my mind. We're going with 1/2 star today.

God Time: Getting there...that's next. 1/4 star? Wow, lots of fractions today...I hate math...

Bonus: I talked to my mommy today :) I love her. I cleaned out my car!! Woo Hoo! And...I filled out application forms for a passport...for a trip to Mexico... :D
Definitely earns a star.

Total for Tuesday: 2 1/4...eh...

Haha, but it's not all bad. I know I can't sum up my life based on some silly scale. I'm a happy young woman who has been blessed with a great number of things - things that I truly don't deserve, and that, my friends, is worth an infinite number of stars.

Well, I'm off to nap for a short time before my shift tonight. Last one for 6 days! YAY!!!

GoodDay, and GodBless

Nina