Thank you! And the ABCs!

Hello All,

Well, I am still thrilled and terrified – and I need to add thankful! Thank you to all of you who have read my blog and provided great feedback! As you can imagine, I am still learning. So your feedback is priceless! I am also thankful for my incredible nephew-in-law who is the architect of the site! I have now officially named him the King of the Blog (KOB)! I could not do it without him.

Based on your feedback, I have added an “About Me” page. Thought it might be helpful to introduce myself if someone were to stumble on this page. Also, several people asked for a subscription button so they didn’t miss an issue. First, thank you for wanting to see what new (and potentially crazy) things I have written! Second – TADA! – this is now available on the right side of the home page due to the talents of the KOB!

I was honored to speak to the incoming freshmen and senior students of the Camp Community College Associate Degree Registered Nurse Program on their orientation day this year. I love nursing, and am always excited when people choose this wonderful profession. Students are truly the future of our profession! I thought I would share the tips I provided them for surviving school.

It is all about the ABCs. Anybody who has ever learned how to do CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) knows that this stands for Airway – Breathing – Circulation. (And the instructors and I are happy to announce that the students got this right!) I wanted them to think about the ABCs from a slightly different perspective.

An open Airway is critical to life. You can’t survive without it. Think of the airway from a broader perspective – as an open passageway. Air moves in and our of our lungs. Think about the same concept for your brain. You will need an open passageway – an open mind – during school. New information will be flowing in and out – new ideas, new skills, new algorithms, new vocabulary, just to name a few. You will be challenged with interesting situations; your previous beliefs will be tested; you will learn and grow. It will be a wonderful time, even though it may not always feel that way in the moment.

Don’t forget to Breathe. And I am not trying to be funny! There were many times in nursing school that I had to be reminded to breathe. My first code comes to mind. Sometime during the first few minutes of this life and death situation, my instructor actually turned to me and said “Take a deep breath. We don’t have time to code you too.” Tough love! But it is true that there are times in our profession that will take your breath away! Your first successful code – the first cry of a newborn – the last breath of someone’s mother/wife/sister/friend – your first mistake – the first walk of someone who has experienced a stroke – the first words heard by someone who could not hear. All situations that as a student, and later as a nurse, you will be privileged to be part of.

And never forget the value of taking a few deep breaths. It does so many things. It provides that extra bit of oxygen to clear your mind. It gives you a few additional moments to plan. It is actually a great way to reduce stress – a mini-vacation! It allows you to center yourself in the moment, to be present.

Circulation is also important. It is not enough to get that breath in if it is not able to be distributed to the body that needs it. It is also bad for circulation to just sit! So don’t forget to move!

Equally as important though is continuing to circulate socially. Don’t forget to spend time with your family, your friends (who are really the family you chose), your support system. It is very easy to get caught up in the work of school and nursing. So this circulation provides the oxygen of love. These people are on this journey with you. They will keep you sane, will lend a helping hand, will provide a shoulder to cry on, and will sometimes just breathe with you.

I wanted to share these tips with all of you, because as I have reflected on these, they also speak to how we all survive and thrive! We are always growing, learning and changing – so you need an open passageway/mind. We all experience events in our life that take our breath away – and sometimes we do need to be reminded to breathe. We all need each other on this crazy journey of life.

Enjoy every day! And don’t forget to breathe,

Phyl