Year in Review

The last month has been just a whirlwind of excitement & happiness. The first (and most surprising) thing that happened is that I changed my mind about what kind of ICU nurse I wanted to be, literally, with two days to spare. I am now so proud to say that I am an RN on the Burn Trauma ICU. Burn??!!?? What?? Isn't that the unit that I was deathly afraid of the entire internship, YES. But I am so, so, so glad that I forced myself to keep an open mind. That allowed me to believe that I could not only fit in on Burn, but be a valued member of an amazing team. I have since started my orientation shifts and will be flying solo by the end of January. I absolutely love working there!! And finally, I feel like I am home again. (Big Ups to my 2 East Peeps!!)

The second little piece of wonderment is that Adam & I got to celebrate Thanksgiving & Christmas together. I don't regret the six years that my cute little Christmas tree graced our former home. But let me tell you, the smile on my face was huge knowing that this year I have my independence back and if that means putting up my tacky, star Christmas lights in the window, then twinkle away!

The third, and most precious, is the addition of Miss Winnifred Jane to our family. I'm so proud of my sister & bro-in-law. My little Winni & I are going to have SO MUCH FUN!!

Not only has the last month been crazy busy, but it seems like 2011 was one of the most busy roller coaster years I have ever had. Name an emotion, good & bad, and I have felt it this year...and I embrace them all. So as I look back on this year, I'll say I (re)learned how to stand up for myself, I proved (again) that I can do whatever I set my mind to and I was reminded how precious every day is. I'm eternally grateful to my family and friends who not only saw me through this year, but (literally), held me up when I when my steps were so tired. I could not get through my crazy life without you all.

For those of you who know me the best, you know that the Spring is my Jam!! Spring Equinox, 311 Day, Emipalooza...I have a feeling, nay I will say a knowledge, that 2012 is going to start off will so much love, happiness, laughter and sheer giddiness that I may just throw up right now thinking about it!!! 

Peace, Love, Unity & Respect are my wishes for you this New Year!!

The fish who keeps on swimming....

Wow!!! How fast does six months go by?!?! It just seems like yesterday that I was writing about my first day as a nurse, in the ER, and how excited/nervous/giddy I was. Now here I am, 5 shifts away from finishing  my internship. I have met and had the honor of working with some of the most amazing nurses!! I'm not saying this because I literally bleed Red (Utah girl reference) but the nurses who practice at University of Utah Hospital are of a different breed. I'm thinking it has something to do with the higher altitude we live at or maybe being a Westerner makes us tougher, more resilient, wicked smart and quite cute. I hope I never lose the feeling of pride that I have walking through those front doors and knowing that I am one of them.
One of the best aspects of this internship is that I had the opportunity to take care of some very interesting patients and see some of the most intense sights ever.  Let's see: skid marks on someone skull, amputated toe (from electrocution), scalp free flap, holding someone's (mechanical) heart in my hands, controlling someone's (mechanical) kidneys, a femoral artery pulsing inside the cavity of a disarticulated hip (a amputation is when they leave a piece of the bone, a disarticulation in when the take the whole thing out at the joint).
But the most precious thing that I have experienced from this internship is that sometimes the most amazing thing is the simplest: having a patient smile back at me, knowing that my hand holding theirs is keeping them safe, having a wife, husband, mother, father thank me for taking care of their loved one.
I'll know in about a week which amazing ICU I get to work in for the next two years. Stay tuned friends  :)

First day as a nurse....in the ER!

  ER pic

Ok, so I have to admit my long standing love affair with the tv show "ER." I think I possibly watched every episode. I loved the characters and the amazing and crazy stories they came up with. Even as the cast changed (I will always hold a place in my heart for Dr. Doug Ross & Nurse Carol Hathaway) I always tuned in to see what would happen next.
So you can imagine what theme music was playing in my head as I worked my first shift as a nurse and I was in the ED!! The Critical Care Internship includes a rotation in the ED and mine just happened to be my first rotation. Now, the U of U ED is a wholly different place than a fictional tv ER, but it was crazy just the same. EMS & LifeFlight crews were continually bringing patients into the trauma bays and it was like a finely choreographed ballet watching everyone work together. I just tried to keep my eyes and ears open, ask questions of my awesome fellow, Farrah, and by the end of the shift, I was caring for one patient on my own. Very exhilarating!! Back tonight for more fun.
Speaking of the internship, the first week consisted of ALOT of orientation (which means sitting and listening all day). But I did enjoy meeting the rest of my cohort and there are some really interesting people who moved from all over to be here. Georgetown, Dartmouth, Connecticut, Ogden :) and then little ol' Emily, Utah girl. I know this is going to be a great experience getting to know them as well as the fellows who will be training us.
Stay tuned!

What a lovely way to start a job

http://presentoutlook.com/quote-images/

So tomorrow is the big day, I start my new job!! In reality, today was my "start date" but because I am already a hospital employee, I didn't have to sit through that orientation again. So, I spent my first day as a working nurse sleeping in and going to brunch with my friend, Lisa. It was lovely. Tuesday and Wednesday will be the hospital Nursing orientation, Thursday computer training, Friday CCI meeting and we'll find out how all of this is supposed to work.
I put this quote up because I wanted to remind myself how I got to this point. Now, because I have reached that goal, I need to set myself another one. Maybe it should be the finish all the things and situations that I have left undone because I have not had the time or energy to devote to them. I think that would be a good place to start. Also, I will try and take my lunch to work. Really try.

RN = Really a Nurse!!

I'm a little dazed right now. They actually gave me license to be a nurse!! The last few months have been such a roller coaster. Graduating, getting the job, passing boards -- it all seems a little surreal. I will start my new job on July 11th and then, I think, the real fun will begin. I have this great learning experience in front of me and I just want to be awesome. I'm also very grateful for all the love and support that my friends and family have given me over this long journey. I knew that people cared about me, but I didn't fully realize the extent of that caring until recently. All I can do is continue to make those people proud and remember them as I take care of my patients. Hellloooo, Nurse!!

Nurse Q & A

So my beautifully talented friend Jarah is doing a cool Nurse Q & A on her blog http://brightredcords.blogspot.com/ and I was the first one!! I feel so special. I am also incredibly proud to call her my friend as she is going to be a big time Oncology nurse at Duke!!!! Definitely going to have to visit her there because I will really miss her cute face!