Nursing

I was crushed to put it lightly. I didn’t know what to do next. I felt pissed, angry, mad, confused, sad. So many emotions, so many questions unanswered. I didn’t know where to go or what to do next. My young brain decided it was time to do something rash. I moved to another state, thinking that getting out of the over saturated field would help my chances. I moved to Colorado and started classes in the Fall at a university (not going to name it). All of my previous course work transferred and I only needed 1-2 classes to fulfill the requirements for their nursing program. Working with a counselor, I was set up to start the program in the Spring. At the end of the fall term, more specifically in the last few weeks I got horrible, life changing news. My best friend, my sister had just died in a horrible car accident. My life changed overnight, with that one phone call I felt like my world came crashing down around me. I left school and drove home the next day. To add salt to my wounds, my professors were not understanding at all. They literally did not believe me, they apparently thought I was making it all up to get out of my finals for the semester. As if I was a bad student, I had straight A’s. I had 2 of them actually ask me to send them a copy of her death certificate/obituary to confirm that she really had died. They were all unaccommodating, unwilling to give me my final exams online or give me extensions on my papers. I ended up just quitting. I failed those courses, and I never looked back.

I moved back home, I needed to heal my heart. I had no desire to further my nursing education or to even live. I struggled with depression over the next 2 years, fighting to go to work everyday, fighting to find joy in my life. I was diagnosed with depression and put on medication to stabilize my mood/feelings. I was numb. I don’t know how I found my way back, but I did. I found my passion again, I found my drive.

I found the best kept secret. By this time in my life I was 26, had 15K in debt, and 8 years of healthcare experience. Randomly, a CNA that I worked with, who I will never forget, who I was telling a shortened version of this story to, told me about a local university’s program. Apparently, as long as you go to this school for a year, fulfill all the prerequisite requirements, and can pay the steep tuition prices, you can “merge” into the nursing program after a year. I called the school the next day and was set up for a meeting the next week. I was SCARED, I couldn’t believe that it could be true. I also felt like I was cheating, like this is the ultimate privilege pull, should I even do it? HELL YEAH I should I told myself. I deserve this, I am done messing around. I am READY. I spent the next year at this school, busting my ass working full time at the hospital and full time at school. Towards the end of the year, I had to fill out a document stating that my degree intention was nursing, and…just like that…I was in. I received my acceptance letter and was set to start the nursing program in the Fall of 2019. I was still in disbelief until I showed up to day one of orientation.

At the same time I started at the school for the one year of prerequisites, I also changed jobs. I started working as an ED tech. Here I expanded on my skill set, I learned and worked as a phlebotomist, EKG tech, and I was also in charge of setting up transfers for all of the patients to other facilities and hospitals. I worked here for the entirety of my nursing school career.