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Wednesday, 09 May 2012

  • Attention to those who wear tights for workouts

    To all the lovely ladies out there who wear tights as their workout pants: If others can see your stripped undies (or the printed design -- or even worse, the color of your undies) THROUGH your tights, they probably shouldn't be worn as workout pants! I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you didn't know that your tights were semi-sheer/opaque. Appropriate workout clothing will do you good. Lets keep it classy!! :)

Tuesday, 08 May 2012

  • Last night, while caring for a young female patient, "Make it or Break it" came on TV.  I got excited and admitted that I loved watching the show. Oh geez..   -____-"  Whatever! I'm 3 years her senior -- not much of a difference anyways.

    I also can't believe that after this week, I have 2 weeks of school left.  I also didn't realize that I begin my first round of finals next week!!    There will be no such thing as sleep in these coming long days.

    After writing so many Narrative Assessments, I feel like I've forgotten how to properly write a complete sentence. In nursing, we need to write narrates in a very short and precise way.
    Example of a Respiratory Assessment I've written:

    Respiratory System
    :Respiratory pattern uneven, shallow, and labored @ 28. O2 Sat on3L/min O2  via nasal cannulaat 94%.  Pt. received nebulizer treatmentand responded well to treatment, reporting that she “feels much better.” Upperlobes of lungs have wheezing, and lower lobes have crackles. Has SOB. Chestexpansion equal with use of accessory muscles for breathing. Cough isproductive with green and red tinged sputum (from blood). Without clubbedfingers. Does not have order for incentive spirometer.

    Just in case if my writing and grammar looks wrong, like that example i showed above? Yeah.. that's why!


Thursday, 19 April 2012

  • It wasn't that long ago when we were sitting on the lightrail, catching up and then talking about pedometers on our way to school. You were one of the most genuinely kind people I've ever met, especially back in Middle School, when the (pre)teen population was vicious. Rest In peace, Clayton Wallace. I won't forget you.

Tuesday, 10 April 2012

  • I've had some varying degree of "orthostatic hypotension" this past weekend from spending most of my days bed-bound and sleeping so much! (mainly from being sick.)  Who knew?!?  My co-worker took my BP this past weekend and my reading came out to be 98/68.  That's pretty low!
    I think I jinxed myself when I happily told my Nursing friends that I haven't been sick in over 3years. I had an inkling that my turn would be coming soon, considering the majority of the people I've been hanging out with have been sick on-and-off. What a bummer! (I also missed class for the first time ever in my college-career from being SICK last Thursday. I also missed a Skills quiz... -__-")

    On the bright side, I'm 80% better than last week with enough energy to study for my upcoming exam this FRIDAY!  D: 

Wednesday, 29 February 2012

  • 1st Med. Admin & Hospital ground perks

    I got to give my first set of medications to a patient this last Monday during clinicals!! I got to give a Subcutaneous (SubQ) shot of Heparin into my pt (patient)'s abdomen, an IV push of some pain med, and an oral medication of another pain med. :)  So exciting!!!!

    (Here's what a SubQ shot looks like):


    Lets just say, I was SUPER nervous holding the syringe filled with Heparin (a blood thinner). I was so afraid of poking my patient, I literally froze in place when the needle was 1 inch away form my patient's skin. My professor had to say egg me on a few times before I finally poked my patient. What happened was that when I poked my patient, I had to hold the syringe in place for 5 seconds before I got to slowly inject the Heparin. Then I had to wait another 5 seconds before I could withdraw the needle.  I felt super bad when I saw that my patient flinched when the needle entered his abdomen. After the injection, I asked my pt how he felt and he gave a sarcastic/light-hearted response saying he felt "Great-excellent!" :P  I also made sure to check up on my patient during the IV-Push to see how he was feeling.  Before bedtime, I told my pt. that my shift was going to end soon, and he shared some encouraging words with me about school and reminded me to "keep up the great work."  He thanked me for my help, and I thanked him for letting me work with him. The end. 

    During post-conference, my professor commented on how she liked my patient rapport - that I had good interaction and relationship with my patient. She even noticed that my pt gave good feedback whenever I would ask him something. :)  Also, it feels like everyone is a lot more comfortable with each other. We're able to joke more with each other and my professor had to play the role of "Mom" when we were jokingly accusing each other of doing things. :)  10 more weeks of clinicals! :) 

    ----
    The perk of working as a (student) nurse in a large hospital is I get to spot cute EMTs in the hallways. Last Monday, the fire alarm went off with the bright blinking lights. My classmate, J, and I looked around and noticed how everyone was so calm. We didn't know what this all meant, so I asked a nurse nearby what the alarm was for, and why all the doors suddenly closed (including big hallway doors, and patients' room door). She told me it was a fire alarm and that a fire must have started in one of the patient's room. I looked around and saw an EMT - the most innocent/clean looking white-boy, with blond hair (imagine the guy from Taylor Swift's "You Belong with me" music video, but more innocent looking) - looking at me while giving a small laugh and then smiled.
    [Imagine:   but better]
    I felt kind of foolish for not knowing what the damn alarm meant, especially when there was a cute opposite gender present to witness my "ditziness"!! Awwwhh Snaps!! Aaaaarrg. 

    Around 8:30 when our shift ended and when we were waiting for everyone else to wait by the elevator, I told my female classmates about the EMT we spotted in the hallway earlier. I retold what happened and then J said that the EMT also looked her way and gave a small laugh and smile when I had asked what the fire alarm was all about. I joked about how he was probably thinking how stupid/ditzy I was. J responded by saying "No, no. It was more of a 'how cute' kind of laugh/smile."  LOL!  Uh huh..   (I'm sure he was a nice guy had no malicious intent.)

    For the future, my female classmates and I came up with a code word for every time we spot a cute EMT in the hallways. It's "Code Neon-green."    I'm sure we'll all be on the lookout for Code Neon-green next week. :P 

Wednesday, 01 February 2012

  • My nursing bag!!!

    It came in! :) This my new nursing bag:

    IMG_3859

    IMG_3860

    I say, this is money well spent. Can't wait to make use out of it!
    I definitely DEFINITELY need to make a nursing supply haul video-blog. :)
  • "If you aren't happy being single
    You will never be happy in a relationship.
    Get your own life and love it first,
    then share it.
    Love when you're ready,
    Not when you're lonely."

Sunday, 01 January 2012

  • 2012 New Years Resolution/Goals

    - Keep a positive attitude by paying more attention to those who do matter and to those who make and keep me happy.
    - To not waste my time and energy caring too much about those who are the opposite from the above statement. (In other words, pay no attention to ares-holes, beezies, and selfish mother-utters. HAHAH! )
    - Stay on top of my school work and not fall short upon beginning a new nursing semester. Start strong, finish strong.
    - Consistently drink more water.
    - Take in an adequate amount of Calcium & Vitamin D, daily. If I'm unable to get it through food or the sun--Vit D, then supplements will do. (I take Tums for calcium, and the kiddie chewy multivitamins for everything else. )
    - Exercise at least once a week - at least 50mins of continuous exercise.
    - Within the Milpitas boarder, bike around town more often and rely less on a car. (it's a small city!)
    - Keep my bike nicely maintained.
    - Be more assertive!
    - Stay calm, and carry on. (<-- My new motto I shall follow by.)

Saturday, 31 December 2011

  • Currently
    Vision in White (The Bride Quartet, Book 1)
    By Nora Roberts
    see related

    Recap

    Talk about major blogging hiatus!!  It's been a while since I've last blogged.
    Well, here's a recap:

    - A finished my first semester of NURSING! ONE down, FIVE to go! (2.5 years)!
    Here's a lovely class photo we organized ourselves:
     
    We all agreed to take it during our Pathophysiology lecture break and change into our scrubs for this picture.
    I hope we'll be able to take annual class photos like we intend to. :)
    Becha don't know where I'm at! (hint: i'm the 2nd row, 5th to the right)
    - I was elected class Secretary :)
    - I passed all my classes!! (thank goodness!)
    - Not that it's of any interest to anyone, I have consumed 10 bottles of "5 hour energy shots" throughout the past semester. (i kept a tally.) That's like... 30 bucks!  BUT - those precious energy drinks have saved my grades as I was able to stay up for longer hours to catch up in my studies.
    - Due to massive amounts of stress I never really quite experienced before in all my college years, I have developed some sort of unusual and persistent acne breakout on my forehead. It's terrible! I think it's from a combination of my long, grown-out bangs, and resting my forehead on my dirty grimy hands from flipping through textbooks, notes, laptop keypads, and stress. Blaaa! I'm developing a better skin care routine now though, so that's helping!
    - I'm currently working more hours at the office where I have the opportunity to practice basic skills I was taught my first semester (like taking vital signs such as taking blood pressure manually, which is very important!)
    - I feel like I still need to improve my interaction skills with patients because I find that I'm too hesitant and that I doubt my own skills.  Also, I need to be more assertive.
    - One of the scariest things for me is finding that my patient has a low blood pressure reading than normal, and/or not being able to feel/accurately measure their radial pulse due to them having a diminishing pulse, or a very-VERY weak pulse that makes accuracy difficult to find. BLAAA. I'm afraid of reporting false readings... which would make me liable for malpractice...? (I really don't know.)
    - After months of not biking for school anymore, I've FINALLY gotten back in the routine of biking again. I've been biking to and from work. I'll be honest, I kind of dread it sometimes, but I feel so good after a bike ride! It feels very accomplishing after every trip, so I hope this biking habit will stick. I'm not too sure what will happen once it starts to rain again... but until then, I need to savor the experience. :)
    - Something completely off topic: throughout last semester, I wasn't able to really watch any of my favorite TV shows due to school. Even now, with winterbreak, I STILL can't watch anything due to the weather change, wind and all... i CAN'T CATCH A GOOD SIGNAL for my antenna! (I have digital TV at home - no cable/dish.)  TOTAL BUMMER!!!! I'll never be able to watch Grey's Anatomy, Glee, New Girl, or ANYTHING!! T____T  At least on the bright side, I get more reading time in! (non-school related, of course)

    Okay, I think I've said enough for one night. Hope everyone has a Happy New Year!! 2012 is coming! :)

Monday, 17 October 2011

  • Bike stuff

    I recently took my first trip to REI with my brother and we purchased a floor bike pump. We were looking through their selection and we opted for one that costed $24.00. It wasn't the best, but it worked.  When my dad took a look at it, he didn't like it. So back to REI we went (Yesss..!!  I think it's my new favorite store now). ^___^

    I ended up purchasing this - the initial bike pump I wanted to get.
     

    I love the twist on "chuck" (the part from the pump that attaches to the air valve on a tire) because there's none of pushing/pulling/lever stuff you see on a traditional bike pump. I also love that the chuck has a flip thread to change between a Schrader valve (for my bike) and Presta valve (for my brother's bike)--so everyone's happy. :D  It's sad to say, but I spent nearly half of my paycheck for this one item (after tax); however, upgrading to this will make my life easier than sticking to our old, ill-fitting bike pump-chuck.

    Also.. I really really want to get this:


    It's called a "Bike Peddler Take a Look Mirror" ($16) that can be attached to a helmet visor or glasses. Neat right?!? I tried looking for one at REI to purchase, but the sales rep said he had JUST sold the last one! Bummeeerrr!!! Maybe if I can get a hold of one of my family member's car, I'll go back to purchase one when they have it in stock.  

    Speaking of bicycle accessories/extras...
    - I'm considering purchasing a new rear light. (~$20) The one I have from Target sucks!!
    - I'd also like to buy a new set of handlebar grips (probably in red). ($12)
    - replace my pedals
    - shorten and change my gear/break housing (tubing stuff) -- the ones I have now are really old and crusty looking
    - get a bike tune-up, because my front tire breaks and hand breaks are kindda... *cough*  F*cked up *cough*
    - Buy some kind of ear-warmer -- because I just know I'll be getting headaches from biking in the cold during cooler weather.
    - find a better/more sturdy ankle strap

    That's kind of a long list of things. I just wonder when (or if) I'll actually get around to buying any of those stuff. hah!

AlfieNgoSYOU

    • Name: Alfie
    • Location: Bay Area, California, United States
    • Gender: Female
    • Member Since: 4/22/2005

About Me

  • High School alumni, class of 2007! I love reading, running, tennis, yoga, jamming on the guitar and violin, doing any kind of hand-craft work, and of course, socializing with friends. :]

Pulse

  • Made myself to attend Body Sculpting today where we did RIPPED! Had no other choice but to use 7lb dumbbells. Gonna feel it tomorrow!!