Stressed Nurse v. the World

Summer is lovely, warm evenings, the sun doesn't set until 10pm, sunshine all day long, *sneeze*... oh yeah and hayfever. With summer in full swing now; though it may not quite be what I described, this is only England, hayfever has exerted it's death like grip on me. I say death like because sometimes I do honestly feel like it is trying to kill me by making me scratch my eyes out or drown in snot. I know quite a few people suffer from hayfever so I thought I'd share some of my lifesaving techniques and medications. Tablets - Taking one of these is the first thing I do every morning. There's several brands but I find the Boots own brand stuff works just as good as anything branded. Do make sure to get non-drowsy though or you'll be asleep mid afternoon! There are two different active ingredients - Cetirizine Hydrochloride and Loratadine. I take Cetirizine Hydrochloride as it is the only one that works for me. Eye Drops -  I keep these on me at all times, wh...

So I've been so bad at keeping updated recently. I've let everything slip in the last month, but I'm back, focused and in control! I finished my fourth placement at the end of May, thoroughly enjoyed working in Urology and Vascular. I learnt a vast amount, not just about nursing, but about myself and the nurse I want to be. I found a lot of confidence by taking care of 12 patients whilst on shift. But I also enjoyed taking advantage of my supernumerary student status and spending time talking to my patients. Working on a vascular ward we had a large number of diabetic patients coming in for amputations due to foot ulcers and diabetes related vascular issues. Now it's obvious having a foot or leg amputated is life changing but when nurses and healthcare assistants rush around doing jobs we can overlook the person wrapped up in the middle of everything. There was nothing more satisfying that being able to sit and chat to a patient for half an hour about their concerns...