Today has involved lots and lots of coughing and with it loads of thick tenacious phlegm. I an not one of those frail type nurses who are grossed our by or run from phlegm, but I am amazed at the amount of the junk I was bringing up.
The color also fascinated me. It variated from greenish to grayish and thick as hell. It never ended and I have gone through two tissue boxes and one roll of toilet paper. Toilet paper is always the tissue backup. So now I am propped up in bed with the trusty roll of toilet paper at my side. It makes me especially happy that I splurge of good quality toilet paper.
Did you know that phlegm contains the dead white cells used to fight off the current infection. So coughing it up a plenty is good sign. It means my immune system is kicking ass even though it took a sneaky blow to the mid-section. it is just a messy business dealing with all the little gooey wads of paper.
Friday, April 9, 2010
day three,,,
The wicked sickness has loosened its grip upon me, but it is not totally done toying with me. This morning as I awoke to screaming children running through my home (at 0600) I decided to take my temperture. I was 102.4 and overnight I started coughing up some nasty colored lung biskets.
So I call work and tell them I am not feeling the need to come into work.
If I were working in a unit full time instead of a float position I may have forced myself to go in, but the whole thought of working step-down was way more than I could bear today.
So I am missing two full shifts and my check will me next to nothing.
So I call work and tell them I am not feeling the need to come into work.
If I were working in a unit full time instead of a float position I may have forced myself to go in, but the whole thought of working step-down was way more than I could bear today.
So I am missing two full shifts and my check will me next to nothing.
children of the corn ..
Did I mention that some friends are staying with us with their three boys under 10 years old? Now I love my friends and the children, but this is not exactly a child friendly home. Plus, these are parents who turn the children loose to run amuck and this leaves me running behind them saying no an stop.
Over the past few days I have had to remind and re-remind the children the following:
* use a cutting board when cutting on the counter top.
* close the fridge door
* please stop jumping on the stairs at 0600
* don't lock the dog in the closet
*no food or drink allowed outside the kitchen
* If you are going to hit your brother make it hard enough that he doesn't get back up
* please don't attempt to climb out the window to the roof
* don't eat the dog food
* don't play in the toilet
* where the fuck are your parents?
If I ever wanted children before those dreams are crushed now.
Over the past few days I have had to remind and re-remind the children the following:
* use a cutting board when cutting on the counter top.
* close the fridge door
* please stop jumping on the stairs at 0600
* don't lock the dog in the closet
*no food or drink allowed outside the kitchen
* If you are going to hit your brother make it hard enough that he doesn't get back up
* please don't attempt to climb out the window to the roof
* don't eat the dog food
* don't play in the toilet
* where the fuck are your parents?
If I ever wanted children before those dreams are crushed now.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
death warmed over...
I never learn the lesson. Recently I bragged to a few people about never getting sick. Well, the gods of nasty sickness have had the last laugh at my expense.
We had friends visiting this week with their dog and three very noisy children in tow. One of the wee tykes had a little stomach flu which somehow I managed to catch.
Yesterday was bad bad day. I woke up to a little dizziness which progressed to near death flu symptoms. The worst is the aching bones. The only thing that made me feel any better was sitting in a smoking' hot shower. I loaded up on Ibuprofen for the aches and diphenhydramine to help me sleep and hoped to ride out the vile and wicked virus that had taken me down.
I called into work, something I never ever do. But, I was sick and the only thing worse than being sick is being sick while working with sick people.
This morning I woke up feeling 60% better. My voice is gone to sound like Suzanne Pleshette after chain smoking two cartons of cigarettes. I have a low grade temp, but I feel I have turned the corner. I am still popping pills like Rush Limbaugh, but I have the aches under control.
I am scheduled to work tomorrow and my primary goal is to get better so that I do not need to call off for a second day in a row. You know you are really a sick puppy when the thought of returning to work sounds like a good thing.
We had friends visiting this week with their dog and three very noisy children in tow. One of the wee tykes had a little stomach flu which somehow I managed to catch.
Yesterday was bad bad day. I woke up to a little dizziness which progressed to near death flu symptoms. The worst is the aching bones. The only thing that made me feel any better was sitting in a smoking' hot shower. I loaded up on Ibuprofen for the aches and diphenhydramine to help me sleep and hoped to ride out the vile and wicked virus that had taken me down.
I called into work, something I never ever do. But, I was sick and the only thing worse than being sick is being sick while working with sick people.
This morning I woke up feeling 60% better. My voice is gone to sound like Suzanne Pleshette after chain smoking two cartons of cigarettes. I have a low grade temp, but I feel I have turned the corner. I am still popping pills like Rush Limbaugh, but I have the aches under control.
I am scheduled to work tomorrow and my primary goal is to get better so that I do not need to call off for a second day in a row. You know you are really a sick puppy when the thought of returning to work sounds like a good thing.
Friday, April 2, 2010
the ick...
Another thing....Yesterday, my shift is half over and the bowel obsessed patient's family comes in for a visit. There was the wife, who was nice enough and then the son - yikes.
Some of these patients come from the woods of West Virginia and not the sharpest knives in the drawer. The sone was a particular dunce that I could not escape from fast enough. He accompanies his mother to the unit and procedes to stop outside to room to engage in a chat with me. At one point I tell him, "go in the room and visit" so he will leave me the fuck alone. He did not take the hint, so I seek and escape route via a call light down the hall (not my patient).
The idiot follows me!! I am like WTF!!! I had to close the door to the other patient's room for this WV inbred to get the clue.
The patient only wanted his table closer to his bed and was somewhat confused when I came in and closed his door and waited a few minutes (to ensure I had escaped Jethro). Once the coase was clear, I took off in a different direction.
Some of these patients come from the woods of West Virginia and not the sharpest knives in the drawer. The sone was a particular dunce that I could not escape from fast enough. He accompanies his mother to the unit and procedes to stop outside to room to engage in a chat with me. At one point I tell him, "go in the room and visit" so he will leave me the fuck alone. He did not take the hint, so I seek and escape route via a call light down the hall (not my patient).
The idiot follows me!! I am like WTF!!! I had to close the door to the other patient's room for this WV inbred to get the clue.
The patient only wanted his table closer to his bed and was somewhat confused when I came in and closed his door and waited a few minutes (to ensure I had escaped Jethro). Once the coase was clear, I took off in a different direction.
my stupid..
About a week ago I floated to a particular part of hell know as a step-down. I had my assignment and was rounding and passing meds. Well, I had a room with two ladies who had similar names. I am running my mouth and placing their meds into the little plastic cups and handing the cups to them all at the same time.
I leave the room and sit down to chart the meds on the ancient computer system and then I realize what I have done wrong. I have mixed them up and given the wrong meds to the wrong patient. I was gobsmacked! I have never done such a stupid thing.
The funny thing was I had confused the names and called the ladies by the incorrect name and they each responded like it was their own. It is my fault for not looking closer at the wrist bands and not taking the time to make sure I was doing my job correctly.
Thankfully, their meds were remarkably similar minus a synthroid or different dose of lisinipril.
I leave the room and sit down to chart the meds on the ancient computer system and then I realize what I have done wrong. I have mixed them up and given the wrong meds to the wrong patient. I was gobsmacked! I have never done such a stupid thing.
The funny thing was I had confused the names and called the ladies by the incorrect name and they each responded like it was their own. It is my fault for not looking closer at the wrist bands and not taking the time to make sure I was doing my job correctly.
Thankfully, their meds were remarkably similar minus a synthroid or different dose of lisinipril.
blah..
yesterday was a blah of all blah shifts. This pool business is leaving me with the blahs. As a float nurse you do not get the sicker patients and this causes one to become bored and this translates into blah.
So, I go in yesterday to take an assignment so the nurse I relieve can take a heart. Ugghhhh! I want to take the heart. I miss having assignments that make me think and get me in the middle of the mess.
Instead I get two bowel obsessed patients - no kidding! One got up and back to the bedside commode 18 times in my 12 hour shift. All but one was nothing but air. I was so frustrated, exhausted and pissed off by the end of my shift that I could not get out of there fast enough. He did have one huge bowel movement, but that was not until he was in bed. I so wanted to rub his nose in it and say, "bad patient!". However, I think the hospital higher-ups would tend to frown on that type of behavior.
What really started to get to me was after all the times I helped to old fuck to and from the bed side commode not once did he say please or thank you. That type of behavior tends to wear me down and make me not care so much say if old man fell out of bed and whacked his head particularly hard.
I am hating my job! I am really hating my job and seriously looking into plan "B" whatever that will be.
So, I go in yesterday to take an assignment so the nurse I relieve can take a heart. Ugghhhh! I want to take the heart. I miss having assignments that make me think and get me in the middle of the mess.
Instead I get two bowel obsessed patients - no kidding! One got up and back to the bedside commode 18 times in my 12 hour shift. All but one was nothing but air. I was so frustrated, exhausted and pissed off by the end of my shift that I could not get out of there fast enough. He did have one huge bowel movement, but that was not until he was in bed. I so wanted to rub his nose in it and say, "bad patient!". However, I think the hospital higher-ups would tend to frown on that type of behavior.
What really started to get to me was after all the times I helped to old fuck to and from the bed side commode not once did he say please or thank you. That type of behavior tends to wear me down and make me not care so much say if old man fell out of bed and whacked his head particularly hard.
I am hating my job! I am really hating my job and seriously looking into plan "B" whatever that will be.
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