Adventures Of A Bipolar Nurse

Attempting sanity while working in a Level 1 trauma ER. Also: Mom, American Midwesterner, Bipolar II person, and lover of shoes.

[mividaesmiasolomia]

[flyingeagleclaw]

Watching drama unfold in the ER Waiting room.

[boluscoffeestat-deactivated2020]

We love watching the chief complaints appear on the census list. 

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

They should make a new list. "Trying to score drugs." "Wants a work note." "Delaying Jail." "Drunk as Fuck." "Fake Seizure."

Anyone have others to add?

[boluscoffeestat-deactivated2020]

Walking onto your section of the unit, finding out you have to work with your least favorite coworkers, you’re understaffed, and all of your assignments suck

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

Oh man, so the girl who has a permanent scowl and hates everyone, the old guy who no longer makes an effort the and the ditzy girl who is always on her phone in the supply room

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

Raise your hand if when you get a text, even if it's from a friend and you read it right then, you wait a few minutes to reply so you don't look desperate.

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

Taking a short break from nurse blogging for gratuitous pics of my kids.

[myboyfriendpetebuttigieg]

White dudes: I don’t know who’s worse: Hillary or Trump.

LGBTQ people: Trump is.

Black people: Trump is.

Undocumented immigrants: Trump.

Muslims: It’s Trump.

Women: Trump duh.

White dudes: *shoves head deeper into ass* I just… don’t… know…

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

Ugh, my mom told me today that it worked out well for her when I got divorced (6 years ago) because my daughter was over there a lot while I was working and in school and it allowed her to bond with her more. Um, Glad you could benefit from my life altering tragedy? And apparently, spending so much time with her is how my child got her sunny disposition, since I was such a negative and insecure child it couldn’t be from me. Well Mom, with such awesome parenting it’s truly a mystery why I wasn’t a ray of sunshine!

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

p>This holiday weekend my mother and mother-in-law are competing for title of Most Annoying Grandma. So far, it’s a tie.

[nursingcapsarecool]

On Peds today:

Patient’s father: *pokes his head out of the room* “Hey just so you guys know, there is a HUGE spider in here.”

Nurses: “A spider omgwtf.”

Patient’s father: “Yeah and he shouldn’t even be here. He’s obviously an adult spider. This is a floor for kids.”

Nurses: “…… Did you just……”

[goldenretrievblr]

Ever talk to someone and you just

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

My sister-in-law who thinks it would be fine to give homemade formula made with goat's milk and liver to a baby. Because she found it on a natural parenting blog of course.

[feariie]

Discount code : feariie

Totoro Bed Set   I   Don’t delete captions♡

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

I neeeed this, omg.

What? Of course it's for my child. Of course.

[keeos]

Why I love my job...

The other day I had a woman come in for abdominal pain and blood in urine post MVA.

Naturally, I ask if there’s a chance she could be pregnant.

“No…my husband and I have been trying for a year, but we haven’t been blessed yet.”

So we do a urine preg to approve her for CT. 

It’s positive. 

I beg the doc to order a serum HCG, just to be sure.

It’s 250. She’s barely pregnant. But she is.

So the doc and I go into the room and say, “Well, you can’t get your ct…”

and she goes “Why not!?”

and I go,

“BECAUSE WE CAN’T SCAN YOU BECAUSE YOU’RE PREGNANT OMG”

and she cries and I cry and she calls her husband and cries more and I cry more and she tells every single person she sees that she’s pregnant.

THIS is why i’m a nurse. These life changing moments. She was scared because it’s so early, but being the optimist I am I told her that all we have in life is optimism. I told her that it was a sign that she got in this accident and came to us, otherwise she wouldn’t have known for a long time. 

We rarely get chances like this. Usually the news we give is bad news. Like your cancer has spread, your loved one is dead, we have to fly out a child…

Rarely I get to tell someone they’re pregnant and it’s a wanted pregnancy. 

I hope I see her again one day with her sweet baby in her arms. 

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

This is like, the cutest thing ever.

[doeofdevotion]

i love this picture of my mom because she just gave birth and she not even impressed

[doeofdevotion]

will u ever be proud of me mom

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

Ummm..why is did my background change to weird angry eyes when I DIDN’T DO THAT?? Wtf tumblr??

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

“First off, I got two of these. NOT what I ordered.” 😂

I’m dying.

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

Possible career change?

I am hoping for some nursey advice. I LOVE ER nursing. But I have always been drawn to Pediatrics, and one of the reasons I chose my current job is that we have a separate pediatric ED and some nurses only work that side. Some work both. Ideally, I would like to work just Peds, and my managers know this. I have been told twice that I could do Peds, but for one reason or another have not gotten to even train over there yet. The first reason is hard to swallow, I was put over there to work both sides shortly after my training, but even though I got good feedback in the Peds ED, my manager though my adult skills needed to be stronger and she wanted to keep me just on adults for a while. I was devastated, but determined to fix this and go back. A year later, I got this opportunity when the Peds manager offered to have me train, and even was open to me doing all Peds. Then she found out I was 5 months pregnant and rescinded the offer because “I would have to take off, and might forget the skills I’d just learned.”

Since then, I have watched my friends train over there, and my bosses have been wishy washy about things. They promised after my leave I could train for Peds, but only with the possibility of being “secondary Peds” for the imminent future (possibly because my mngr can’t afford to lose an experienced night adult nurse.) secondaries sometimes go weeks without doing the Peds side. I feel betrayed by this.

After I come back for leave, should I look for other jobs if I don’t get to go to Peds much? I have toyed with the idea of looking at different Peds ERs, or switching to L and D, my other nursing passion (someday I’d like to switch but I always though that’d be years away when I’d had my fill of ER.)

Should I stick it out or look around? Please help, I’m sorry this is long. I am torn! You can message me back if that’s easier. Thank you anyone!!

[tinyhumannurse]

Dude girl, that was discrimination. They can’t withhold a job from you because you’re pregnant. And that crap about not wanting to lose an experienced adult ED nurse is just them manipulating you to do what they want. You should be conscience of what they need, but they should be working to make you happy as well. The cat and mouse game makes it clear your happiness is not their priority. I would have a final conversation with them about your desires to learn another area. If they blow you off again, I would start looking elsewhere.

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

Thank you for your reply. Since I would not technically be getting a new job or promotion, just moving to another area in the same dept. the manager doesn’t have to worry about it being discriminatory on paper. Not that that makes it right!

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

Update: I had a meeting with the Peds manager, who still answers to the adult mgr. Peds was horrified to learn that new nurses were given three shift in Peds and being on their own, she didn't even know. They have been desperate for bodies over there. Peds told me her ideas for classes and training had been met with resistance and she was told there was no money for it. She then assured me that I could start training AS SOON as I come back whether the lecture class got cut or not. I told her I'd been waiting patiently for a long time and was getting frustrated, she was quite sympathetic. Guaranteed me lots of Peds shifts. So I will stay for now and see if my big manager allows this, now I just have to hope Peds mgr doesn't get fired or quit in the meantime!

[adventuresofabipolarnurse]

Oh no, it's obscene! I'm off work, but answering questions about mental illness with pregnancy, meds, nursing on meds, what's usually kosher and what isn't. Ask or comment and I will post it privately or public at your request. This is my third child so I've had a variety of experiences!