Oh the work I do...

So when I was in nursing school I had a perfect vision of the kind of nursing I would be doing, that is, being an OB/Peds nurse. Well as it turned out that wasn't the path that the Lord had for me, it turns out, I found an interest in Psych nursing (a complete oposite from OB!). I have only been a "real nurse" for about a year now but as I have been reflecting over this last year I have realized there are certain things I never would have expected to say to patients or to have said to me! So in that spirit of reflection I thought I would put down some of the things I find funniest, I hope you enjoy! (Please note, the patients I work with can be verbally and physically aggressive towards me, so I try and find humor in all of it! It may not seem really funny but it it to me!)

For a time around Christmas we had a lot of patients who choose to walk around without any clothes on, we even came up with the nickname "The Nudist Colony that is Psychiatry". So I had to be an enforcer of clothing during that time! :)
"Tom, Get back to the day room and put your clothes back on! If you feel that you need to be naked, that's okay but you cannot be naked in the hallway, you will need to be naked on your room only!" (Never thought I'd say that!)

" What did we talk about, this is the third time you've had no clothes on, come on now, let's go back to your room and get your clothes on."

"Is it okay if I punch you right now? The voices are telling me to do that." Asked of me by one of my patients
"No, it is not okay for you to hit me, but thank you for warning me. How about we walk to the quiet room and get you some medicine to help with the voices." My response to him.

"Who would you like to list as your emergency contact?"
"Jesus."
"Huh, Okay, Ummmm do you have his number?" (I was only joking!)
"Yes, Yes I do. But I'm not going to tell, you can look it up in the Bible."

"Jody, Back to your room, get your clothes on!" (This woman was walking around in just a cowboy hat, again during the nudist phase of Psychiatry)



So this is just a sample, there are many other funny and not so funny things that people say or do on my unit. Despite what is said, I still have a place in my heart for people with mental illness (it is prevalent in that greater than 50% of the population has a mental illness. That means you most likely know someone with a mental illness, whether or not it's severe is another matter.) I have found that the stigma surrounding mental illness exists and is such a cause for hurt for this vulnerable population, maybe that's why I like working with them. Hopefully I can alleviate this burden somewhat and make life for my patients just a little bit better. Hey, Jesus did call us to love everyone and he has called us not to judge, even though that is hard to do in our lives. Hey, at least they make me laugh!

A Perfect Summer Evening.....

Last night was a night that makes me thankful for being able to live in Madison, especially during the summer. I find this thought interesting because when I first moved to Madison I was CONVINCED that I was not going to stay here, no matter what it took! Boy, was I wrong and now I look back over the last three years and see how my heart has changed since then. I suppose I should actually say what made my night so wonderful. Last night, my "special someone" (Joel) and I went up to the square and listened to the Madison Symphony play a FREE outdoor concert, this was the first time I had experienced this and it was wonderful. What better way to spend an evening then to lay on the grass eating PB & J sandwiches with the one you love and listen to beautiful music! Then that magic question was asked......

"Hey Shannon, you want to go to the Union and get some ice cream?"

Ahhhh it's good for a man to know what makes a woman happy and ice cream is always a plus! (Right Jen!)

As we were sitting on a rock wall sharing our Babcock Hall ice cream we both stated that this evening is one of the reasons that Madison is a great place to live and especially spend the summer. And now as I look toward fall, which will bring a lot of hard changes in my life (My parents and Joel are moving to India, not to the same city, and not for the same reasons), I am realizing how I will look back on a warm, sunny evening in July and smile. And I am sure that this will get me through those cold days in November when my heart is missing some of the people I love most in my life, and hopefully it will lift my spirits and get me through until the first warm, sunny evening next summer.