Night Nurse

Guest Links: 

Prospective RN Resources:  https://www.registerednursing.org/resources/, https://nursinglicensemap.com/nursing-specialties/how-to-become-a-nurse/, https://www.allnursingschools.com/nursing-resources/.

Music:  "Everything Is Working Out" by Sarah, the Illstrumentalist, licensed under Epidemic Sound.  Original work available at https://www.epidemicsound.com/music/tracks/d82030d0-11ae-4ed6-b8c0-54046531b869/.

In this episode, I sit down with my sister,  Sarayth Velasquez, a first year registered nurse, to talk about the reality of life on the hospital floor.  We discuss the transition from nursing school to real-world patient care, the emotional high and lows of the job, funny and chaotic shift stories, and the lessons she's  learned during her first year as an RN.  From nurse culture and patient experiences to advise for future nurses, this conversation offers an honest, heartfelt, and entertaining look behind the scenes of healthcare.  

If you're enjoying the podcast and want to help support future episodes, you can contribute here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2612894/support

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:06

This is. So just says it straight. Straight talk. Real people. No filter. Say it straight or don't say it at all.

SPEAKER_03 0:24

Hello out there. Thank you to all the listeners for joining today. My guest is Saray Velasquez, Registered Nur. Today we're going to be talking to somebody who has seen people at their absolute best, their worst, their weirdest, and in I'm sure the most sleep-deprived position out there, a registered nurse. We're going to get some insight today on a first year of someone who has transitioned from California to Colorado and their first year and their journey. So we're going to just basically kind of get her side of the story. So welcome, Sara. How are you doing today? Thank you for joining us all the way from Colorado.

SPEAKER_00 1:10

Thank you for having me.

SPEAKER_03 1:12

Real quick, if you can just tell us a couple of fun facts about you. That way the audience can know who we're talking to. Just a couple things about you.

SPEAKER_00 1:18

Oh man. All right. Well, um, I think I'm interesting. Um I am, I love like working out. I love being active. So I guess a fun fact. Um, I just recently am trying jiu-jitsu.

SPEAKER_03 1:37

Oh, nice.

SPEAKER_00 1:38

Yeah. So and how's that going? It's fun. Um I had my class, my first class last week. And prior to that, I did like another um intro class to like a smaller gym, but this gym was a little bit more intense, bigger. Um, but it was fun. I mean, learning to kick some butt. Yeah. All right. Ready to, you know, if anyone tries to do anything, watch out now, watch out. Yeah, definitely.

SPEAKER_03 2:03

All right. Um, and once again, your profession is a registered nurse. How long have you been in your in your in your field or hmm?

SPEAKER_00 2:13

So I started back in either, I don't remember, November or October of last year. So it's been about like seven months already. So fairly new.

SPEAKER_03 2:25

Yeah, within the first year. So this is the most challenging, I'm assuming. Oh, yeah. Your first year. Um, and then why why um why is it that you had to go and go from California to Colorado? If you can kind of explain that a little bit, because I know you're from California, uh, but why the move?

SPEAKER_00 2:44

Um, so it was I started applying, or let's backtrack. I started to do my prerequisites at Hancock, and I pretty much did all of them.

SPEAKER_03 2:55

Where's Hancock Act? If you can for the listeners.

SPEAKER_00 2:58

Hancock is in a small town in Santa Maria. Um805. And um, so yeah, I did all my prereqs there, um, saved me a bunch of money. And then after that, I tried to apply to their nursing program. Um, but people who have who know Hancock and their nursing program, it is very, very competitive. So I've heard. Yes. And the wait list is insane. So I was kind of like discouraged. I was like, uh, I don't know if I want to wait that long. And so I was looking at other options in California, and I was gonna go to West Coast actually university. Um, but then I looked at the tuition and I was like, mm-hmm. You're like, hell no. Heck no, I'd be paying that off until I'm retired. So I looked into Colorado, and the reason I did that was because you guys a fun fact.

SPEAKER_03 3:55

Okay, so real quick, fun fact, and this is something that I didn't mention yesterday. Uh, in my first episode, uh, my sister Veronica yesterday, uh the uh LMFT that I interviewed, uh, that's my sister. And fun fact, this is my other sister, Sarahi. So that's a fun fact for you guys to know. Um, don't know why I didn't mention that yesterday. I didn't it didn't even cross my mind. But having you here today, I want to make sure I I I I mentioned that uh uh two lovely sisters that are are you know doing great things out there. Um, but yeah, go ahead and continue. Sorry about that.

SPEAKER_00 4:30

Yeah, so no, that plays a big role because he, you guys, you mean me Delaine were the ones that like gave me that opportunity to even look out in Colorado. Um, and I didn't think anything of it. I was doing my research, and there is like a private school out there, and so I just was like, you know what, I'm just gonna try it. Me thinking, I was like, I'm probably not gonna get accepted. Um, so I did everything and then they emailed me and they I saw the email, I was like that I was accepted and I was like, oh my gosh, I'm going to Colorado. Yeah, it was so fast, I feel like. So I it was a very fast change, and um I was a little scared because I've always been a Cali girl, so I didn't never left.

SPEAKER_03 5:15

There's nothing wrong with that.

SPEAKER_00 5:16

Yeah, no, nothing wrong with that. But it's I've always like lived with you with like my family, right? Like I was always so close with my family, so it was gonna be a big step. So I was just very nervous. Um, and yeah, I mean, obviously I stayed out there. Um, so I got it through. I graduated, and yeah.

SPEAKER_03 5:38

By the way, awesome graduation. We we went to a restaurant um to celebrate. It was like a mafia type restaurant where we had uh it was like there was some crazy stuff going on there. Yeah, I forget the name of the restaurant, but I think it was Giovanni's. Giovanni's, yeah. There was some stuff happening there, I think it was in the 80s, yeah. Uh where there was a lot of gang activity, a lot of gambling, anyways. Real cool place. If you're in Colorado, uh visit was it Giovanni's, right? Giovanni's Giovanni's, I think. Um let's see here. Um on your last shift, okay. I'm gonna ask you a question here. On a scale from totally calm to where the hell is my coffee? How was your first how was your last shift?

SPEAKER_00 6:20

Oh my god. I feel like I feel like maybe all nurses experienced this, but it's always the last shift before your vacation where shit hits the roof. It always never fails. Yep. And so I went in, got my assignment, and I was like, okay, cool. Some of these people had the last shift, so I know them, so whatever. And then um, as the shift went by, I was like, all right, I'm like, I'm caught up, whatever. No. Um, so I had this patient. Um, he is um, you know, dementia, trying to get out of bed.

SPEAKER_02 6:57

Oh, that's gotta be hard.

SPEAKER_00 6:58

Oh, yeah. Um, and so I was literally on my feet trying to keep him in bed and trying to like reorient and all that. And man, the last I I would say that the last few hours of my shift, I was literally chasing him, like trying to get him.

SPEAKER_03 7:16

Like literally running and and trying to grab him.

SPEAKER_00 7:19

Yes, because we so we have there no one's independent in the hospital. Everyone has a bed alarm. So even if they're 35 and they can get out of bed, everyone has to have a bed alarm, meaning that if they get out of bed, we will get notified. The whole floor will get notified.

SPEAKER_03 7:36

So is it always like, I don't know, is it what is it, a buzzing, a ringing?

SPEAKER_00 7:39

It's uh annoying, it's an annoying beeping sound, like very loud.

SPEAKER_03 7:43

Oh wow.

SPEAKER_00 7:43

So everyone, like if we hear an alarm go off in a room, everyone goes to run because like we don't want to fall. So, right, so he had that, and then on top of that, because he he had sundowners, we had a med sitter, and so that's kind of like a virtual sitter that just watches them and they call us.

SPEAKER_03 8:04

Wait a minute, okay, hold on, hold on. I gotta stop you there. Virtual, like AI, or what are we talking about here?

SPEAKER_00 8:10

It's basically like a a TV monitor and it has like a little camera and it's just has uh has eyes on like the patient.

SPEAKER_02 8:18

What? That's so that just sounds crazy to me.

SPEAKER_00 8:20

Yeah, so if the patient tries to get up and I am with another patient, right? Um, the medsitter is able to kind of reorient that person and be like, hey, like you need to sit down or you need to lay down.

SPEAKER_01 8:32

Right.

SPEAKER_00 8:33

Um, so yeah, so he had double the the alarms. And this patient, he was so funny. Like, I I love the older population. I feel like that population.

SPEAKER_03 8:47

Can we call him Bob? Let's call him Bob.

SPEAKER_00 8:49

Let's call him Bob. Yeah, that's fitting actually. And Bob, man, like Bob during the shift and early of the shift, he was fine. He was calm, he took his medication, and then he went to sleep, and I was like, okay, he's gonna go to he's gonna be asleep the whole night. No, he I went in to check on him, um, and then he was just like saying stuff. I it didn't make sense. Was he like rambling or he was just like saying he was like singing or no, he was just saying some funny stuff.

SPEAKER_03 9:22

He was probably having a good time.

SPEAKER_00 9:24

He he was definitely not in his right mind, but yeah, he was just like you're you're a woman, like you don't know what you're doing.

SPEAKER_02 9:30

What?

SPEAKER_00 9:32

Wow, and I just had a laugh because I'm like, okay, okay, yeah, yeah. I'm a I am a woman, and yeah, sometimes I don't know what I'm doing, so I don't know. So I and then he just started to get more aggressive, and like we were trying to calm him down, and then he was like uh threatening to pee on us, like wait wait, you said to pee on you? Yes, because he was trying to get out of bed to use the bathroom, um, but he had a fully catheter, so he Oh dang, he he if he needed a pee, he he could go, but he didn't know that he had it, so we were like, you know, you have a fully catheter, you know, you're fine. And he was trying to get out of bed, so as he was trying to get out of bed, he was like, Well, if you guys don't let me get out of bed, I'm gonna pee on you. And I was like, Oh, okay, that's not very nice, yeah. So, and I'm just so me and the aide like we're trying to calm him down, and he was just like, you know, just being funny, like it was definitely exhausting, but it's I mean, sometimes you just gotta laugh with what they're saying.

SPEAKER_03 10:38

If anyone out there is thinking about going into this field, uh this is what you gotta look forward to.

SPEAKER_00 10:43

So definitely. Every shift's different, you don't even know what you're gonna walk into, but that that literally summed up my whole shift, like trying to keep him in bed and like just you're just making me laugh for sure.

SPEAKER_03 10:57

Oh Bob.

SPEAKER_00 10:58

Oh Bob, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 10:59

He's a character. He was. Um, what's one thing nobody warned you about nursing school?

SPEAKER_00 11:06

Oh, like nursing school or like post like after nursing school?

SPEAKER_03 11:11

Um, whatever. Just nursing school in general, whatever you want to talk about there. Like one thing nobody warned you about.

SPEAKER_00 11:17

Um, pretty much, like I like during nursing school, like I knew I wasn't gonna have a life and I was gonna be sleeping a lot and studying. So I mean, I I kind of knew it, but I didn't think like it would be very that intense. Like, yeah, I would probably sleep five hours a day, but I wouldn't sleep like eight hours, so sleep deprived for sure. After nursing school, there's so many things. Like, I think imposture syndrome.

SPEAKER_03 11:47

What does that mean? If you can explain that.

SPEAKER_00 11:48

Imposter syndrome is like when you uh you know, you go to school to be this for your career and you you know, you do all this schoolwork, and then when you get into that field, you're like, is this really like what I'm supposed to be doing right now?

SPEAKER_03 12:03

Oh, like if like maybe, oh, am I good enough to do this or can I handle this?

SPEAKER_00 12:07

Yeah, so definitely confidence. Like I struggled a lot with my confidence as a nurse just to keep my patients safe. So I was just like, man, like how do you even get through this? And so they don't teach you that. You just kind of have to be confident and you know, and what helps is like my team at my hospital, they're amazing. Wow, like I I have an amazing manager, I have amazing like co-workers.

SPEAKER_03 12:34

Shout out to the manager and co-workers.

SPEAKER_00 12:36

Oh yeah, shout out Mary. Um, she's they're amazing. So yeah, I don't think I would get through my first few months. And they even said they're like, first three months, mm, yeah, you're gonna hate your life. And I was like, Oh, did you did you hate it? Oh yeah, okay, oh yeah, still.

SPEAKER_03 12:53

I'm like Okay, so you're set almost eight months in and still hating it.

SPEAKER_00 12:58

Yeah, I don't hate it, it's just very mentally, it's draining for sure.

SPEAKER_03 13:02

Yeah, I know that we went to go visit you in Colorado back in spring break, and uh just you just looked exhausted. Yeah, I gotta say, you look tired.

SPEAKER_00 13:11

I don't think there's any nice way to say it for that. Like, look, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 13:14

I want to just be uh very transparent here. I mean, I mean you're doing great things out there, but yeah, you just look you look dead.

SPEAKER_00 13:21

Yeah, no, every day, yeah, every shift is so draining.

SPEAKER_03 13:26

And I can't I can't even imagine, but um yeah, okay. Here, uh, this is a question I want to ask you. Let's get into some expectations versus reality. Um so let's see here. Um, what TV shows get nursing the most wrong? I know my wife loves to watch Gray's Gray's Anatomy. So how realistic is that show compared to like real life?

SPEAKER_00 13:50

Oh my god. I love first of all, I love Grace Anatomy. Um, definitely not the case at all. Like it's funny because they be shouting out orders, and obviously, like, I don't know, it's just some stuff that they say. I'm like, uh, that's not that's not how it would go. So, and they're physicians, so like I maybe it's different. I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 14:14

But yeah, definitely not and I but I know that on the show there's nurses that come in and they do you know a couple scenes or whatever, and yeah, nurses walking around with clipboards or whatever. Yeah, do you find yourself thinking like, what the hell's that nurse doing there or whatever? Like that wouldn't happen in real life.

SPEAKER_00 14:28

Yeah, I feel like any like nurse like sees like I don't know, uh, shows and they see like a nurse and they kind of criticize a little bit because obviously it's TV, it's not real, right? Yeah, all the time.

SPEAKER_03 14:41

Great. I mean, my wife, I mean, what I don't even know what season they're in right now, but that show's been going on for a long time.

SPEAKER_00 14:47

15 seasons, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 14:48

And there's a lot of shows out there. There's a lot of shows out there that that uh are it based out in a hospital setting, whatever. Yeah, ER, I think is another one. Um I mean, I'm not really into those shows, but I mean I know there's a there's quite a bit of shows out there. Yeah, like for me, if I'm watching a movie and you know, I I think I told my uh listeners I was I was in the military in my first episode. Um I did, you know, I did retire from the military. I was in the Marine Corps. When there's a movie or something, or there's a show, and I said, I I'm always pointing like it's to my wife because my wife's also retired marine, like, what? Like, no way that would never happen, or like what the hell is that uniform? Like, we don't wear a uniform like that or whatever. I'm sure it's the same thing.

SPEAKER_00 15:27

Oh, yeah, definitely. I think this one show it's called The Pit, um, and it's on HBO. And I think that show definitely obviously not so accurate, but I think it does reflect a little bit what physicians do because it has everything. They have the nurses, physicians, NPs in it, like everything. I would, yeah, that show's amazing. I think if you were to compare Gray's Anatomy to The Pit, I think the Pit would be more realistic.

SPEAKER_03 15:54

Okay, the Pit. Because you said it's on uh Netflix, HBO, HBO, okay. HBO, I gotta check it out.

SPEAKER_00 15:58

It's a good show.

SPEAKER_03 15:59

I gotta tell my wife the pit.

SPEAKER_00 16:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 16:00

All right. Um, is there anything glamorous about being a nurse? I mean, anything you can think of. I mean, it's gotta be like you gotta feel good about it. There's gotta be some perks, you would think. I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 16:13

Um, honestly, I don't know. Like, I feel like people now, like on TikTok, Instagram, like, I think people definitely glamorize nursing a lot. And it's that, I don't know, it's it's definitely not glamorizing at all. Um I mean, it depends, right? Because I work in a floor that's very, very demanding. Um, and other people do soft nursing, and what that means is people that work in doctor's offices. So it's very more calming, different pace, right? Different pace, you know. So yeah, like I don't know. Yeah, I wouldn't say it's glamorizing.

SPEAKER_03 16:56

I think the only thing would be the shifts, like so it's not like the TikTok videos where the nurses are like doing like a choreography and dancing and no, I'm like, how do you even have time?

SPEAKER_00 17:05

I'm like running around, barely have time to go to the bathroom.

SPEAKER_03 17:10

Are they even real nurses? I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 17:11

I don't know what floor they work at. My floor is definitely not like that. But yeah.

SPEAKER_03 17:17

Is there something that is surprisingly gross to you that you're like every day you're like, oh gosh, I do not look forward to that?

SPEAKER_00 17:24

Like pay, I mean, not gross. I I don't know, like this is silly, but like for me, I I don't like when people throw up.

SPEAKER_03 17:35

Okay, I mean, I I don't need I don't think anybody likes to see somebody throw up. I've never heard of somebody say, you know what, gosh, I really enjoy seeing vomit or throw up. Come on, please, somebody do it so I can enjoy it.

SPEAKER_00 17:47

Yeah, like honestly, I would rather see a wound, like, you know, I would rather change someone change someone's wound. Okay, and that's like you know, bad than care of someone's care, like take care of someone that's vomiting.

SPEAKER_03 18:04

Right.

SPEAKER_00 18:05

So I don't know, that's me.

SPEAKER_03 18:06

I mean if you have kids, if you have if the photos of their parents are out there, if you have kids, I mean vomiting that's that's normal. I know.

SPEAKER_00 18:13

One time where I was gonna put like an NG tube on a patient, and um he couldn't tolerate it, so he was just vomiting. And my friend was there, uh, my coworker, and and he started puking a lot. Was he like like projectile vomiting?

SPEAKER_03 18:30

And I was like, oh my god, like like in the movies, like when the like the exorcist.

SPEAKER_00 18:34

Yes, yes, and I've obviously felt so bad, and um my friend, thankfully, my friend was there and she got like a basin and she had him like hold on to it, and I and I had to like a little bit kind of step off to the side and get myself together because I could not the smell the yeah, well the smell of course, yeah. I couldn't do it. But she got to my friend, she was helping me out because I don't know what I would do.

SPEAKER_03 19:01

Oh, okay. Um is there a skill that you thought would be hard, but it actually turned out to be easy or something you do?

SPEAKER_00 19:10

Um, honestly, like talking to patients' families. Um I thought I was gonna struggle a lot with just, you know, I think not everyone has that like personality to be able to talk to families and like make sure that you know they are understanding what's going on with their family member. So I feel like I thought I was gonna have a very, very hard time um doing that, but it ended up being I love talking to patients' families. I love um kind of especially if the patient's like going through something really bad and like the family's kind of like they don't know what to do. Right. I like giving them reassurance that you know they're here and that we're doing the best we could we can. And so granted, like night shift, we don't really deal with a lot of family members. Okay.

SPEAKER_03 20:00

Is it mostly emergencies, obviously? Night shift it's for the most part.

SPEAKER_00 20:04

Well, like it's mostly people that work during day shift that they get to see a lot of family members, right?

SPEAKER_03 20:09

But like for you, night shift, like you said, uh, are you seeing like accidents for the most part? Um or or what are you what are you seeing?

SPEAKER_00 20:18

Like what's common so our floor is so I work the med med surge and if you know you know, if you know you know, and we specialize in surgical trauma, okay. Uh meaning that we get a lot of patients that have had spinal surgeries, hip surgeries, knee surgeries, all that. So we got a lot of patients that are like orthopedic related, and um we we mostly get those kind of patients, but we get a variety of other people, like uh, you know, semi bowel obstructions, um, you know, just a lot of people that have C diff, and C diff is just like a bad GI uh bug. And so yeah, we get we get a lot of everything, but mostly like patients that are you know had surgery in their spines and whatever.

SPEAKER_03 21:06

Yeah. Um okay, here we go. Um Expectation versus reality. Um, nurses survive entirely on caffeine. What's your response to that?

SPEAKER_00 21:17

Um, heck yeah.

SPEAKER_03 21:20

Are we talking coffee or what are we talking about here?

SPEAKER_00 21:22

Everything, anything. So, like I always carry my bloom like energy drink, which is the best.

SPEAKER_02 21:29

Um it's called Blue? Bloom. Bloom, okay.

SPEAKER_00 21:32

And it's the best. Um, and then I see people sometimes have an energy two energy drinks by their station, and then a coffee. So like there's literally we will take anything, and we have a coffee bar in our floor too, so if we need something, we will do that. So yeah, energy yeah, caffeine's our best friend for sure.

SPEAKER_03 21:52

I bet. Um you always skip lunch.

SPEAKER_00 21:56

Yes. So that is you don't know how many times I've packed. A amazing lunch, and I'm like, oh my gosh, I can't wait to eat this tonight. No, I don't have time to sit down and actually eat it um at all. And I think that's the difference between Colorado and California because I think California nurses are required to take a lunch. Like they someone has to take over their patients and they have to like take a lunch. Colorado, like uh you'll get lucky if you get a lunch.

unknown 22:24

I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 22:24

And why is that? Is it just because uh they're just a little bit more loose over there? Um I don't know. You don't know.

SPEAKER_00 22:30

I think it depends. I know California's very more stricter on that kind of stuff, but I think it depends on the hospital too. But I know for the most part they require you to.

SPEAKER_03 22:39

Yeah, I mean, like state law here in California is like, okay, you gotta take your lunch, I think, before the fifth hour of your shift.

SPEAKER_00 22:45

Right.

SPEAKER_03 22:45

And then you gotta have two 15-minute breaks.

SPEAKER_00 22:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 22:47

So that's out the window for you guys, right? I'm assuming.

SPEAKER_00 22:51

No lunch, no 15 maybe, maybe like five-minute break in between patients.

SPEAKER_03 22:56

It's not like Gray's Anatomy where they're like having a a lunch and they're doing extracurricular activities in the uh my god, I wish. And I don't know, the closet or whatever. It just seems like they had a lot of time on their hands.

SPEAKER_00 23:09

And no, that's not the case. I'm running around like trying to make my patient like their pain, like control their pain, like it's non-stop.

SPEAKER_03 23:19

Wow. Okay. Uh compression socks. Are they a personality trait? Like, what's up with compression socks? Do you wear compression socks?

SPEAKER_00 23:27

Oh, yeah, I do. It's I have a lot. Um, compression socks are a nurse's best, like we definitely wear them a lot. I know a lot of nurses that don't, and a lot of that do. It just helps when we're on our feet for a long period of time. Which you are. I mean that's all you do. Literally, uh-huh. So yeah, that's that's true.

SPEAKER_03 23:48

I mean, and that's gonna take a toll on your body. I mean, after X amount of years, I know, I mean, me being in the Marine Corps for whatever the you know, the time I was in, um, it takes a toll on your body, all the walking, all the hiking, all the uh, you know, the physical uh activity that your body takes. So I I'm assuming that being on your feet all the time after so many years, that starts to affect you.

SPEAKER_00 24:11

Yeah, I have like back problems already, and like I just start. And this is your first year. My first year. You're like great, yeah, great. Here we go.

SPEAKER_03 24:20

All right. Um, let's talk a little bit about your first year, obviously. Um can you tell us a little bit about your very first day? Not like your first day of like orientation, but like your actual first day that you were like on the floor, like actually in in the middle, in the trenches, as you would say.

SPEAKER_00 24:36

Oh, I cried. Seriously? I cried. Um, I remember Did you call mom? No, I cried in the bathroom. I had to give myself a timeout because I couldn't. Really? I think my first shift, I was just overwhelmed. I think I was kind of like, oh my god, like these patients depend on me. I'm the nurse. Right. Like I can't be like, hey, like whose nurse is this? I'm the nurse. That's you. Yeah, and so I think it was just the shock and um it was overwhelming. I think I was uh behind a lot. Like nursing is a lot of time management. Oh, I'm sure. And you learn. So, like in the first, my first shift, I knew nothing about time management. Um, and I was so behind on meds, and I was just like, it's one thing after another. Like this patient need to go to the bathroom, and this other patient needed their pain management, and I was just like, or their pain med, and I was just overwhelmed. And I think I got to the point where I was like, Oh my gosh, like I don't I hate this, I don't want to do this anymore.

SPEAKER_02 25:36

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 25:36

So after my shift, I during my shift I cried. After my shift, I cried, I was so defeated. I felt like I was not a sufficient nurse. I felt like, what am I doing with my life? And yeah, definitely crushed my confidence.

SPEAKER_03 25:51

But eight months, you know, down the road, yeah, here you are. Yeah, uh, I'm pretty sure, yes, there's days where you're like, dang, uh what am I doing? This is too hard. Yeah, but I'm sure that now you have a better understanding. I'm sure now I'm assuming that you know a little bit how more about time management.

SPEAKER_01 26:09

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 26:10

So those things, those type of things that you learn along the way, at some point is gonna make it, I'm not gonna say easier, yeah, but it's gonna be manageable.

SPEAKER_00 26:18

Yeah. So they the first, like, I think one of my preceptors, she was like, honestly, like, you're gonna feel like shit the third month. Right. You're gonna still feel like shit the sixth month. Um, by a year, you're gonna be okay. By the second year, you're gonna be fine. So I was like, two years is gonna take two years for me to feel okay. Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_03 26:39

Wow. I mean, yeah, yeah, it yeah, and I I'm sure that's the case for a lot of uh fields out there, a lot of professions. I know my first year in the Marine Corps, like I hated it. I wanted to go AWOL. And um, if it wasn't for one of my NCOs, and NCOs, like my my mentor, my leader, that kind of guided me and told me, look, if you just do this, this, and that, you're gonna be fine. And I took his advice and I ended up having a pretty good career after that. Uh, but for a moment there, the first year, I just wanted to leave so bad. And I was like, why did I join the Marine Corps? Like, what am I doing?

SPEAKER_00 27:14

Right. And you know, and I think that's just like with any other career, right? Like if you're new to this, like you're not gonna figure out right away. Like, it's just you have to just push through. And yeah, for the first three months, I was like, I want to come back to California, I don't want to do this anymore. Um, and so it was hard, but and it's still hard. Like you have your days or like a shift, right? And it if it goes bad, like that just ruins my whole week. And then you get reminded, oh my gosh, I'm back the next day. But you can't let it get to you, right?

SPEAKER_03 27:46

Because you you got so much to do, you can't dwell on it.

SPEAKER_00 27:50

You can't like and it's hard because I don't like to bring work home.

SPEAKER_03 27:54

Home.

SPEAKER_00 27:55

But I do. I think the first three months I did, and I was so mad, I was so like sleep deprived, I was just like depressed, I would say.

SPEAKER_03 28:02

But then you have your dog Scout waiting for you.

SPEAKER_00 28:05

Yes.

SPEAKER_03 28:06

So if for those of you out there, Scout, uh, he is a Frenchie, right? Yeah, he's a Frenchie. So whenever you come to the door, he he's there to greet you. Yeah, and he is such a uh he loves cheese, by the way. And that dude had he passes gas like no other. Like a human. Yes, yeah, I know.

SPEAKER_00 28:25

But uh shout out to Scout. Yeah, I miss uh see. I have a dog out here too, but yeah, he's definitely keeping me, you know, I don't know, just something to look forward to.

SPEAKER_03 28:37

Yeah, and that's what I was that's what I was getting to. Yeah. Uh in those tough days, at least you have something to look forward to, right? So that should go for everybody. You should have something to like you know what?

SPEAKER_01 28:46

Whatever it is, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 28:49

Exactly. Um okay, here. Um I got a question for you that uh have you ever had a moment where you thought, oh my god, I actually saved the day or the situation? Have you had a moment like that yet?

SPEAKER_00 29:04

I think like there's small moments. Like I think when a person's like I think it would be more like a person's like um blood pressure. Like, you know, like their blood pressure is really low. Um, I have to fix it. I have to figure out a way to fix that blood pressure, um, make sure that they it doesn't escalate to something bad, you know, and then also like I think just moments of like pain management for a patient because pain management is just it just it depends on the person, it depends on their pain tolerance. So you kind of have to figure out a way to like manage it.

SPEAKER_03 29:40

Well, I mean that's life-saving. I know I've been in situations in the hospital where I was in pain or you know, whatever, and like once you get that medication, yeah, it's like, oh my god, what a difference.

SPEAKER_00 29:50

Yeah, and so you have to be on top of it. Like it's sometimes people have oxy every four hours, so you have to be on top of it, and so when it's due, like you have to be really on top of it.

unknown 30:00

So yeah.

SPEAKER_03 30:01

All right. Um, what's the funniest thing that you've seen on Shift so far? If if you have seen something funny, funny, I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 30:08

I don't think I think just the way people are, like the the things people say um while we're caring for them. And I think it's just like it's just funny. Some like it's just like things that they say. I'm like, wow, are you really like do you really are you really like this outside of the hospital?

SPEAKER_03 30:25

Like the guy, like Bob, right? That wanted to pee on you.

SPEAKER_00 30:28

Why? I'm trying to help you. So yeah, like stuff like that. Um, but yeah, no, people definitely surprise me a lot, like with what they say to me.

SPEAKER_03 30:39

So and I'm sure you've had uh a moment where you completely panicked, right? Have you had a panic moment?

SPEAKER_00 30:44

Oh my god, yes. I've had three rapids already. Um and there's wait, what's a rapid? So a rapid is like a code um when a patient isn't doing good at all, and they're almost like they they need more support. Like everyone, so a rapid is basically you you push the button and um it has to be because the patient is like not waking up.

SPEAKER_01 31:08

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_00 31:09

Um they fell. Um it can be anything really. It's urgent, obviously. It's urgent, and so I already had three cases where I had to push the button and have people come over because I I needed more help, I needed backup.

SPEAKER_01 31:23

Right.

SPEAKER_00 31:23

And so yeah, I've had moments of panic where I need other people to help me out because I don't think I can help this person. Just I I they need support. And um, yeah, we I had many moments, like there are three moments already like that, and it was it's scary, like because you just don't know what the outcome's gonna be. You hope the patient ends up like fine, and you just don't know. So yeah, definitely.

SPEAKER_03 31:48

And I'm pretty sure there's moments where it feels like a circus, huh? Oh my gosh. There's just too much going on, people running around everywhere.

SPEAKER_00 31:53

Yeah, it's chaotic when there's like a code, it's for sure.

SPEAKER_03 31:57

All right. Um do patients ever like secretly make you feel better about yourself or do they make you feel good? Oh my god. Do you have moments like that?

SPEAKER_00 32:05

Yeah, so there's definitely some good parts about my job. Um, I think the the mo the when I feel good that I'm like doing something good are are when patients are Spanish speakers only. Okay. And oh my gosh, like I've already had like many instances where my uh charge nurse knows that I'm a Spanish speaker, and so they put me purposely with a patient that is a Spanish speaker, um, and I love. Um, and so I go in and I introduce myself and I say, Oh, like my name's Sarah, um enfermer el día de hoy, and they're like You speak Spanish, and they're just so like it makes my day because yeah, it's I'm sure it's hard when you don't know how to, you know, you can't relate to someone um that doesn't speak Spanish, like it's already stressful enough for them going there, stressful, yeah. And so I had an instance where this guy he had fell from his um ladder, and I think he was like fixing something. And so um he he came to us and so he was just like like anxious, an anxious wreck. And so I came in and I was introducing myself and he was just like, Oh my god, like gracias, gracias, like thank you that you already speak Spanish. Like I am just I'm so anxious, I don't have family here, and blah blah blah. And I was like trying for me that whole night.

SPEAKER_03 33:29

So you're like a you're like the the angel in the moment you came and saved the day, right?

SPEAKER_00 33:34

Yeah, and then a lot of them are like, Oh, your your parents must be so proud that you know you speak Spanish and you're caring for others. And I'm like, Yes, I'm you know, I'm proud that and happy that my parents taught me Spanish. And you know, Spanish was my first language, and so I think along the way I did kind of lose like some like there's some Spanish words like that I don't know how to say and mostly medical terms right that I have to look up because I I don't want to butcher it, I don't want them to not know what I'm saying. So I feel like I still need to practice a little bit more with my Spanish medical terms, but for the most part, like yeah.

SPEAKER_03 34:10

Okay. Um what's a what's a code brown?

SPEAKER_00 34:15

A code brown.

SPEAKER_03 34:16

Yeah, is that like when somebody has diarrhea or something?

SPEAKER_00 34:18

I mean, yeah, like when they poop their pants.

SPEAKER_03 34:20

Oh, okay. I thought it was I was joking, but no, I just wanted what the I've heard that before. Code brown, code brown.

SPEAKER_00 34:26

Well, actually, it it means different things in different hospitals. Um man, I don't even know what my our code brown is in our hospital.

SPEAKER_03 34:35

But you guys do use like codes like that, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 34:40

So, but code brown, I mean, yeah, people poop themselves.

SPEAKER_03 34:44

That's yeah, beautiful. Yay, I get to go to work and clean up poop.

SPEAKER_00 34:48

Oh yeah, that's our nurse's dream. That's what we do actually.

SPEAKER_03 34:52

Um, have you ever had us uh stay uh for an overnight shift?

SPEAKER_00 34:56

Like part like overtime?

SPEAKER_03 34:58

Like, yeah, or yeah, like I guess that yeah, I guess it would be overtime, right? Like you work your because how long are your shifts?

SPEAKER_00 35:05

So my shift is from 7:30 um or 7 to 7 30.

SPEAKER_03 35:11

So 12 hour shift.

SPEAKER_00 35:12

12 hour shift, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 35:13

And then is there ever times where like okay, your 12-hour shift is over, but now you gotta stay like an extra four or five hours or something like that?

SPEAKER_00 35:19

Absolutely not.

SPEAKER_03 35:20

No, oh, so you don't get asked that.

SPEAKER_00 35:22

No, we have we I don't I haven't heard anyone get asked that in my hospital. Okay, good. Yeah, they were they respect we're thankfully we're fully staffed that they don't ask that for us. So yeah, no, they have yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_03 35:35

Well that's good. Yeah, and of course, now uh on on a day-to-day, are you guys looking at charts? You're looking at um notes or whatever. Are they are they notes from the nurse, the head nurse, are they notes from the doctors? Everything, everything we get so are there times where you're like, what the hell does this say?

SPEAKER_00 35:51

Like specifically doctor writing, you know, it's like oh thankfully that that they I don't have to deal with doctors like handwriting because it's all through the computer and they type everything, so yeah.

SPEAKER_03 36:03

Because I'm just thinking, like, sometimes you you get like doctors' notes and it's like chicken scratches. Like, what does it say?

SPEAKER_00 36:08

No, we yeah, we don't, thankfully. Oh my gosh. Doctors are notorious for that, they're known for that. Right. It's just a I guess they just bad at their handwriting. I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 36:18

Yeah, no, um, let's see here. Um, let's talk a little about a little bit about nurse survival. Uh top three things that every nurse needs during their shift, or whatever, not top three, but whatever you think they need on their on their shift. What is what are the essentials?

SPEAKER_00 36:33

A good pen.

SPEAKER_03 36:33

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 36:34

Multiple pens, actually. You we go we always go like through them. I have like so many pens on my bag because I just lose them all the time. Um, energy drink for sure. But you need to have caffeine. Okay. Um, and I don't know, I there's just so many things like you need. Um you need like a good like snack.

SPEAKER_03 36:58

Which was my next question. Uh like favorite snacks.

SPEAKER_00 37:01

Yes, favorite snacks. Yes. Um, for me at least. It's just you know what's so weird since working there. Um, I love saltine crackers.

SPEAKER_03 37:11

Oh, same here. Love saltine. I could eat a whole roll of them with without even anything else, just the saltines.

SPEAKER_00 37:17

Yeah, sometimes I forget my snacks and we have a drawer full of saltine crackers, and I crave them.

SPEAKER_03 37:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 37:23

And I and I don't know, yeah, that's for me, that's it. I'm fine with saltine crackers. Like, that's my number one snack.

unknown 37:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 37:30

All right. And then the type of shoes that you wear are um like which which shoes are overrated or which ones are the essentials.

SPEAKER_00 37:38

I wear new balances. Okay. I don't know the exact ones, like the type, but they kind of remind me of hokahs.

SPEAKER_03 37:46

I don't know if I'm Hokas, yeah. Hokas are they're the expensive ones.

SPEAKER_00 37:48

Everybody wears hokas out there. Yeah, so it's a kind of like a dupe. I want to say a dupe, actually. They're around the same.

SPEAKER_03 37:54

Like a step down or no?

SPEAKER_00 37:55

Yeah, I think they're the same. Okay. But yeah, I wear new balances, and oh my gosh, my feet don't hurt as much. Obviously, I'm just my back hurts, but my feet are good. Um, but other nurses, like they just some some nurses wear converse. Some nurses wear.

SPEAKER_03 38:10

I've seen that before. Like, dude, how comfortable are Converse for 12-hour shift. Nah, I I wouldn't think they're very comfortable.

SPEAKER_00 38:16

For some, maybe.

SPEAKER_03 38:17

Wow.

SPEAKER_00 38:18

Yeah. But yeah, like working stocks, like you name it. Everyone has different shoes. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 38:24

All right. Uh, couple of myths here. Do nurses really know everything before calling the doctor?

SPEAKER_00 38:31

No.

SPEAKER_03 38:32

No, right?

SPEAKER_00 38:32

No. Like sometimes the doctors ask us some questions, and I'm like, um, I have no idea. Um, let me look it up. Yeah, no. We we try our best, obviously, to be on top of it and like know what they're gonna ask, like have it prepared. But sometimes they'll they'd be asking some questions, and I'm like, oh my gosh, like I'm scared, like I don't know the answer to that. And some doctors are nice, like some of them are like, oh, it's fine, like, don't worry about it. Others are like, What do you mean you don't know? You have this patient. How what do you mean? I'm like, I'm sorry, like, I'm sorry, I don't know what to say.

SPEAKER_03 39:07

You would think that being a doctor, you would have some you know, compassion and sympathy. Like, I've been in we've been my my wife and I have been in in hospitals many, many times, and sometimes there's just these doctors that are just so rude. Yeah, and then just the way they talk to the families and the way they talk to the nurses, it's like, dude, why are you in this profession? Um saying, like, why? We're a team, exactly.

SPEAKER_00 39:30

You're not my boss, we're all a team trying to take care of our patient.

SPEAKER_03 39:34

So I'm pretty sure when you when you run into a nice doctor, you're like, oh God, thank you, because it makes it easier on you guys, obviously.

SPEAKER_00 39:40

Yeah, no, thankfully, my hospital and all the physicians are amazing. I haven't had one incident, and I don't even want to jinx that. But like all the doctors I've had so far that I had to speak with are amazing. And yeah.

SPEAKER_03 39:53

And um, how's the dynamic at in at your particular hospital like with your um, I don't know, do you call them co-workers? What do you guys call each other? Coworkers. Is it like anywhere else? You get the drama, you got the, you know, what do you call it? The do you guys talk or do you guys don't even you guys don't have time, right? You guys don't.

SPEAKER_00 40:12

We don't. And I think the first few months as a nurse, I was really focusing on trying to be a good nurse and trying to care for my patient, not being behind that. I don't even have time, I didn't have time to like actually connect with my coworkers. Right. And I think I'm still like that too. I don't think I fully know who my co-workers are. I know that we work as a team and they're amazing co-workers, but like that's it. Like, we don't have time to like sit down at all, like to chat.

SPEAKER_03 40:40

Not even to, hey, did you catch that last episode of whatever?

SPEAKER_00 40:45

I mean, sometimes we do, but like not as much. Yeah, not as much.

SPEAKER_03 40:49

All right. Um so if you can give advice to someone out there that's thinking of going into this profession, uh, what kind of advice would you give them? Knowing everything you know now, everything you've been through, what what advice would you give them?

SPEAKER_00 41:09

I uh the advice I would give is do it for the right reason. Go into nursing because you want to help people. Don't do it for the money, don't do it because it's a new trend to do or career, like do it because you actually want to help others. Um because yeah, it it's not people glamorize it and they say, Oh, if you're a nurse, like you know, I don't know. They just say you're gonna be, I mean, financially, yeah, it's a good job financially. Um, but other than that, like it takes a mental toll. Like be prepared to go into work and you know, fight some demons and and then go back home, like and do the do it, do it again the next day. Like, and obviously not every nurse they don't have to be in the hospital, they don't have to work in the hospital, but I think like do it for the right reasons, not just because of the money.

SPEAKER_03 42:02

Right now, and that's one thing that a lot of uh I've heard you know, conversations, people that I've known, people that I've got into it, it's good money. Yeah, you know, it is good money, but I mean there's gotta be more to it than than just that. Yeah, if you go into it because of the money, I'm assuming those things don't really make it, yeah. Or because they're in it for the wrong reason.

SPEAKER_00 42:24

Right, right, exactly.

SPEAKER_03 42:26

Um let's see here nursing school versus real life. Uh what you thought nursing would be like and what it is.

SPEAKER_00 42:36

I didn't have any expectation. Like I already knew nursing was rough, so I already went in knowing that I'm it's gonna be hard. Um, and I I feel like the teachers at my school really kind of engraved that in our heads, like, you know, it's gonna be hard. Like, don't think it's gonna be breezy. And I don't think anyone ever said, Oh, nursing is is breezy. Like, huh? I'd I'd be questionable. That's questionable because it is it's not breezy, right? It's hard um mentally. So I think I just always was prepared. I knew it was hard. Um, so yeah, I don't it's hard.

SPEAKER_03 43:14

Is there something that absolutely did not prepare you for being a nurse? Looking back now, like, dude, like you guys taught us this, but come on now, we we don't even time management.

SPEAKER_00 43:26

Time management, okay. Yeah, because you don't and during nursing school, you're just preparing for tests, you know. Right. You are preparing for like what to look out for in a patient, but like time management, they don't teach you that. You have to, it's the rough it I think that shocks everyone once they're a new nurse, like after being you know, graduating, they just go into it and you learn along the way.

SPEAKER_03 43:48

Right. Yeah. Um, and then I wanted to kind of get into this because obviously California, you're a Cali girl, yeah, right? You love the beach, you love the I mean California. It's just a very unique, a unique state. Yeah. I love Colorado. I love spending a lot of time out there. We go out there very frequently. I have a house out there. Um, but what's the differen the biggest differences for you between here, California, and Colorado?

unknown 44:16

There's a lot, man.

SPEAKER_00 44:17

There's a lot. Um, well, I thought, you know, California people here are very outdoorsy. No, Colorado is more outdoorsy.

SPEAKER_03 44:27

Oh, yeah, Colorado.

SPEAKER_00 44:28

Oh my gosh, everyone has hiked 14ers, and we I don't know if that's a thing out there. It just means like you climb a mountain. That's 14, what is it? 14,000 feet up high?

SPEAKER_03 44:41

Like it's a mile high. They call it the mile high. So whatever a mile high is.

SPEAKER_00 44:45

But it's like 14, like 14ers.

SPEAKER_03 44:48

Oh.

SPEAKER_00 44:48

It's like you climb basically you climb a mountain. Right. That's a thing over there. Um for fun. And um yeah, people just hike a lot and um very outdoorsy, which isn't nothing's wrong with that. But right, I miss the beach. Um, there's a lot of lakes over there, but a lot of the lakes you can't get in. You can only, you know, use it for boats. And I think the same kind of here in California too. But I think and also the food. Oh my god, the food.

SPEAKER_03 45:18

The food I would say in California is a lot, I mean, hands down, better than Colorado.

SPEAKER_00 45:25

I don't know. I don't care what anyone says. California has the best food. Colorado, it was hard to find a good place. Yes, it still even is hard. I mean, we've I found some good places now, but like in the beginning it was rough. I couldn't find anything good. Mexican food, forget about it. I know forget about it.

SPEAKER_03 45:43

The first time I ordered a burrito in Colorado, Carnasala burrito, they put the sauce on top of the burrito. And I was like, what is this? It looked like it's just a big enchilada.

SPEAKER_00 45:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 45:53

And I was like, I didn't I didn't understand. Yeah, and I guess it's called a wet burrito, right?

SPEAKER_00 45:57

Yeah, they call it the wet burrito, but yeah, and and also like I I think I tried, I asked like a nursing school, like, what are the best tacos, you know?

SPEAKER_03 46:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 46:07

And for them, it was Torchies. So I don't know, or no, not Torchies. Oh my gosh, what is it? It was like a Tex Mex like restaurant. But basically, everyone was hyping it up. It was so good. They were like, Oh my god, it's so good. But TechMex is different. Exactly. Very different. And so I tried it out and I'm like, you know, high expectations. And um whack so gross, like, huh? This is the best, you said this is the best taco, you're kidding me. I was like, so oh my gosh, I'm never gonna find an actual good place. But no, now I feel like I have one place that um I always go to um and are actually based from California. What's it called? Carreras. Yeah, okay. So you know, if you go to Colorado and you want something that's close to Mexican food from Cali, um they're based off so they I think the owner's from San Diego and so they brought it to Colorado, and that's like the closest thing to California, like food, Mexican food.

SPEAKER_03 47:10

Wow. Okay, we'll gotta check it out next time we're out there. Um I I like I said, my I I'm a Cali guy too, but I but I have part of my heart is in Colorado. So eventually, I think one day when when my wife and I are are completely done working, we're gonna spend a lot of time out there. We have good really close friends out there, friends that you've met also. Um what's your go-to spot though when you first come back to California? What's the first place you go to to get food?

SPEAKER_00 47:38

Oh man, there's a lot. Um, where do I go? Um what is it? Tacos El Güero or El Güero? I think their carna sala burritos are the best. Like I I feel like each time I come home I have to go there.

SPEAKER_03 47:55

And where's this at? Santa Maria?

SPEAKER_00 47:57

I think they have a like a food truck in Pismo. Oh, Pismo, okay. And they have now a restaurant in Slow. Okay. So I need to go there. Tacos El Guerrero. Yes, and then uh Firestone. Firestone.

SPEAKER_03 48:08

Yeah, I mean Firestone's a staple out here.

SPEAKER_00 48:10

Yeah. And honestly, just a bunch of like Mexican. I go out to the city.

SPEAKER_03 48:14

Just like the mom and pop spots, right? Like any any authentic. I mean, you'll find them everywhere here in California. Right. Um, but I gotta say, the best Mexican food I've ever had is in San Diego, though.

SPEAKER_01 48:24

Really?

SPEAKER_03 48:25

San Diego's got the best. Just my opinion. Uh being stationed out there for so many years, being close to the border. Yeah. Uh, I mean, I just think the everything hands down was just way better in San Diego. Yeah. Uh, don't get me wrong, the great food out here in Santa Maria and in all around California, but San Diego, I gotta say, it's top-notch for me.

SPEAKER_01 48:43

Yeah, yeah.

unknown 48:44

You can see that.

SPEAKER_03 48:45

And then one more thing I wanted to just kind of you know, kind of fun here. Um, you didn't even know I was your brother, huh, until you until you were like, I don't know, how old were you when you realized, oh damn, I have a another brother.

SPEAKER_01 48:56

How old was I?

SPEAKER_03 48:57

You I mean, you were a you were a baby when I joined the Marine Corps.

SPEAKER_01 49:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 49:01

Uh so and if if for those of you who didn't know, uh well, for the listeners out there, I joined the Marine Corps in 1997. And that's the year that you you were born in 97, 96, no 96. 97, right? And uh, there's a picture of me holding you, literally, like you were like three months old or something, and I'm holding you in the picture, and I'm graduating from Marine Corps boot camp. And so that's basically the story of like uh me and my little sister here. We didn't grow up together. Yeah, we didn't grow up together. Uh I would come visit every once in a while, and uh she was like, Who is this guy? I think you thought I was probably like a cousin or something. What did you think? I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 49:38

I don't remember. I just was told that you that I would say that, but I think it's it's um I think that we should tell the backstory because like my mom had me when she was what 42?

SPEAKER_03 49:51

I think so, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 49:52

And so I'm the youngest out of four, and our age, our age is like 14 years apart, 10.

SPEAKER_03 50:00

No, mean our age difference.

SPEAKER_00 50:02

Well, like within you guys, like the range, like we were kind of like I don't know.

SPEAKER_03 50:06

I was when you were born, I was 19, going on 20 19, going on 20. So we were 20 years apart. I'm almost 20 years uh difference between you and me. Yeah, so I basically You were the oops, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 50:20

So literally, I was the oops.

SPEAKER_03 50:22

Yeah, I remember my mom telling me that she was praying, I was like, Mom, really? You're gonna have a baby now, now that I'm already you know off to boot, you know, in the Marine Corps. Uh it was just crazy. But I always look forward to seeing my little sister when we would visit. My wife and I would take you to the movie theater or out to eat, and they're like, Who's this little girl? I was like, Is this your baby or something? This is my little sister, and they were just like, Wow.

SPEAKER_00 50:44

Yeah, and I think it's it was definitely like I was the I was raised the only child.

SPEAKER_03 50:49

Yes, so you you didn't really it's unfortunate you didn't really get to experience like me and my other two sisters and my brother, like growing up, you didn't get that dynamic, you didn't get to experience that. But at least now you you know, we we're older now, we get to see each other spend time, we we get to take trips and and and you know, spend as much time as possible. I do enjoy going out there and spending time with you. This last trip that we we made out there, I think we set your your place for five days, yeah, spent some time with your boyfriend. We got to kind of go hang out, we watch scary movies at night. Yeah, that's every night we'd watch uh something scary and go to sleep. But yeah, good night, guys. That was fun.

SPEAKER_00 51:25

Yeah, so no, yeah. So I feel I feel like even though our our age difference, we're still pretty close. Yes, and a lot of people are shocked when they ask me, you know, how many siblings I have. Right. And then I tell them like they're eight, your guys' ages, and they're like, What? And then they always are like, Are you even close with them? I'm like, Yeah, yeah, we are, yeah, we are. Yeah, and it's I love saying that because um not everyone's close with their siblings, so exactly.

SPEAKER_03 51:51

And uh, so yeah, like I said, I look forward to those moments. Um glad you're here. I know you I know you fly out tomorrow. Uh yeah, but uh thank you for for being here. We're not quite done yet here. I just got a couple more things to ask and then we'll wrap it up here. Yeah, um if you can just answer this, are you still are you still glad you became a nurse? Like looking right now, like right now you're feeling the way you're feeling. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 52:13

Definitely. I have sometimes I think back and I'm like, wow, like I'm grateful that I'm a nurse. I'm happy that you know I stuck through it and chose this profession. Um although sometimes it doesn't feel like it, like sometimes it's really hard, but I think at the end of it I I'm kind of surprised that I like went to a different state and did nursing and you know, I don't know. Sometimes I'm I'm very gr I'm very very grateful for sure.

SPEAKER_03 52:42

Yeah, well we're very proud of you, that's for sure. I know that you you went through a lot to get to where you're at, and uh yeah, we're all we're all very proud of you. Um what's one thing you hope people understand about nurses?

SPEAKER_00 52:56

There's a lot, man. Um just people too.

SPEAKER_02 53:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 53:02

Um I feel like especially like some patients, like they just they they don't realize what we do on a daily basis. Like some I know it's easy to get frustrated sometimes at nurses and they a lot of like patients' families like just yell at us and we take a lot of like backlash on that. Like and I feel like we if you aren't a nurse, you're not gonna understand like what we go through on a daily basis. Like we are literally trying to keep your family member, you know, as safe as we can, like, and you know, um trying to make them go home, but also sometimes like the ratios like over there at where I'm from, um it's one nurse to either five or six patients. And that might not seem like a lot, but it's a lot.

SPEAKER_03 53:58

One patient's probably enough.

SPEAKER_00 54:00

Yeah, so I we try our best to get everyone's needs, and sometimes it's it's hard and it's defeating because we we want to be able to, you know, make the patient comfortable, and sometimes we do, but other times like some families are you know, they just expect a certain expectation, and rightfully so, right? Right, but sometimes we can't do it all.

SPEAKER_03 54:24

I don't know, yeah. You can't be everywhere at once.

SPEAKER_00 54:27

Yeah, and I think we just need more grace and like we're trying our best. And most of the time, like a lot of people are very grateful. They're like, I know what how much you do, and you know, thank you so much, and there's a lot of gratitude, but sometimes when there isn't a lot of gratitude, it tears us down because it's like dude, we're on the trenches, and we're really trying. Yeah, we're trying our best.

SPEAKER_03 54:51

Kudos to you, kudos to nurses, man. Yeah, hats off. Uh anybody in that profession doing it on the you know, on the grind daily. Uh, yeah, much respect. Yeah. Uh I I just want to say thank you once again for for joining me today. Yeah, thank you very much. Uh I you know, I appreciate you. Um hopefully we can have more conversations. Hopefully, we can get you back on the podcast again. And maybe we can have a we'll have a talk about our family. We'll have a sip of these ones.

SPEAKER_00 55:19

I think it'd be so cool if we have one with all our soap, like, yeah, let's just talk about all that.

SPEAKER_03 55:24

So for sure, we'll we'll definitely get you back here. Um, I think you'll be back in July.

SPEAKER_01 55:28

Yeah, for Kimmy.

SPEAKER_03 55:29

Maybe we can plan something out then and uh have a different topic and family discussion there. But uh yeah, I just want to say thank you once again for joining us today. Um for those of you out there that are thinking about join becoming a registered nurse. Um, what kind of resources are out there that you that were helpful for you? Is there anything that you would recommend? Go on this line on this platform or go on whatever this site, anything that you would recommend?

SPEAKER_00 55:54

I think just like doing your own research, like really expanding your horizon. I think a lot of people are you know scared to get out of the state that they're comfortable with. Um, and I was, um but I feel like California is very demanding on nurses and like it's really hard to get into nursing school. So I think like just go beyond that and like just search everywhere, really, like even outside of California.

SPEAKER_03 56:22

Um yeah, I would say if you just go Google and just just put like nursing prep, uh registered nursing prep, yeah, will they be able to a lot of information pops up?

SPEAKER_00 56:30

Yeah, I mean like nursing programs, there's a lot of nursing programs, and so it's really just up to you know, either have a good counselor or like friends or family friends that are nurse, like just get feedback from them. So yeah.

SPEAKER_03 56:44

All right. Well, I know I learned a lot today about nursing. I I'm seeing it all from a whole different perspective now. And uh one thing I learned today was that nursing is not like the like the TV shows, it's really not. No.

SPEAKER_00 56:55

Like no, nothing, nothing like it.

SPEAKER_03 56:59

I hope that for you listeners out there, I hope you picked up something here that might be a little helpful for you. Um, so thank you once again, listeners, for joining. Uh, that concludes today's episode. And uh once again, thank you very much. And enjoy we're gonna have pozole later at my mom's house. So we're looking forward to that. We're gonna head out there in a few hours. So for those of you who know what pozole is, uh it's it's yummy. I think it's a Mexican dish. But I'm looking forward to it. If you know, you know, yeah. So all right. All righty.

SPEAKER_01 57:27

We'll talk next.

SPEAKER_03 57:28

Yeah, no, thank you very much.

unknown 57:29

Alrighty.

SPEAKER_03 57:40

When the truth comes out, whether you plan it or not, catch you next time.