Friday, February 25, 2011

Passing the NCLEX - The Hardest Part is the Drive!

 
After over seven years since I began this journey, I can finally say five of the most delightful, "music to my ears" words: I am a registered nurse!

Yes, it is true. After battling mother nature this past Monday in a terrifying snow storm, I arrived at the testing center, shaken but alive. Out of all the advice given to prospective test takers; get a good night's sleep, eat a healthy breakfast, arrive at the testing center on-time, stress-free, and ready to go...well, I tossed almost all that advice out the window, but certainly not intentionally.

The evening before, we traveled to the airport to pick up our son, who was returning home from his Australian Study Abroad trip. As it happens, this trip to the airport also coincided with the aforementioned nasty winter storm that was seriously revving up. Consequently, what is usually a 45 minute drive took us well over 1-1/2 hours on slick, quickly accumulating snow-covered roads. I'm glad I gave up nail-biting, or I would not have had any left after that joyful drive.

By the time we arrived home, it was after 10 pm, and there was a lot of excitement, commotion, and noise as our son, who is already high-energy and boisterous, began to describe the highlights and share pictures of his trip. I had to drag myself away to do a little last-minute review before retiring for the night, and even then, didn't turn out the lights until 11:30pm.

Due to my high anxiety over the brewing storm raging outside, I set my alarm to a special, custom setting I refer to as "Ungodly Early Hour" and pretended to sleep for 5 hours.

So much for getting a good nights sleep before The Big Test.

I rushed through my morning routine, panicked that if I dallied too much, I would never arrive on time, I'd miss the test, and my life would go up into a blazing ball of fire and smoke. So I dashed out the door with a cup of coffee in one hand and a chewy granola bar in the other.

So much for eating a healthy breakfast.

The drive to the testing center can be summed up in one word: terrifying. Apparently, this particular snow storm caught everyone by surprise, and the snow plows and salt trucks were still tucked away in their cozy little garages, snoozing away. Meanwhile, we frightened motorists summoned up every ounce of courage and winter driving skills we could muster and followed the 9-inch deep tire paths, praying our wheels would stay in these frozen "ruts" and not send us sailing into a ditch. For there were plenty of poor souls who made that unfortunate journey; I haven't seen that many spun-out cars and stunned drivers since my first time behind the wheel in drivers ed training!

So much for arriving at the testing center stress-free.

It appears the only thing I was able to do correctly was to arrive on time. And even then I cut it close, as I turned down the wrong street and found myself hopelessly lost, navigating dark, unfamiliar streets, including a close call with a one-way street. (Talk to my friend Debi about one-way streets, she still bears the emotional scars of my stupidity, even if she wasn't physically injured!)

So, after all of that drama, I thought to myself, "Self, if you can make it here and live to talk about it, you can pass this exam." It also didn't hurt to take some deep breaths, regain my focus and ask God to remain in the passenger seat with me during the exam. I liked to imagine that He was there, helping me steer through the difficult questions (and some of them were downright impossible). 

When the test computer shut off after question 75, I felt fear, anxiety, hope and relief, all mixed up, for I knew that 75 was the minimum amount of questions that could be given. A dark screen after 75 questions could mean only one of two things: either I had missed too many questions and they had seen enough of my incompetency, or I had answered enough correctly and they (the little men inside the computer) were satisfied that I was minimally competent to begin practicing nursing. 

So that is the story of my Big Adventure as regards the NCLEX exam. I am still pinching myself over the fact that I am a bona fide registered nurse. It hasn't quite sunk in yet, I guess. Perhaps that is because it has only been 48 hours since I received the blessed "Passed" results. Or perhaps it is because I haven't actually been hired as a nurse yet, and just sit here blogging about the life and times of a crazy old graduate nurse.

Whatever the reason, one thing is for sure. I feel I've closed one chapter of my life and am ready to begin another. Adventure awaits.

I just hope this next adventure doesn't involve another snow storm.
I've had just about enough of this winter madness.

                                      

3 comments:

  1. Laura, What a roller coaster week you had. I actually get a little sick to my stomach imagining that Monday morning drive. I remember watching the news that morning and seeing all the cars on 23 off in ditches. My only consulation was that you had certainly left before rush hour. (even though I wasn't sure of that) I thought about you while we were waiting for Abel to be born and for you to get your official results. Thank you for calling me right away. It put a smile on my face for the rest of day. Everytime I passed a nurse in the halls, with her official name tag with the capitalized-red letter RN, I wanted to cry and shout...."My sister joined your club!" You are and always will be an inspiration to your big sister. Thank you for that. Can't wait to share all your nursing adventures to come. You WILL make a difference in peoples lives. God Bless your mind and hands (oh heck, your whole body!) forever. Love you xoxo

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  2. Congratulations Laura! You must be SO HAPPY!!! I have really enjoyed reading your blog. Thank you for sharing. You are going to be a great nurse!

    Lisa Fisher

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  3. Thanks so much for the kind comments Lisa. And yes, I am very happy to have passed that NCLEX! I hope your studies are going well. What theory/rotation are you doing right now? It's been such a snowy winter, hope you haven't had to drive too far for your clinicals. I'd love to hear how things are going for you right now. If not here, than you could send me a message on facebook. Thanks again! ~ Laura

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