I'll see you in the ICU!

I think my preceptor is trying to kill me...

Hah, no really.

So, I guess she teaches Tai Chi on Wednesdays, during her lunch hour. So, on wednesday, she decided that rather than do what I usually do on my lunch hour (get off my feet, rest and have lunch) I should go to Tai Chi with her.

Being one who can't stand up for myself and say No, I went.

Of course, she makes me take off my shoes, which I shouldn't have done. I have this problem in my achilles tendons...I can't walk barefoot or in flat shoes for very long without my ankles swelling up and lots of pain.

But, I didn't say no.

Tai Chi is not my thing. It's not like Yoga (where you listen to your body and follow what you can do) Apparently, Tai Chi is about hurting yourself.

I was instructed on a few basic moves, which when I attempted them, made her very nearly sick. "no no no, not like that, like this"

Try and try as I might, I couldn't get her to understand that my body will simply not bend that way.

One thing that was painfully clear: for a nurse, she has no clue that the knee does not, nor should not, move laterally. She continually came over, braced her knee against mine, and pulled on my upper back towards her, and a few times I nearly fell on top of her.

After asking her twice to not pull my back, and having explained about 20 times in 2 days that two weeks ago I had thrown my back out and it nearly cost me the year, she finally tried to force my body into a position that really sent a jolt thru me.

I was done.

I sat on the floor of the basketball court, and finally laid down, and brought my knees up to my chest. I think she finally understood that when I said "I threw my back out" I didn't mean that I had a little achey back for a few hours.

Limping back to the hospital, she said "why don't you just take lunch and then call it a day...it's not like there's anything going on anyway"

I wouldn't have taken her up on it if I hadn't really, really needed to lay down.

The following morning, I got an email from my liason, pissed as hell because she had gone to my clinical site and I wasn't there. She said something about my vacation being over, and blah blah.

I replied that I didnt' think cutting it three hours short was a vacation; explained to her what my preceptor had done to my back during my "lunch" hour and considering how bad my back was hurt last semester, I didn't think three hours was going to make or break, especially when my hours are scheduled to be done by May 1st.

So, I go back tomorrow. Today, I can just sorta hobble around...mostly it's my right ankle (the one I tore the ligament on 20 years ago) that is hurting the most. How I'm going to get around for 12 hours a day, both weekend days, is beyond me.

Thank god my preceptor is away for a week or so. I hope this new preceptor is understanding when I tell her I can't do certian things. What pisses me off is that I was FINE until her Tai Chi class...I learned a valuable lesson. My health is more important than what people think of me...I'm saying NO first from now on. In fact, I'm thinking of starting all my sentences with it from now on.

and ending this post with it.
Do I think Columbia's nursing program is worth the money?
NO.

posted by sketchmonkey @ 7:29 AM