The Truth Hurts.
I just submitted my link to nursingvoices.com and was sent this reply:
Ouch. The truth hurts. Just why is it that I can’t get motivated to blog?"We'd definitely love to have you, but are you planning on continuing to blog? I notice that you haven't written in almost three weeks and only twice in the last two months."
I read Emergiblog and am always amazed. Kim does such a great job of constantly updating her blog and everything she writes is so fresh, and funny and relevant. How on earth do you do it, Kim? And here I am calling experinced nurses like you a dinosaur! Shame on me.
Some possible explanations:
Take Geeknurse. He had a wonderful blog and he was apparently forced to shut it down by his institution (no doubt the GHOAT of New Zealand). I live in constant fear of this and so absolutely no one at work knows that I have a blog. But what this amounts to is that I am one heck of a lonely blogger. I feel like I have so many stories to tell about my unit and yet some of the people who would appreciate them the most (my coworkers) will never be graced with my creative meanderings.
I also live in constant fear of HIPPA regulations. The stories I would like to tell are so personal to the patient. And they are certainly not in a position for me to even ask permission to write about them (zoinked out on Fentanyl and Versed, or else in the throws of hepatic encephalopathy, you get the picture.) There are plenty of times when I would like to write about the family, and how they are dealing with the situation, but even then I never feel it is appropriate to ask.
Also, I kind of got hung up on the whole Grand Rounds thing. It just seems so MD-centric. I know, I know – if I actually contributed to it, then perhaps it would be more RN-centric, or at least more RN-ish. But, #1 I never seem to make the deadline, and #2 I once sent in a post on time and the host failed to include it for some unkown reason.
Excuses, excuses.
At any rate, I am hoping to find my motivation. It may have come in the form of a MICU survivor that I had the pleasure of meeting last week. It was at a MICU workshop I attended. She is a young woman who managed to be a patient in the MICU for a very long time (and was on every type of support we could offer) and made it out alive to tell her story. With her permission I am hoping to tell you her story in the following weeks.
Don't focus on your patients in particular. Focus on you - your feelings in caring for people with a specific illness, say hepatic encephalopathy. You don't have to give pt. details, How do you feel when you get home? What do you do to keep going when you don't think you can take another step? How has nursing affected your relationships? Why would someone go into nursing. Why should someone STAY in nursing. Why do YOU stay in nursing. What frustrates you the most, what inspires you the most? Were there any stories of you as a child that affect the way you approach a patient/illness today? Are there any areas of nursing you just couldn't deal with - for me it is L&D and management. What makes a good manager to you? What experiences in other jobs contributed to your coping with nursing? How do you feel about sputum? That could be a hilarious post. What's the weirdest thing anyone brought into share in the break room? Ever done something embarrassing like kicking over a urinal or opening a commode at the bedside only to find a co-worker had not cleaned it? Write about YOUR experiences with the medical system as a patient, then you don't have to worry because it's YOUR story and there is no HIPPA rule for yourself! What qualities make a good doctor in your eyes? A bad doctor?
Put a piece of paper in your pocket. Write down a blog idea as they come. Keep a pencil nearby and write down ideas you get reading other blogs, I've ended many a comment with "I feel a post coming on......"! LOL!
Also remember that after 28 years I have many experiences in many different units and can change more variables in a story than Elton John changes glasses.
As for Grand Rounds, they are as centric as the host wants them to be. Please notice that I am typing this at 0300 and just now sent my post to MamaDoc. I've had submissions denied only to resubmit them the next week and get them in! If they are good they are good!
You write wonderfully, and you can blog about the nursing experience in a variety of ways. The more experience you get the more you have to work with.!
Hang in there. If Shane over at nursingvoices.com thought enough to send you that note, then he likes your writing and wants more. I only blog about twice a week, once for Grand Rounds and once because I feel like it. If I feel prolific, I'll blog four times in a week!
Viva la Pixel RN blog! (Comment this)