Clinicals in psych

Another pretty low-key week for the Andrew family. Dani felt quite a bit worse after our weekend travels, and it's been discouraging that she felt so good and now feels lousy again. We're at 20 weeks, and we expected that at least halfway through the pregnancy she'd be feeling awesome again. It's frustrating that she'll take two steps forward and slide another step back.

On Monday I took a shift for Morgan EMS but spent the day studying at the station. It's nice to have a full 12 hours to get homework done, but whenever I'm on call I really hope for some action.

On Tuesday my clinical rotation was in adult behavioral health. I worked with the nurse in the psychiatric intensive care unit (PICU), an area that typically has more difficult-to-handle psychotic patients; they may be violent, aggressive, or agitate other patients enough that they need to be more secluded. One of our patients was obsessed with working out, and spent most of the day on the floor attempting pushups as he yelled out with each rep. The day was pretty uneventful until the evening, when one patient with dementia started to become combative with the staff. They had to hold him down while I gave him an injection of an anti-agitative medication. After a few minutes it didn't seem to make much of a difference (after deciding that barricading his door with his bed wasn't enough, he cracked the door open and peed in our direction), so we gave him another dose and he calmed down just fine.

Last week I worked in pediatric behavioral health, and although it's a totally different world working with psychiatric patients, I don't think I'd enjoy it for very long. Next week I'm in OB/GYN, so we'll see how that goes!

Two roads...

This week I started my second semester clinical rotations at McKay Dee Hospital, an Intermountain Healthcare facility in Ogden. My first day was in the OR, and I have to say I don't think I'm cut out to be an OR nurse. I think everyone in the OR has fun except the nurse - the surgeon is running the show, the techs have their bloody hands right in there with the surgeon, the patient is dreaming away, and the anesthetist is making sure the patient doesn't die. But not the nurse, they get to sit at the computer, chart, and occasionally run for extra supplies.

The previous times I've been in ORs I've been shadowing the anesthesiology department, and they have a pretty fun job if the surgery isn't too long. They are talking with the patient beforehand, bringing them back into the operating room, administering the anesthesia and intubating them (placing the tube down their throat to control breathing while they're unconscious), and monitoring vital signs. If the surgery is drawn out, then I'm sure it can get monotonous, but I imagine that the rest of the excitement makes up for it.

Also this week I had the opportunity to shadow a functional medicine nurse practitioner. My career will either lead me to become a nurse anesthetist or a nurse practitioner, and I'm trying to get as much experience in both fields to know what I want to do for the rest of my life. If I become a nurse practitioner, I would want to do the same things that my dad does in functional medicine, so I looked up a family NP who has her own practice in Salt Lake and sees patients who haven't found the answers they need from traditional Western medicine. Her business is successful and thanks to Utah laws enjoys as much freedom as doctors do. She is well respected by colleagues and patients alike. It was great to get an idea about what my life might be like if I continue down this path. If I do, I'll already have a head start on what takes most functional doctors and NPs years to discover, as I already have a background in wellness.

Thankfully, I don't have to decide which road to take for a few years at least. After I finish this program, all other masters/doctorate programs require a couple years of clinical experience, so I will have plenty of time to determine my future in medicine.

Since Hawaii...

... our lives have been pretty crazy! Dani got a job (the day we flew back to Utah!) as a second grade teacher at Ellison Park Elementary in Layton, and after a few more days in Moab we moved up here. Dani was immediately swamped at work (I can't tell you how many hours I was in her classroom to help her get everything set up, I had no idea how much work it was!) and I started the first semester of my nursing program at Weber State University.

This cute woman's first day of school!

While I studied full-time Dani worked double-time (literally, 13-14 hour days, 6 days a week). Fairly soon after starting her job, Dani realized she wasn't getting paid enough to loose her sanity and knew there wasn't a light at the end of the tunnel, so she resigned so she could function like a normal person. All the other teachers told her that "It's just your first year - by your third year it will be a lot easier," but we're hoping to start a family sooner than that and we felt like if this wasn't going to be a life-long career for her then it wasn't really worth it.

Anyways, I like having my wife back.

School has been going great for me! I'm just wrapping up the semester and I loved just about every minute of it. Clinicals have been in a nearby nursing home, which although it isn't very exciting, it's been a great opportunity to practice my new skills. I'm also working for my dad on Fridays down in Springville, which I love. I've always told people that I want to become a nurse anesthetist, but since working with my dad I've discovered how much fun it is to help people in ways that not all doctors can. I'm considering becoming a nurse practitioner, and Weber just started their own NP program that I think I'd love. Anyhow, I still have plenty of time to determine what I want to do after I graduate.

Not long after moving into our new ward, they called me to my dream calling - the new Scoutmaster! I was pretty stoked to accept this new responsibility. Thanks to mom for buying me a large uniform back when I was 11 (it looked ridiculous at the time but is saving me money now), I just had to take off a few patches and Grandma sewed on my new ones! I am excited to have some awesome adventures with the boys.

I think that about sums it up! Here are a few pictures of what's been going on with us.

Our first hike in Layton was Adam's Canyon.

Adam's Canyon in the fall.

Slow shutter of the waterfall at the end of Farmington Creek Trail.

One of Dani's best high school friends Claudia was in the states from Spain (where she lives)
for a couple weeks and she flew to Utah for 24 hours just to visit us!

Summiting Ben Lomond above Ogden.

At the peak. Mantua and Cache Valley are behind us.

"The stare down"
We nearly ran into this cow moose and her calf on the trail. We didn't stick around long after this picture.

Big Decisions with Some Twists of Fun

This week started out rough as I came down with something and spent a few days sick in bed. Secretly I think Chris didn't mind because he got to practice his new medical skills with ONDAMED (a really cool biofeedback machine that uses pulsed electromagnetic fields to help the body heal itself) AND an injection (you can tell I really trust him).

Chris did have a great opportunity to go to the hospital on Tuesday to check out the workplace of a nurse anesthetist we know from our ward and ask some questions about the profession. Chris is planning on watching him in the OR this summer to get a better idea of what it will be like.

We went to the Monticello temple on Wednesday night, as our hearts and minds were occupied in trying to decide which school had the best nursing program for Chris. My stud of a husband was accepted into every program he applied to! We had it narrowed down to Utah State Eastern in Price and Weber State University in Layton (the Davis campus). USU Eastern appealed to us because the tuition is the lowest in all of Utah and it's close to Moab, but Weber has a very well-known nursing program - one of the the best in Utah. Ultimately we felt right about going to Weber, and are excited for Chris to go to a university where he will have more experiences in larger, busier hospitals during his clinicals and a larger network of alumni to get to know. Now all we need to do is find me a job in Layton starting in the fall, so if anyone has connections let us know!

Luckily Matthew and Olivia helped to spice up the second half of our week by inviting us to their theater performances at the Moab Broadway Review. Those two have been practicing hard with other kids and their performances were fantastic. We really enjoyed watching not just them but so many of our friends and ward members who also performed.

Matthew in "Food, Glorious Food" (Oliver Twist) and Olivia in "I Can't Wait to Be King" (The Lion King)

On Saturday I did an up-and-down trip to Provo for a fantastic girls day with my favorite year of roommates - Laura, Jessica, Candace, and Michelle. Jessica is getting married this summer, and both Candace and Michelle are expecting their first kids. So we threw a bridal shower for Jess, which transitioned into a combined mini baby shower for Candace and Michelle! It was so good for the five of us to have time to spend together (a rare occasion the last few years). With Laura moving to Florida for the summer this week and then Candace moving to Alabama for her husband's schooling in the fall who knows when the next time will be that we can all get together. I'm so grateful that our year of random roommates brought us all lifelong best friends.

As much as Chris would have loved the hours on hours of girl talk, he stayed down in Moab and hung out with some buddies who were in town for the weekend. Todd (a college roommate) and his wife Jame came down with a former mission companion of Todd's and the four of them had quite the day of adventures! They mountain biked the Klondike Bluff Trails, tromped to Delicate Arch, and then repelled from Corona Arch. Though my day was equally fabulous I'm still a little jealous of their repelling adventure without me!

Anders, Chris, Todd and Jame battled the crowds and wind at Arches

Don't look down Anders!

After our big days on Saturday we loved having a relaxing and peaceful Sunday. Church on Sunday was perfectly rejuvenating and helped to spiritually and mentally prepare us for a new week. We're so grateful for the knowledge of the gospel we have.

Remember to pray and remember to play,

Mr. & Mrs. Andrew