CNA glories

So, I thought it'd be fun to start school a week early, and take a CNA class from 5p.m. to 10p.m. starting this last Monday. I had no idea what to expect, and just knew as a CAN I'd have to give people showers, clean up their poop, and other fun fun jobs that no one else wants to do. Last night I learned a few key things.....

1. How to insert a Foley Catheter in males and females (which I've had inserted in me before, and it is not fun)
2. How to tie "the knot" for restraints (which are rarely used anymore)
3. Watched two C-sections and a vaginal birth

I knew at one point I'd have to see an old guy's penis, and I kind of worried about it. I just didn't need that picture in my head. However, it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought. And to my surprise, I found myself thinking "I can handle this..." during the whole catheter-insertion-technique-video. CNA's don't actually insert catheters unless trained and instructed to do so by their facility, but we still learn how.

Now concerning watching the three births. I totally thought I'd be grossed out, but I wasn't. I just kept thinking about how amazing it was that there was a little human growing inside this woman, and now it's here for the world to see and love. Watching the incisions of the c-sections was a lot less painful that I imagined, and the whole process simply fascinated me. I loved it.

I had concerns going into my class thinking that I wouldn't be able to handle the "gross parts" of being a nurse/nurses assistant (which there are plenty of those...) but for some reason those things don't bother me. The things in class that stand out to me are helping those who are unable to help themselves, and that we all do it out of caring for others. It makes me so excited to spend my life as a person caring for others, and trying to empathize with them. We'll see how I feel on my first day of clinicals (I'm sure I'll be a little more grossed out then) but for now, I', so excited to be getting into this field of work!