Once Upon a Time…
Once upon a time a girl went on an adventure to Alaska...
The chance to go to Alaska was presented to me as I started my program at Duke and my immediate reaction was “NOPE! NOT ME”. As time went on, it kept coming up, over and over again. Something told me it was an opportunity I needed to consider. I spent endless time considering the option and eventually decided (with a lot of pushing from others) to look into it. A million times I changed my mind, but eventually I boarded the plane. I was stressed, my anxiety at an all-time high, I was unemployed, I was overworked and exhausted, I was afraid of being away from home and not knowing anyone and I questioned if I actually knew enough to help people in a safe way. But the answer always seemed to be that the experience I could get doing clinicals in Alaska was too good of an opportunity to pass up. Everyone around me thought this would be good for me. I thought it would make me a better nurse practitioner.
I made up my mind, that if I was going to take this leap, I was going to get absolutely everything out it that I possibly could.
So, an introverted girl from Wisconsin made a promise to herself that she would explore, that she would drive in a strange state, that she would get to know people, ask questions and not just go to clinicals and back to the apartment.
Well, I kept that promise and I will definitely be a better nurse practitioner because of the things I learned in Alaska, but I have gotten so much more from the experience! I found out I could manage a full schedule of patients, that I could navigate taking care of patients with serious mental illness and I found my voice as a provider. But, more importantly I found a peace in my surroundings and with myself that I have not had in a long while. My anxiety is decreased (unless I think too much about unemployment lol). I walk and walk outside taking in all the scenery. I hike in the mountains. I stay out way too late hoping to see the Northern Lights! I have and they are MAGNIFICENT! And I drive—singing to myself with the radio turned way, way up just enjoying the sights and appreciating that the view is nothing short of breathtaking a lot of the time. I feel calm and clear, and I am starting to have a confidence that I lost somewhere along the way. I know who I am and what impact I can have on people.
Don’t get me wrong, I miss my person, our home and our dogs! I have tried suggesting they should come here instead of me coming home, but that idea is being met with a little cold weather resistance (LOL). There is still nervousness about being unemployed and the stress of taking boards, but it all seems less daunting now. It’s all going to work out just the way it is supposed to.
Any who…once upon a time a girl went on an adventure to Alaska, and it reminded her of all she is.