Introducing Candi Kinney, FNP-C!!

Me & my fam (not sure where my hubby is in this pic!!)

Me & my beautiful daughter, as you can tell this is from her SC

Yep that's right people, IT IS DONE! I know it's been three months since graduation but hey, I've been decompressing!! Actually I still am. Last night I was laying on the couch with my daughter watching Christmas movies & I looked over at her and said, "I'm so glad that I'm not doing homework right now" and she goes, "Yo

u're still not over it huh?" hahaha!! No I'm not!! 6 Six (APA wouldn't let me type the number 6 haha!) years of nursing and nursing practitioner school still has me traumatized!!

But I digress. Let's talk about NP school. So here goes with some tips and insight that I promised.

1. Every semester you get the syllabus and trust my you will FREAK!! Now trust me again, STOP IT. The syllabus ALWAYS looks worst than what it actually is. Yes there are 50 bazillion due dates, especially if your school was online like mine. Can we say weekly discussion boards (that are so worthless). Just remember, you finished last semester just fine and you WILL finish this one just fine as well. The fear of the semester is always worse than the actual semester.

2. This one is a catch-22. So my school had FB pages that were related to each semester that only allowed people from our program in them. These were good and they were also bad. Here's the deal. These pages are GREAT for networking and getting to know your classmates. They're also great for information sharing, like when you have a massive ppt due with NO clear instructions on how to do it. It's wonderful for things like that b/c people in the semester before you can share these things with you so that you actually have a guide of what you're doing. The not so great part about these boards is the palpable feeling of fear...As high strung, type A nursing students you know we all want to make an A. Add to that the stress of most programs not allowing anything less than a B (and B's in most NP programs are 83 and above) and you've got angst all over the place. BUT if you can look past that then I really recommend joining or starting a FB group for your program.

3. Find a study group. Now to be honest I didn't do this for NP school, I was just too busy with working full time and family, but if you do have the time & you have people in your area I really recommend this. I did this in nursing school & it's so helpful when you can talk things out, it really cements it in your mind. (If you're in nursing school and reading this then I HIGHLY recommend this! Even for you introverts.)

4.  This last tip is probably the most important. Try to remember that NP school does NOT define who you are. You are still a child of God, formed with love and pure intention. We were put here to connect with others and love them with all our strength. Whether or not you graduate nursing or NP school does not make you a better person, it only makes you a nurse or a NP. You are who are you because God loves you and so does your family and your friends. Take this ride for what it is, a piece of your life that is VERY short lived. I know while you're traveling the road it seems like it will never end, but trust me, it does. It will go by in the blink of an eye (especially NP school) and then you will be on to surfing the couch just like me!!! So, trust that you WILL make it. Try not to stress, or if you do stress then find a way to take some time to de-stress & just remember, this too will pass and then you'll be FREE!!!

Hang in there fellow peeps, you've got this!

My next post will be about my first jobs, yes that's right, I already have 3 jobs & I've already turned down one job!!

Merry Christmas!!

One of my precious nursing co-workers. One day we'll be celebrating her NP graduation! This was actually her nursing school graduation too!