How Can I Help?

  As I finish my 5-day stretch of being on what I like to call "night shift brain," I realize some heavy realities. I have worked the night shift in a hospital for the last 3 years as a Certified Nursing Assistant. I would work these shifts through high school on the weekends and even when I would come home to visit my family while I was attending college. I made it work because I knew the perks of the night shift outweighed the day shift's chaos.  While the night shift may not be as busy with showers, bed baths, meals, family members, therapy, and all the other things that happen on the day shift, there are still valid reasons behind the phrase 'Night shift is still hard.' No one talks about how our older patients' minds start getting tired when the sun goes down, resulting in heightened emotions, imagination, and confusion.  No one talks about how much more short-staffed nights are than days. The other day, it was a 1 (me):3 ratio, along with 9 nursing stu...

Autonomous {aw-ton-uh-muhs}: independent and having the power to make your own decision  Anonymity {an-uh-nim-i-tee}: the quality or state of being unknown to most people, being anonymous  --"But Jenna, you are obviously not unknown to most people... you have a blog.  -- Okay, yes, but it's different when you talk about where you're living and what circumstances come with it.  It's easy to break apart these definitions because they have nothing to do with each other, but when they come together, it brings a different type of balance, comfort, and peace. I desire to have both autonomy and anonymity.  I know. Those heavy words are hard to pronounce but stick with me.  My first exposure to  autonomy and anonymity was when I moved to St. Louis for college. Talk about a culture shock! My favorite sentence to add when introducing myself was, "I came from a town of 1,300 and graduated with 10 in my class." The shock on their face is the best part!  It...