Being a nursing major is very different from any other major out there. You spend most of your week sitting in a classroom with the same group of people, learning about the human body and the processes and diseases that can occur. You spend the rest of your week practicing the things that you learn, whether it be in the lab at school on each other, or in clinical on actual patients. The point is, you are around your fellow nursing classmates almost 24/7. And some would say that this is a bad thing, but I am lucky enough to say that the bond I have created with these people is one that will last a lifetime.
There's a pretty good chance that if you are a nursing major at any other school, you feel the same way. The bond that you create with your fellow nursing majors is one that will last a lifetime. It's very different than any other friendship out there and people who do not share the love for nursing will find your friendship odd, yet very satisfying. I hope that you find these 8 things to be some of the truest statements you have ever read:
1. Dinner conversations quickly change from the usual school talk to discussions on who had to clean up the most disgusting bodily fluid that week.
You will be so used to eating with nursing majors and talking about the nasty things you saw that day at clinical that you’ll find yourself sitting at a table with friends that do not share your major, watching them turn green in the face as you talk about your day, forgetting that it is not proper to talk about those things over food.
2. No personal topic is off limits anymore.
You find yourself riding to clinical at 5:30 in the morning talking about your bodily functions and the change in your bowel patterns with people you never thought you would have these conversations with.
3. There are always friends to help you diagnose your medical issues.
This can either be really good or really bad. Either they will talk you down from the cancer that you diagnosed yourself with before, or they’ll convince you that you may be lying on your death bed sooner than you thought.
4. There is always someone right outside the room to help you clean up the "mess" your patient just made.
It sounds crazy but some of the deepest conversations you have will be over your patient while one person spreads the cheeks and the other one wipes. Gross, I know, but that’s what our lives have come to.
5. You become weirdly comfortable playing the patient for your friends at all times.
The night before lab check-offs you’ll find yourself lying in their bed as they practice giving you a full assessment before performing in front of a staff member the next day for a check-off. Nothing is off limits anymore.
6. You become way too comfortable asking, "when was your last bowel movement?" and "are you having trouble urinating?"
Almost too comfortable…you may even start asking those questions when talking to someone who is not a nursing major and they may become a little bit freaked…but it’s the way your mind starts to work.
7. You bond over the nasty smells you had to endure together at clinical.
There is nothing like the smell of C-diff. It is the most tell-tale smell and one of the most disgusting smells that has ever hit my nose, but it makes it a little better knowing I can bond with my fellow classmates over it.
8. You create a family that will last a lifetime.
No one else will ever be able to replace the memories that you have made together. You have been through everything together. You have pulled all-nighters to study for the exam that makes or breaks your nursing career, you have woken up at all hours of the morning with them to make the long trip to clinical, and you have cleaned up endless amounts of messes together. The bond you create with these people will last forever.
So here's to you, my fellow nursing majors, thank you for making the best friends a girl could ask for! I wouldn't want to be on this journey with anyone else!
