Some people say, "You're only a CNA," but do they even know what a CNA does?

We do a lot.

In tenth grade, I started studying for the Certified Nursing Assistant program test. I didn't know what it was but I wanted to do something in the nursing field, so I went ahead and signed up for it. Going in I had no idea what kind of work CNAs really did. As I went to my clinicals and started experiencing some of the things CNAs deal with, I thought, "No this isn't for me." It's a hard job, I will admit. I love and hate it at the same time. The combative residents, the long hours, constantly working short; it takes a special type of person to be patient.

People who are not familiar with a CNA don't know just how difficult a Nursing assistant 's job really is. Many people think we do little work. They don't realize that we are on the front lines, getting the direct contact with our residents/patients. The stress and struggle of the job itself is so difficult I'm often puzzled on how we do it. With the bad comes the good; like helping someone who can't do what we take for granted on a day to day basis and seeing the smile on their face when you do little things for them. We are there to lift you up when you feel down. We are there to clean you when you've had an accident. We are there to get you up in the morning. We are there to brush your teeth. We are there to feed you. We are there to tuck you in at night. When you are on your death bed, we are there to hold your hand, never leaving your side.

We are much more than just CNAs. We are your friends. We are your family.