Summer is here! How do you avoid forgetting everything you learned in nursing school over the summer break?
The sun’s out, dogs are sizzling on the grill, your friends are all beckoning you to the lake or beach or mountains. Do you go? Or should you stay home and go over your notes from the previous semester of nursing school?
How do you enjoy the relaxation of summer break without completely slacking off, which increases the rigors of the school year?
It isn’t easy, but you can find a happy medium. Follow these simple dos and don’ts to keep focused on nursing school over the summer break.
Strike a Balance
Balance – you know, that thing you totally forgot about in the haze of 80-hour study weeks and all-night test prepping during the school year?
If you can’t find a balance while nursing school is in session, try to perfect the perfect equilibrium between rest and study during the summer. Keep your brain accustomed to learning and retaining information, so you are prepared to master the NCLEX® after you graduate.
Don’t ignore all your nursing books for the summer, or you’re going to be extremely upset in the fall when most of what you learned the previous year has mysteriously fled your brain.
Do find some time each day or every other day to peruse a topic from your last semester or research something for your upcoming semester. Picmonic nursing study cards are a perfect way to do this bite-size studying. We turned all the high yield information you need to know in nursing school into more than 600 Picmonics covering major study areas.
Hang with Other Nursing Students
When you’re with your friends who aren’t in nursing school, topics like catheters and patient care are unlikely to come up. While this may provide a necessary break, make sure to spend time in the company of nurses or those pursuing nursing school.
If you don’t have a job or internship that puts you in a medical environment:
Don’t avoid all nursing students like the plague. I mean, who else is going to join in rather than squirm when you talk about bodily fluids?
Do make it a practice to seek out those in the medical profession. Keep your focus and your passion for the medical field alive by spending time with like-minded people. Plus, you may learn something by osmosis.
Practice
Though there is loads of material that you must know for nursing school, you also have to stay sharp with your hands-on skills.
Don’t practice things like administering a shot. Remember, Harry Potter got in trouble for using magic on break in the Muggle world, and you can also get into it for doing procedures or diagnosing when you’re not yet certified to do so. Plus, you’ll really annoy your Muggles, er I mean, family and friends.
Do practice conversions and skills like taking blood pressure and pulse on family and friends.
Marlee Liberman, RN, Master Nursing Scholar
As a registered nurse, Marlee understands the struggles that nursing school throws at you – not to mention the overwhelming pressure preparing for the NCLEX®! Marlee brings a unique skill set and perspective to Picmonic with her previous degree in broadcast journalism, her creativity in video production, and her wandering nomad lifestyle. Her blend of talents provides her with the knack for simplifying complicated concepts and demystifying the world of nursing.
