But journeying through grief while in nursing school and caring for a fouryear-old brings its own set of challenges . In moments of difficulty , Brandy turns to two mentors for encouragement and advice . Dr . Downey and Mrs . Manns have supported Brandy throughout her educational and personal journey in nursing , and bring a sense of humor and a good pep talk that encourages her to persevere .
These two mentors , along with the nurses and midwives that inspired Brandy to pursue a career in nursing , really demonstrate an essential aspect of the nursing profession – how we portray the nursing career to others really impacts their perception and experience of it . We can all relate to being assigned to a tired , grumpy nurse during a clinical rotation and suddenly feeling overwhelmed and discouraged in our nursing journey . But we can also all name times that we were assigned to a nurse whose positive outlook and down-to-earth patient care encouraged and excited us about entering the profession . Let ’ s strive to be encouragers for future nurses , not sugarcoating the realities of the job , but being honest about the challenges and genuine rewards of caring for the health of our communities .
Wanting to make the most out of her experience in nursing school , Brandy joined the Student Nurses Association ( SNA ) at Northwestern State University of Louisiana when she heard about it at a clinical orientation . She admired the SNA ’ s community service , and her favorite event was making cards for NICU nurses on World Prematurity Day to remind them that others see their valuable work . Brandy currently serves as the president of Northwestern ’ s SNA , and has run for state officer positions for the past two years , even securing a position as the Region I Director elect in 2021 .
While nursing school and all the studying , clinicals , and activities that it entails takes up most of her life , Brandy still finds time for her family and enjoys playing games or dancing around with her husband and son . She advocates for research on congenital heart disease to help find cures and treatment for other babies with conditions like the one her son had . She has used vlogs to record her journey since her son ’ s diagnosis and managing grief and heartache while in nursing school .
With graduation on the horizon this summer , Brandy plans to work with mothers with high risk pregnancies in Labor and Delivery or with children with congenital heart diseases in a NICU . She would like to go into advanced practice when she finds out what specialty interests her the most . With her ability to relate to her patients and their families , Brandy will make an excellent nurse full of compassion and care for the people around her , serving as an encouraging example of a person who took tragedy and used it as a motivation to use her experience for good . n
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