Personal Narrative: Narcolepsy With Cataplexy

As a young child, I was always drawn towards the field of health care. I remember reading about the many options that are held within it and wondering what path it would lead me on. Neonatal nursing was something that always came into my mind, but it was often pushed to the side by people and teachers who thought I should become a pediatrician instead. This became a real struggle for me, but as I grew up and began researching and exploring the health care field I came to a decision for myself. I came to the realization that everyone was wrong. I didn’t want to be a doctor at all. This sudden burst of independence from what everyone else wanted was the first step to reaching my end goal. Along with this, an accelerated education, volunteer

I became a mother at a very young age, seventeen years old. When I was in labor at the hospital, I experienced the nursing care of two very distinct nurses. I quickly became aware of the demeanor of the night nurse. She was unkind, pushy, and insensitive. She also did not explain things and did not smile much. On the other hand, the day nurse was merrier, compassionate, caring, informative, and reassuring. Despite my juvenile state, my comprehension was very astute. I comprehended that there are two types of nurses. One who solely works to attain a paycheck and the nurse who chose the nursing profession because they value humanity. Simultaneously, I was becoming a mother and discovering what my profession would be thanks to the caring day nurse who was a role model.

Twenty-one years ago, my parents received the devastating news that my lungs were not developing properly and as a result my mom had an induced labor. I was born as a premature baby, weighing only 3 lbs. and was placed in the care of neonatal nurses in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) for 18 days. While my mom came to visit me, she would notice how well the nurses would care for me. Though their jobs were tough, the nurses would often carry me while I was crying and would often talk me to sleep, sometimes singing lullabies.

Ever since I was a little girl, I was always telling my parents I wanted to be a doctor to help people. As I got older my sisters had babies and I always wanted to hold them and take care of them furthermore, just recently I had come across a defined profession caring for infants in a great deal of need. I have been interested in helping people in need, performing surgeries and caring for infants since I was approximately eight years old. I have recently been doing some research on a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner (NNP), and believe that the job description fits me well. I would find a colossal amount of joy in being a NNP because I love being around babies and would enjoy being able to make a difference in their early life, as well as in their family’s lives.

From an adolescent, the fate of the career had already been chosen into healthcare and was also inspired by several family members. Now, as a young adult, the pathway chosen is to be a Neonatal nurse, “Although neonatal nurses are skilled to care for healthy newborns, it is the neonatal nurse practitioner who is skilled in providing care for newborns in need of specialized attention.” (How to become a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner N.p, N.d.) The love of babies came from babysitting and having younger cousins, so this was the best fit. After knowing the direction to take for the future, with God leading the way, the number one job is to become a Neonatal nurse practitioner. The steps to get to this position is to learn the ends and outs of the career pathway, skills and knowledge and also the advantages and

As I prepare for my first classes in nursing school, I recognize my unique position to examine the values that I will bring into my nursing career. Without any experience, my values remain relatively unshaped regarding healthcare. In contrast, the values of nurses who have already accumulated a variety of experiences tend to be more nuanced and informed. For this exercise, I met with one of these experienced nurses—CC, a cardiac-catheterization laboratory nurse who just welcomed her third child. Together, CC and I explored the differences in our upbringings, how we were each sucked into nursing, and how our values have changed throughout different life experiences. Above all, I intended to delve into the story of her fifteen-year career in order to discover how an experienced nurse philosophizes patient care.

Narcolepsy is a sleeping disorder that affects 1 in about 2,000 people in the United States. Many people are unaware that they have this disorder, and it goes undiagnosed. Narcolepsy affects your sleeping pattern, including irregular patterns in your Rapid Eye Movement (REM), and significant disruptions in your normal sleep/wake cycle. There is no cure for this disorder, but it is treatable. We also don’t know what causes it.

“Definition of a nurse: To go above and beyond the call of duty. The first to work and the last to leave. The heart and soul of caring. A unique soul who will pass through your life for a minute and impact it for an eternity. An empowered individual whom you may meet only for a 12-hour period, but who will put you and yours above theirs”-Anonymous. For the past year and a half, I have volunteered at Blaire E. Batson Children’s Hospital. It has been an amazing experience! My passion for the medical field and career of nursing has been magnified. I know without a doubt that nursing is what I want to do for the rest of my life. I long for the opportunity to care for my future patients and their families. I want to touch other people’s lives just as I have witnessed nurses do throughout my time volunteering. God has given me a passion for nursing. With my passion and compassion for others, I know I will be successful if admitted into the BSN program.

My personal experience gives me emotional strength and purpose to serve the vulnerable sections of society through pediatric health care. Growing up in a remote town in

I am passionate of becoming a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner. I got inspired to work in this field when I interned at hospitals such as the Veterans and at Community Regional Center in the children's clinic. I have always worked with children and like being part of their lives. Ever since I volunteered at Storey Elementary After school Program with kids on their homework, it assured me that working with children is what makes me happy. I want to impacts others lives positively. I am serious about my career path and I take every advantage to learn more about it. This was one of the reasons why I had taken part of the UCSF Doctors Academy program, because I wanted to learn more about the health profession and be exposed to it. Being part of the

Pursuing a career in nursing brings me an internal satisfaction beyond words. I enjoy being around people and I feel with my caring and empathetic soul, I can use that to heal the mind, body and souls of my patients. My reason for wanting to return to college comes from my desire to be in a position to make an impact on someone’s life. In my current position I provide assistance to individuals on a daily basis, but it is not satisfying my need to help heal. I am currently 30 years old and I love children and I am eager to work with children and when I would like to know about their little bodies so that I can be aware of how to help them. I naturally have the need to nurture and protect others. I have 2 nieces and when each of them was born I was so impressed by the level of care that the NICU nurses provided to

For the past six years, I have been around so many infants and toddlers that it is crazy. For some people, being around little kids all the time annoys them, but for me, I can’t wait until I see them again. Because of my love for being around small children, I decided that I want to do something with pediatrics. After doing some research, I found a specific job that I think I would absolutely love. That job would be a neonatologist.

Imagine if you were in the middle of an important event, such as your own wedding. Your future spouse has already said “I do” and it is your turn. Before the words can escape your lips, you fall asleep. When you finally open your eyes, everyone is staring in confusion at you, but you have no recollection of what just happened. You have no idea that you fell asleep. This is a realistic situation for a person suffering from Narcolepsy. Narcolepsy is a chronic brain disorder that involves poor control over sleep-wake cycles. It is characterized by microsleep episodes over which the sufferer has no control. One in three thousand people are affected by Narcolepsy in America so this is not a rare disorder, contrary to what the majority of people believe. Narcolepsy is a lifelong disorder with no

For this week’s contemplative practice, I practiced the boundless abodes for transforming relationships. This week in class, we learned about the death of children and the experiences that caretakers and parents face in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). From gaining a better comprehension of what is encountered in that certain hospital area, I believe that forgiveness, reconciling, gratitude, and love are hard to do and express for the people involved; however, they are able to succeed in the actions through a system of support. The relationships that are tested include the ones between caretaker and parent as well as the child and their parent. As I related the boundless abodes with life changing situations that people face, I reflected

For the longest time I wanted to begin a career as a Certified Nurse-Midwife (CNM), to help women give birth and to witness the commencement of new life over and over again. While I may still do this but am on the fence about what I’ll choose to specialize in, I know I will pursue medicine, simply to extend my knowledge of this practice as far as possible; but I also want to do my part in the effort to change it. Because life is precious to you and it’s precious to me, and first and foremost, I want to protect that.