NCLEX on my mind

The date has been set. The last three years of my life will come down to that one day, that one test (because I will NOT have to take it twice!). It’s funny though, after having been in “NCLEX land” for two weeks, I sometimes feel less prepared NOW than I did before I waled across the stage to shake hands with my future (and they really big guy that handed me my diploma).

Like I’ve mentioned before, our school had us take the ATI predictor. That left me with a 99% predictability that I will pass the NCLEX the first time. While I’ve heard that ATI isn’t the closest thing the the real exam, I felt pretty confident. But now that I’ve learned “how to answer the questions” and the “tree” of thought for decision making, I’m a little ambivalent about it all. Some days I feel like I’m on top of the world with my question-answering ability, and other days, I feel miserably unable to even think through the proper way to dress a BKA…or, well, you know what I mean.

While I am trying to stay positive, the days are flying by. The stretch of summer I thought I had is seeming smaller and smaller, and I’m getting more and more stressed about this test. I mean, after all, this is what the whole of nursing school ends with. It’s not over at graduation, it’s not over at pinning. It’s over when you have those two little letters behind your name. So try as I may to enjoy the summer air, or even to sit and answer questions, I’ve still got that calendar in my head, and the NCLEX on my mind, all the time.