So, once again, a lot has happened since I last posted. In truth, my life has been pretty chaotic as I worked to figure things out, but thankfully, I think it’s all finally starting to settle. A lot has changed, a lot is going to continue to change, and I’m actually doing much better than I was before. If you are reading this, then buckle up! It’s going to be a long one!
I ended up quitting my job as a Cargiver. I hate it, but it was just way too much stress, and it was starting to affect my mental health. It wasn’t even the care that I had a problem with; I had NO issues with that, or with losing residents (though that was difficult too). It was the facility itself and the way management conducted things. It had gotten so bad that those close to me were starting to see it, starting to see the changes in me, and it was then that my husband encouraged me to quit. He promised I could find something else, something that wasn’t going to eat away at me slowly, and I have to admit, as much as it hurt, leaving was the best decision. It was just a toxic/hostile environment all around.
There were only ever two of us on the floor at any given time, taking care of 24 residents in memory care. That’s 12 residents each, unless one of us was on break, and we were informed that we were not allowed to leave the floor unattended for any reason, but we weren’t allowed to let the residents sit in dirty briefs or wander off alone either. It also didn’t matter if we informed the Med Techs that a resident was almost out of supplies; they’d order it when they felt like it, but we weren’t allowed to borrow supplies from another resident either, or we’d get written up. And the Med Techs were always the first ones to rat out the caregivers because they felt like they ‘knew best’. So, every day, we were forced to decide between risking our jobs by borrowing supplies from a resident so that we could change another, or allowing that resident to sit in a dirty brief because they didn’t have anything to change into.
Laundry was hardly ever done, and if it WAS done, it was always mixed up with another resident’s. The kitchen never brought snacks to us on time, and they were always ‘out’ of things. OH! And there were hardly ever any gloves or anything for us caregivers! I actually had to order some from Amazon to take with me, just so I could be sure I had some available. And the last few days I was there? There was no doorknob on the back of the employee bathroom, and I ended up getting locked in for 20 minutes because I couldn’t get it open. The next day, I had to bring a multi-tool with me so I could be sure that I could get out when I had to pee.
There was also an instance of one of the residents having supplies delivered, and one of the boxes going missing. This happened on a Saturday, but wasn’t discovered until Tuesday when his hospice nurse came in to give him his bath and noted the missing supplies. I happened to be working both days, and I was asked on Tuesday if I had witnessed another caregiver from Assisted Living bringing the boxes by during my shift that Saturday. I informed them that no one stopped by Memory Care that day at all during my shift. There weren’t even any visitors! I remember vividly because it was my daughter’s 15th birthday that day.
Anyway, the supplies were never recovered, no one knows what happened to them, and because of that, everyone who worked that Saturday was at risk for getting a write-up. WTF?
Yeah, it was pretty bad, and the difference in me and my mental well-being since I’ve quit has been quite noticeable. While I’m going to miss the residents (already do in fact), I am not going to miss that place.
On the bright side, I actually found a MUCH better job, one that is closer to what I actually WANT to do with my life. And, to top it off, it pays SO MUCH BETTER. Starting on the 18th of this month, I begin training as a Patient Care/Hemodialysis Technician at a Fresenius Dialysis Clinic. Basically, I will be taking care of patients going through Hemodialysis. As it’s a pretty medical position, I will be training for 3 months on how to work the machine, on taking vital signs, getting CPR/BLS certified, and learning how to place the catheters/IVs for the dialysis machines (Giant a** needles that go into a fistula on their arms and connect to the machines).
With this position, I will need to become certified with the state within 18 months, which they will help me with. Then, with this certification ON TOP of my Pharmacy Technician certification, I will actually be pretty coveted for hospital dialysis positions as I’d be able to handle medications as well as the dialysis part. I have always wanted to go into the medical field (since I was 9, in fact), so I am really looking forward to this!
My course is going well, too, BTW. I made the Dean’s List this month, and I am 25% done with it. 🙂
Now for the writing update. (I know, I know. This is like a novel already! But I warned you this was a long one!)
Anywho, my new job thankfully offers me a much more flexible schedule. Yes, I’ll be working 10-12 hours a day, but I’ll only be working 3-4 days a week (though I am aiming for 4 because… well… money lol), and I will ALWAYS have Sundays off since the clinic is closed that day. This means I will have time to continue with my writing, which I am so grateful for!
It’s true, I may not be able to crank books out like I did before, but at least I will still be able to write them. With my previous position, I didn’t have the time or the energy to do so because I was so drained every single day. I honestly believed I was going to have to give it up entirely, but I am really glad that’s not the case. I love writing, and I still have so many more stories to tell!
Before I started the job as a Caregiver, I had been working on a dark, PNR, short story series. I recently started going through it again, and the ideas are just flowing! It’s been a lot of fun being able to plot and outline like I did before, and it feels good actually being able to HAVE a WIP update. While I may not have a release date in mind yet, at least I know that it’s coming now. 🙂
Alright, I think that’s everything I have for today. If I think of anything else, it will go in next week’s post. As always, thank you for sticking by me as I try to get my chaotic life together! It’s been a long time since I’ve been this busy, so I’m still trying to figure out what works and what doesn’t. I promise I will have a new book out for you all soon ❤
Until next time, Happy Reading!
Amanda K. Mann 