Who
are you and what do you expect from this class? For what are you grateful? Please write 4-5
sentences about yourself, including academic, career, and personal goals
relevant to our course in human nature/death & dying (why
you are in school, what you like to study, where you
work/volunteer/spend your time, other relevant experience, something
interesting about you, etc.).
Then please ask questions and/or comment on the posts of at least two of your classmates. Let's get to know each other!
My name is Marisa Meyer and I am a junior nursing student. I am excited to learn more in death and dying because three out of the four classes I am taking this semester all kind of mesh together into the same topics. They all involve the meaning of life and what it means to be human. I hope to gain more knowledge about asking philosophical questions in this course. I am grateful for waking up each day and being able to effect others in a positive way. I hope to work at a hospital in Cincinnati after graduating with a BSN and being able to work with patient's who are dying and supporting the families as well. The dying process intrigues me and it allows us to cherish life more.
ReplyDeleteHey Marisa, it is good to hear that you have a plan for your future. I feel that we are similar in that we hope to help people with their death experiences. Cherishing every moment of your life is important because you only get to live it once. Good luck to you with taking this course.
DeleteI, too, will be working with patients who are dying and it is going to be very hard to find the right words to comfort these patients and their families. Throughout this class, I hope we can learn good coping methods to help these people deal with the deaths in their life and to support them as much as possible.
DeleteHaving a positive attitude and trying to find the good in each day is how I strive to live my life. This is very important for us as we continue our studies in nursing because we will be taking care of patients and encouraging them to not give up and continue fighting. It's not easy to have this outlook every day, especially when times get tough, However, we will be tested frequently with the death of patients and it will remind us to cherish life and its precious moments.
DeleteHaving a positive attitude and trying to find the good in each day is how I strive to live my life. This is very important for us as we continue our studies in nursing because we will be taking care of patients and encouraging them to not give up and continue fighting. It's not easy to have this outlook every day, especially when times get tough, However, we will be tested frequently with the death of patients and it will remind us to cherish life and its precious moments.
DeleteMy name is Amanda Clark and I am a junior nursing major. I except to be more comfortable talking about death after this class. Not only do I expect this class to teach me about death, but I want it to open my eyes about life. I hope to graduate with my BSN and from there go on to work at Children's Hospital. There, I hope to make an impact on everyone I meet. I believe the better outlook that I have on life and as I grow to understand my meaning in life, it will help me better help those around me. Some people just pick a major based on projected salary outcome or because their parents and their parents and so on graduated with the same degree but I know with nursing, there isn't a day I won't wake up excited to help better someone else's life.
ReplyDeleteI love what you said about nursing, and I think that's true for healthcare professionals in general. I think working at Children's would be awesome, but I know it would be hard seeing kids go through such horrible illnesses. I think taking this class will help you, and anyone in healthcare that will be put in those unfortunate situations, better deal with death at any age.
DeleteHello Amanda, I am glad to see that even when other people are dealing with a tough situation that you want to help make their day a little brighter. I think that this class with help you help others accept the concept of death better and to deal with what is happening around them. It is also nice to see someone who is excited about what they want to do after they get out of college.
DeleteI completely agree that some people pick their major strictly for the future paycheck. However, along with you, I hope to graduate with my BSN and get to wake up each day knowing that I get the opportunity to make a difference in someone else's life. There will certainly be countless days that are extremely difficult where I will want to quit or give up, but that is normal for all sorts of jobs. In the end I know that I am making a difference in my patient's lives and that is all that matters.
DeleteI completely agree that some people pick their major strictly for the future paycheck. However, along with you, I hope to graduate with my BSN and get to wake up each day knowing that I get the opportunity to make a difference in someone else's life. There will certainly be countless days that are extremely difficult where I will want to quit or give up, but that is normal for all sorts of jobs. In the end I know that I am making a difference in my patient's lives and that is all that matters.
DeleteMy name is Ellie Caudill and I am a junior nursing student. Through this course, I expect to learn more about the process of dying. I have experienced significant losses in my life, so I am excited to see other peoples point of views on this topic. When I graduate with my BSN, I hope to get a job at Childrens Hospital on the Oncology unit. Although people might think I am crazy, I intend to go on this floor for the sole purpose of helping these kids be happier while getting better. I understand that there may be a lot of death on this unit, that's why I think this course will help me better prepare for the loss. Death is not an easy thing to grasp, so with my knowledge from this course, I will be able to comfort family's or patients accordingly.
ReplyDeleteHey Ellie, first I would like to say I am glad to see how passionate you are for wanting to do what you wish to do after college. Not many people can say they wish to work with children in an Oncology unit, but I am along the same lines as you are. Since I wish to become a pediatric psychologist, I will be working along side of sick children and their families as well. I am glad to see that you wish to help others and comfort family members along the way. I believe that both of us will gain knowledge and experience from this class that will be needed for when we face these situations in our lives. I hope to hear more about what you wish to do and how this class will help you in the future.
DeleteMy name is Katie Bischoff and I am a junior biology major with minors in psychology and gerontology. I am thankful for my faith, family, and education. I hope to go to graduate school at UK to become a physician assistant. I work as pharmacy technician at a small independent pharmacy and as a nurse aid at St. Walburg Monastery in their Infirmary. There are 2 sisters that are near death. One is 96 and recently had a stroke; she never remembers me but she can remember my grandma who she taught 70 years ago! The other had pulmonary and aortic valve replacements 10 years ago and is not well enough to have another surgery. She was given 6 months to live in April. I expect their deaths to be difficult for me because I've never experienced the death of anyone close to me before. I think taking this class will help me with my work as a nurse aid and in studying gerontology.
ReplyDeleteIts sad that you will be losing those people that you've been taking care of for so long. Hopefully this class will help you prepare for that, and i know the whole class will support you when that happens.
DeleteWhat made you go into gerontology? Instead of pediatrics or adults?
My name is Karen Cress and I'm excited for a new viewpoint on the topic from this class. I've been getting more spiritual with my art and have been becoming more fascinated with researching and finding the facts rather than just accepting common beliefs for the sake of comfort. I know that may sound funny because I know not many people believe spirituality is factual, but for me I've been getting to a place in my life where what I believe is true because it feels right for me or because I am able to make sense of it for myself. I don't believe this or that because "the bible says so" or because "that's how I was raised". I feel the way I do because of what my heart just knows or what I've just found true over the years. I am grateful for that ability, the ability to just open my heart and listen and keep what I know feels right. I can't wait for this class to offer me a new perspective on such an intense topic.
ReplyDeleteI'm a senior Fine Arts major getting ready to open my own gallery/studio. I want to teach art on my own time and to have the opportunity to showcase my art whenever I want. I love psychology, math, and art, so my work usually has a lot of thought and symbolism behind it. I want to be a professional artist, art instructor, massage therapist, yoga instructor, and I'm considering some form of spiritual healing such as reiki or CranioSacral therapy. I'm going to live the most beautiful life I possibly can. I want to do art and help people so that's exactly what I'm going to do.
Hello Karen, its good to hear how passionate you are about your art. I am not much of an artistic person but I do find it fascinating what all people can create with such simple tools. I agree with your spiritual views that you brought up. My heart tells me what to believe spiritually and that's all that really matters to me. I am looking forward to taking this course and I hope you are too. Good luck to you.
DeleteMy name is Ceanna Lea and I am a sophomore Psychology Student hoping to become a School Psychologist. I am grateful for the amazing family I have, especially my four year old son, whom I don’t know what I would do without. I am currently working as a server at a little country restaurant in my home town. Because I plan to become a School Psychologist, I expect to gain knowledge about the process of death and dying so I will be able to help students cope with their experiences of death. I have not had many experiences with death in my life and I am hoping that this course will help me understand life fully with death being a part of it.
ReplyDeleteI think it would be really cool to be a school psychologist but it would also take a lot of courage to be able to talk about death with students, especially if it's new to the student. I hope you get what you are looking for out of this course and learn more about the process of death.
DeleteHello Ceanna, I think that the want to help someone is one of the greatest gifts you can give. I agree with Maggie that I hope you are able to obtain what you want to learn from this course. If you can help students deal with the prospects of death, then they may be able to help a friend understand better, or even help with things that you may not have experienced personally.
DeleteMy name is Maggie Keyes and I am a Junior Nursing Student. What I expect to learn in this class is how to better deal with death and to learn coping mechanisms to help myself move on from a loved ones death. I have lost a handful of loved ones in my life, including grandparents and friends of my family and every time I face a death, it never seems to get any easier. I hope to learn how to comfort those who have lost someone and to be more open about talking about the topic of death and dying. I eventually plan on working at a hospital as a registered nurse and death will be very relevant in my field of work. I hope to be more comfortable and open when it comes to this subject matter and to learn more ways to help the people around me deal with death. Currently, I am grateful for the family and friends I have in my life because without them I would be nowhere near where I am today. They have helped me overcome many hardships in my life and have always supported me no matter what. I am also grateful for my job. I work at Ron's Roost Restaurant as a server and it's very rewarding taking care of others and making them happy.
ReplyDeleteI think becoming a nurse is absolutely amazing. I thought about becoming one a long time ago but realized I hated science. My sister just started her freshman year and she is going into nursing. I hope this course teaches you what you will need to learn as a nurse in how to cope with the death that you will see in hospitals as a professional and shows you how to help others who are grieving over the death of their loved ones.
DeleteMy name is Eva Sandmann and I am a senior Psychology major. I play softball here at TMC and have been playing the game since I was in the 4th grade. I plan on going to graduate school for pediatric Psychology and work with children. These children will be sick and their families will be going through the hardship of having a sick child and may loosing them as well. I hope this class can help shape me as a person for when I have to talk to families about their children being sick or passing. What I expect to learn from this class is how others view death as a process or an event, some strategies on how to cope with death, and overall how I view death personally. I am so grateful for the family that I have. My mother, father, and sister have been there for me when I have had to say goodbye to some of my close friends. I couldn't thank them enough for what they do for me. I hope that this class also prepares me in some form of way for the day when I unfortunately have to say goodbye to them as well because I know that will be the hardest thing I will ever experience.
ReplyDeleteWorking with children who are dying will be a tough job. I think it is wonderful that you are going into a field that is greatly needed by many, and I hope that you become amazing at your job. I hope this class gives you the skills you will need as a pediatric Psychologist working with kids who are sick, and may be dying. I hope you gain the skills to help others with their grieving and give you some insight on how others may be viewing death but also bring you to how you may see death.
DeleteMy name is Jessie Shumate, I am a senior art major, with an art history minor. I chose to be an art major because I realized that I hated science when I originally wanted to be a nurse in high school. I had a huge love for art and creating it and hope to find a career in art or just having a lot of skill in a hobby! I am very close to my family, and it is one of the biggest parts of my life. I have been blessed to have grown up with all 4 of my grandparents, until last summer when my grandfather died. I hope this class teaches me how to help other grieve and when someone they love dies because I have learned in the last few years that my grieving period is a lot shorter, compared to most. I have been volunteering on mission trips and in Cincinnati since middle school so having this class could be another way that I learn how to help people emotionally. I love going on mission trips around the United States and to Guatemala building houses, decks, stoves, etc., and will continue to do it as long as I can, but I am hoping this class will help me gain the skills on how to help others who need emotional support after a loved one has passed.
ReplyDeleteYou brought up a good point about helping people emotionally. Often when we do service we tend to focus on physical needs, but I think it's also really important to help people spiritually and mentally by just listening to them. That's awesome that you go on mission trips! I'm going on my first one this spring and I'm so excited:)
DeleteMy name is Megan Klever and I am a junior Forensic Chemistry major. I expect to gain a better understanding of how differently death affects people. In my field, I wont be dealing with the dead personally, but I may be asked to go into the field and see the body and possibly a grieving loved one. I am grateful to be following my childhood dream and that my family supports me 100%. I am the youngest out of 8 children with 5 of them being adopted. I only have my grandparents on my mother's side that are still alive, which I visit as often as I can because they live in Toledo, Ohio, and Sunrise, Florida. When I am not playing volleyball, lacrosse, or doing my homework, I like to spend my spare time reading mystery novels, knitting and taking my dogs to the park.
ReplyDeleteWow, you have a big family - sounds like a lot of fun!
DeleteWhat made you want to go into Forensic Chemistry?
My name is Christian Shodahl. I am a political science major, a veteran of 9 years. An avid dog lover. I was born in Sandusky, Ohio, but I've lived all over. Many states in the United States, as well as Germany for a short time. For 9 years I was a mortuary affairs specialist, which meant I sent the fallen service men and women home to their loved ones. It was a humbling and honorable task for which I am proud of doing. I have been two Iraq twice, and once in Afghanistan. I have many interests, but I will not go into that right now. I am a Scorpio, love fall, love my friends and family, love to go shooting, not really a sports fan... and I love to learn. What do I expect from this class? To learn, to connect, to see how others think and feel. To make friends, make connections, to basque in the moment. I am most grateful for my family and friends. They truly are the better part of me, and without them, I would consider myself nothing. They are my rock, my mind, my heart, my soul.
ReplyDeleteIt seems like your past experience dealing with death in the military will show us a different perspective of it. I look forward to hearing more about what you think about death
DeleteMy name is Anna Hetzer and I am a junior nursing student. I am hopeful to learn more about death and the various methods people use to cope with death. I find situations dealing with death to be extremely difficult and awkward and it is very challenging to find the right words when comforting others. I hope to discuss ways to make these situations more comfortable. I am very grateful for my family and friends. I am truly blessed to have both my parents and three loving brothers to care and look after me. There is no way I would be where I am in my life without their love and support. I am very interested in this course because I find death very interesting, but at the same time I have a very hard time dealing with death. I work at Drake Hospital caring for a long-term patient. Technically it is work, but truthfully it is anything but work. I get to spend time with my patient watching movies, sitting outside on a beautiful day, all while giggling and laughing about everything. I am beyond blessed to consider someone that is so fun and easy to care for to be work. Anytime I am having a bad day I immediately think of her and realize how lucky I am and it makes my problems seem so small. She has truly changed my life for the better and I have only known her for a couple of months now. Some of my hobbies are sports, reading and anything adventurous outdoors. Most importantly I love helping others which is why I have always wanted to become a nurse.
ReplyDeleteMy name is Ben Metzger, Im 20 years old and im a Junior nursing major.I enjoy spending my time in the outdoors at my farm, hunting, fishing, and working on mechanical things. I am grateful for my friends and family the most. I consider myself very blessed to have such a large and caring family that is so close to one another. I am very interested in death and dying because it is a very large topic in the nursing profession. I think that this class will teach me a lot about the process of death and what it means to truly die. I am looking forward to hearing other peoples opinions about the subject and gain new insight I previously lacked.
ReplyDelete