Thinking about the testing process this year, I would say I ahve imrpoved in how to read questions and how to break them down to find the best possible answer/ narrow it down to two. This took a lot of practice and pacing myself reading each question, and taking more time to read thoroughly rather than skim. We were able to do the remediations on topics as well as remediate on specific question, which I beleve helped the most as I was able to see what about the question it was that I messed up on or didnt understand. I was able to take my time and pace myself during some exams and to take small breaks to reet my brain, whereas others were more times or I felt as though I should time myself. At the beginnging of the year, I was going to quickly and not able to focus on each question whereas as time went on, I feel as though my concentration improved.

For the content gaps, it was nice to see which topics I was struggling with consistency and which ones I needed to do a more thorough remediation on. After I remediated on eahc of the exams, I saved the documents to reference and resource before the proctored exams and was able to go through each topic that I struggled with the most. I was also able to do some focused practice exams and I was doing practice questions on my phone each few days just to review the question styles and to prepare myself for anything that could be on the exams. As the semester progressed, I feel as though I have gotten better and improved in some of the topics, but still feel a bit easy about a few such as pharmacology and will need to continue with my practices before the NCLEX exam. I did not visit professors one on one much this year for content review, but I did like looking back at old classes slides when studying for exams to review topics we havet done in a while.

Thinking about how I have cared for myself this semester and self-care practices that I have incoporated into my lifestyle, I have improved drastically in being able to know when to say no, or take a break. I am someone who needs to be go-go-go constantly and often feel guilty when taking time to relax or do good for my mind and body. I have had a much lighter schedule this year with all that I enjoy being involved in, but was taking on some bigger roles than before. Stress was definitely at an all time high this year with all of the work and information we need to take on. I was able to get myself stabilized and in therpay to talk through how I have been feeling with the stress of nursing school and my career. I plan to continue this throughout the next several years as it will benefit me greatly. I plan everything out in my weeks and days and write absolutley everything down to ensure I do not miss meetings, assignments, or tasks I need to complete. I have learned to take a break to simply watch my favorite tv show, sit outside in the sun, and to visit the beach for some peace and quiet. i love a sunset and love to jam out to music in my car to destress. I feel much more calm as the end of the semester is approaching and as if my mind isnt constantly racing, which is a nice change of pace for me.

Overall, through what we have learned and done throughout this year and the past few years here at UNE, we have gained more than just the book by book skills and knowledge we need to apply to our professional practice. We have gained what it means to be a caring and kind nurse. This class has given us great practice into getting past the NCLEX As well as taught us a lot about self care and how to ensure we do not fall into a deep slipery slope of substance use or mental disorders. We have learned how to care for ourselves and our patients and how to practice properly and within our scope. I have gained the patience of long testing and the prctice of reading questions thoroughly. I have also strengthened my dedication and passion to this career and will utilize it for good.