Personal Statement with Reflection

In my traditional Asian household, my parents had high expectations for me to be successful and be the best because they were not privileged with educational opportunities in Vietnam. Knowing the hardships of being financially unstable and the difficulty of moving forward in American without an educational background, they had high hopes for their children to have a better life. Their unconditional support encouraged my hard working ethnic and drive to surpass all obstacles that came my way. Wanting to excess their expectations, I registered for a large workload every semester while being employed as a part-time worker. My hard work paid off when I was granted successful admission to my dream college: UC Berkeley. Being a part of this university, I was able to grow bonds with other science major students. Taking many different science courses with my fellow classmates enhanced my interest in being a part of the healthcare field.

My main motivation to become a nurse began as a result of an accident that led to my grandfather's stroke and brain injury. Following this event, my boyfriend Phillip, had a work injury. It left him with a bulging intervertebral disc on his lower lumber spine. They were two of many important men in my life and I felt in sync with their souls when they were injured. Their emotions, pain and feelings left me feeling the same way, if not more. Their suffering made me want to help them get through this hard time. Having experienced these two major injuries made me want to help other people who may be suffering from the same pain that I did. After these experiences, it was validated that I had a drive to provide patient care. 

During my early adolescent years, my grandfather and I developed a close relationship. I would help to monitor his health and diet. My grandfather had slightly high cholesterol and blood pressure, but these conditions were stabilized with medication. Overall, he was considered healthy. Mobility was never a problem, as he was able to walk long distances at a reasonable pace. Knowing that my grandfather was taking his medication as prescribed by his physician, there was never a doubt in my mind that his life would change overnight. Following a normal nightly routine, my grandfather accidentally slipped in his bathtub and hit his head on the shower faucet. The paramedics brought him to the emergency room, where their initial findings showed he could possibly have a stroke. They quickly moved him to the intensive care unit after taking an MRI of his skill, which revealed that all the blood vessels surrounding his brain ruptured and confirmed that he had a stroke. The physician placed him on life support, but his major brain injury led to his paralysis and eventual pain. I felt completely helpless when my grandfather was on the life support machine, knowing that there is nothing that either the healthcare professionals or my family could do to sustain his life. Although our family struggled to get back to reality after my grandfather's death, we had to be strong to get through this heartbreaking experience. Witnessing how my grandfather suffered this brain injury compelled my interest to acquire the necessary skills to become a proficient nurse to serve those in need. It is because of this incident that made me realize that there are other patients suffering the same health problems as my grandfather and I'm interested in being apart of an inspiring movement where I can assist these patients during these tough times.

In addition to my grandfather's sudden death, my passion for care giving validated after a work injury that resulted in my boyfriend Phillip's bulging intervertebral disc on his lower lumbar spine. His bulging disc compressed on surrounding nerve tissues that connected to his legs, which lead to his discomfort and lack of mobility. After a year of constant lower back and leg pain, Phillip decided that he was going to proceed with surgery. Following a week of post-surgery hospitalization, it was up to me to tend to his every need. He required my help to assist with his basic needs and essentially, being his second pair of hands for anything he needed. In addition to his physical needs, he required mental and emotional support to help him through his recovery. I was able to give him the motivation and encouragement that aided in more willpower to become his old self again. Although there were times when he wanted to give up on himself, we overcame these obstacles by being hopeful and believing that our positive thoughts will be worthwhile. His physical recovery improved with the help of physical therapy. Following six months of his post-surgery recovery, it was confirmed that I had a passion for care giving and wanted to pursue nursing as a profession.

My recent experiences working at an orthodontic office was my introduction to patient care in the pursuit of a nursing career. This orthodontic practice tends to serve primarily low socioeconomic, first generation Asian community whom often face financial and cultural hardships in life. However, working with these patients allowed me to relative to the patients and meet their needs. Being patient and understanding helped me to communicate effectively with the patients. My interest to helping others in need of medical attention makes me a strong candidate for entering the healthcare field. After my experiences working with these patients, I came to realize that having a normal life is not a given. Therefore, we shouldn't take life for granted. Rather, we should grasp every opportunity to make life meaningful by helping others. Knowing that there are so many people who are in need of patient care, I want to provide nursing leadership and expertise to these patients in helping to increase more healthy individuals in the world. This knowledge will help me to develop effective methods in managing the different medical situations at a hospital clinical site. I believe that nursing is the right profession for me to start this meaningful journey.

Living a life with purpose gives us strength to move on with our future. Becoming a nursing leader in improving the health of all diverse populations is one of my purposes in life. Re-evaluating my academic and personal experiences, my pathway to a meaningful life revolves around making a change in another person's life. A nursing career will help me to value life with great pride and joy.

Reflection

Revising my personal statement was one of the more difficult assignments for this blog project. Describing the breakthrough moments that affected my career choice was very difficult for me because it forced me to reflect back on my grandfather's death and my boyfriend's major surgery/recovery. These were moments that caused me to break down multiple times and it's difficult to share these experiences with an outside audience. It's hard to reflect back on moments that had a strong impact on my life, but these experiences are what made me a stronger person and gave me motivation for my future goals and ambitions. 

The process of revising my personal statement gave me a chance at reflecting on my reason for life. These experiences inspired my interest in healthcare and I'm definite that nursing is the career choice for me. I understand that it's a competitive field and there will be many more challenges that will come my way, but if I keep my goal in mind and continue to strive for my goals, there's nothing that I can't accomplish. After writing this personal statement, I've learned about more about myself than I ever did before. It's this process of self-learning that will strive me forward to a bright future.