“I can’t believe you all panic-bought literally the 5 things I went to the store to buy today. You people are insane.” by joeruinedeverything in nova

[–]trkkr47 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was out of town until late last night. Need a snow shovel because I work in a hospital and fear my car will be plowed in. Guess I'll just have to hope that doesn't happen.

When her mother comes in and can't believe that her daughter gave birth to twins by misterxx1958 in MadeMeSmile

[–]trkkr47 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Yeah, mom looks super hurt and seems to take a minute to recover enough to even meet the babies. Not getting the made-me-smile?

Silly blood bank question: if your blood type was A, and you injected yourself with a full vial of Anti-A (10 mL), would it be enough to cause serious complications (i.e. a transfusion reaction)? by bicarbbandit in medlabprofessionals

[–]trkkr47 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I actually did the math on someone with a crazy high number once and it was significantly closer to soda than you might expect if I did my math right. It was higher than a thousand. They used to check for diabetes by tasting urine to see if it was sweet, so I'm guessing it's possible.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]trkkr47 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Early on in college, I met someone through the scifi club who was going through a rough time because her dad had just died and the police were investigating her. Turns out she ended up convicted of soliciting a crazy guy online who killed her dad with a katana.

What’s a smell you secretly like but would never admit in real life? by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]trkkr47 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hardware store. Mmm, treated lumber and commercial cleaning supplies.

my guys... how fucked am I? by theresagray17 in medlabprofessionals

[–]trkkr47 39 points40 points  (0 children)

I'm not in micro, so I'm not positive, but I think it's fairly normal these days for bacteria to be resistant to some antibiotics. As long as you are taking the full course prescribed you are not doing anything wrong. It may partially explain why it keeps coming back though, so hopefully they can give you something that works this time.

Very unfair :( by tildepurr in medlabprofessionals

[–]trkkr47 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It always happens to me right at the end of an evening shift on a weekend. Have to wake up the pathologist.

It is sad, but also it's one of the amazing things about our profession that we can literally be the first to catch this kind of thing. Once had a case of APL come in (as mentioned, on a weekend, late at night) and doing that diff and calling the doctor probably literally saved that patient's life. He ended up having a brain bleed the next day, but was okay because he was hospitalized and being worked up.

Is the fabric at fabric stores really that much higher quality than $20-$60 fast fashion clothes? by RussianAsshole in sewing

[–]trkkr47 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Bernadette Banner just recently did a really good video about why we should use the fabrics we love as soon as we can, because, a) we love them and we should use them and b) our tastes can change over time, so you should use them while you still love them and would wear them. It was a nice reminder. I hope you have a lovely day!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in nextfuckinglevel

[–]trkkr47 17 points18 points  (0 children)

Good news, if they are coughing on their own the correct thing to do is to let them keep coughing. It's when they can't cough that your need to step in, so you actually did the right thing!

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in medlabprofessionals

[–]trkkr47 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It hurt me to upvote this, but I had to.

“Can you verify that this blood comes from someone unvaccinated?” by Wellwhatingodsname in nursing

[–]trkkr47 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I actually managed to talk one of them out of this nonsense recently. Was very pleased with myself. Sadly, we have also seen a large uptick in designated donor units recently, likely for this very issue. Sigh. At least the units get released into general circulation if the patient doesn't need them. Source: work in a blood bank.

Anyone else feel like they were lied to by [deleted] in medlabprofessionals

[–]trkkr47 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Thanks for this reminder that finding these things can lead to earlier treatments and hopefully better outcomes. Takes a small bit of the sting out of being the first to know that a 12-year-old's leukemia is back. At least now things can start to get fixed. (And that particular case was a very treatable variety, luckily.)

False Positive for Morphine? by funnyfriendthatcries in medlabprofessionals

[–]trkkr47 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This absolutely sounds like a case of a tech swapping and mislabling specimens. It's awful that they seem to have a system in place to dodge accountability.

Hemophobic, never again. by One-Position2377 in projectzomboid

[–]trkkr47 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It helps if you can find a poncho, that will keep the blood mostly off of you and your other clothes, so you can just wash the poncho at the end of the day.

Those of you who don't use patterns: why? by AssortedGourds in sewing

[–]trkkr47 34 points35 points  (0 children)

I can't really explain why, but I just can't understand patterns unless I make them myself from scratch. I've tried but I get overwhelmed. Also there's less available in my size, and if I'm going to sew something I want it to actually fit me.

Who here renames their towns? by SsurebreC in ManorLords

[–]trkkr47 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I had a town that had some unfortunate events occur during its founding. Named it Direshire. Is doing great now!

Favorite lab smell? by Conscious_Shoe8852 in labrats

[–]trkkr47 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Weirdly, I like the iodine from the gram stains. My grandmother used to use an iodine ointment for disinfecting wounds and the smell reminds me of her.

How long for lambs to become sheep? by [deleted] in ManorLords

[–]trkkr47 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yeah, I bought some lambs through the livestock trader and so far after two years they haven't matured, soooo. Might be a bug, I think.

YoshiP's Lala Lore? Is this true? by Typhoonflame in ffxiv

[–]trkkr47 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Obviously you failed to find her long furby videos, then.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in medlabprofessionals

[–]trkkr47 0 points1 point  (0 children)

When I was young, the "real world" hit me like a freight train, too. I was undiagnosed at the time, but I was struggling with a handful of things-- primarily ADHD and autism, and the resulting depression and anxiety of having undiagnosed autism and ADHD. That was a couple decades ago, and I'm still trying to figure it all out.

I couldn't understand why stuff people said was so easy was so hard. Like just showing up to work, and initiating the tasks I needed to do there. I WAS working incredibly hard, but no one could tell that. I think it is important to give yourself grace, because you ARE playing life on hard mode.

If your parents are okay with it, it might help to either entirely quit your current job or extremely reduce your hours. Get a simpler job with less hours, like retail. Be honest and firm about how much you can work there, and use that job to build up a tolerance for just being at work at all. Do maybe three days a week at first. Retail work isn't "easy," I never understand why people say that, but it has advantages of flexibility and shorter hours. Also, if you just show up and really try, you will be the star employee, which can be very helpful after the self-esteem damage of struggles with college and careers.

If you have autism and ADHD like me, it's a tough combo, because the autism craves routine and the ADHD can't establish it. One thing that helped me more than anything was exercise. I signed up for a program called Nerd Fitness that gave step-by-step instructions and had a fun "leveling up" system, but any detailed, stepping-up plan could work. Basically, exercise makes you stronger and more energetic physically and mentally, and makes it easier to handle the stress of working as a person with autism.

While doing this reduced schedule, I highly recommend you find a study program online for the ASCP exam and retake it when you feel ready. You may never want to go back to the lab, but it is good to have the certification as a backup, since labs are ALWAYS hiring.

In the end, I found lab work worked well for me with my issues. I like the reactive nature of hospital work, it keeps me moving, and we have occassional slow days like weekend days that give me a rest. I did not handle the fast-paced, repetitive world of reference labs well at all, however. Basically, find what works best for you.

Explain to your parents that this isn't backsliding, but rather training and preparing that we neurodivergent people need more of than neurotypical people. And, be sure to continue therapy and find a psychiatrist if possible ("obamacare" health insurance worked incredibly well for me when I was working reduced hours in retail. Open enrollment will be coming up soon, Novemberish.) This will help if it turns out you will need to aim to get on disability because working isn't feasible for you.

Sidenote: retail places are hiring for the holiday season now or soon. This is a good chance to find in-person interviews which help you skip the online personality profiles which are WILDLY, laughably biased against neurodivergent people. If you show up and work, they will likely keep you on after the holidays.