Oh Sh*t, I Almost Killed You! A Little Book of Big Things Nursing School Forgot to Teach You

by Sonja Schwartzbach

Do no harm. Take no sh*t. Whether you're a new nurse or a veteran member of the clan, the nursing learning curve is a vast one. Part how-to-guide with a touch of memoir thrown in, take the time to laugh and cry with an author that says what everyone else in the field is thinking. Sonja M. Schwartzbach, BSN, RN, CCRN is a critical care nurse and blogger for the Huffington Post. She possesses a BS in Nursing as well as a BA in English Literature, both from Rutgers University. Sonja has written content for numerous professional nursing outlets (the AACN; Nurse.com; Scrubs Magazine), and is a contributing author for Thrive Global, the Youshare Project, and her own blog/website. No medical residents were harmed in the creation of this book.

Genres: Nursing, Nonfiction, Medical, Audiobook, Medicine, Health, Memoir

166 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2017

Reviews

[Dr. Appu Sasidharan (Dasfill) · Rating 4 out of 5]

- The best days of my Medical School life were during my rotations in Internal Medicine. It should have been easily the most challenging part of my Medical school life primarily due to the amount of work we had to do during the rotations. Still, we had four extremely talented and kind Nurses in Internal Medicine who exactly knew the Medical Student’s limitations and helped us to learn the maximum from the wards, which made our stint in Medicine the happiest. The place where I saw the happiest patients despite their ailments was also in those Medicine wards.



Summary
- The author of this book is a critical care nurse, Sonja Schwartzbach.
- She discusses all the ethical dilemmas a Newbie Nurse will have to face in the Hospital and also how to tackle them boldly.
- She also discusses everything important a Senior Nurse will have to deal with.

What I loved in this book
- Every Challenge that a Nurse will have to face in their daily life is written beautifully in this book like
* Near-death situations of critical care patients and how to tackle them.
* The wrath that nurses will have to face from patient’s relatives if anything goes wrong
* Why are nurses called the Holiday Warriors?
* The problems that Nurse’s spouse and family will have to face.
* How to build a rapport between Doctors and Nurses?
* How to build a rapport between Newbie Nurses and Senior Nurses?



My favourite lines from this book
“When you don’t see me while I am driving in my car some days blurring the radio to block out the past, others riding in stillness to silently reflect I carry you with me.

When you don’t see me stepping into my home, stripping out of the shifts worries and into my own, I carry you with me.

When you don’t see me questioning what happened and why, whether I could have done better to help you survive, I carry you with me

When you don’t see me tear-streaked with pain for your family, children and friends, I carry you with me.

I carry you with me whether you know it or not because while I want desperately to leave your story at the door, I can’t help but hear the pages echo in my heart

I carry you with me as a trophy or a scar because that experience helps me to power through the days when all I want to do is to throw away my stethoscope and walk away.

For scars often fade with trophies are proudly displayed, but sometimes the quietest moments and simplest interactions are the most often replayed.

When you don’t see me, I am fighting for you.

When you don’t see me, I am rooting for you.

When you don’t see me, I am praying for you.

And sometimes when you don’t see me, I am mourning for you.

I carry you with me; I am your Nurse

So when you don’t see me, please know that I am near

Your life is my responsibility, your livelihood my pride

We carry you with us on scribbled notes and pockets

Through aching within worn bodies forever in our minds.”

What I didn’t like in this book
- I felt like the book finished so quickly. I wish this book was a little bit longer and had a few more anecdotes.

Verdict
4/5
- This is a well-written and must-read book for Newbie Nurses.

- If you are a Doctor or anyone who is working in the Healthcare sector, this book will be an excellent read for you.

[Megan Viduya · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book had a lot of grammatical errors that were very distracting while reading. Quick read, but underwhelming.

[Rahma.Mrk · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first part and second one are so interesting.
الكتاب يساعد على استعداد النفسي لدخول ميدان التمريض .
أعجبني وصفها nurse is a marathon

ربنا يكون في عوننا ويارب يوفقني

[Patti · Rating 2 out of 5]

While there were a few funny parts, this mostly felt like a lot of words with very little said. It was trite and repetitive.

[Melinda Parker · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was ok... I contemplated between 2 stars or 3. “A little book of things Nursing School forgot to teach you” - the book hardly contained anything educational. Very repetitive as “nursing is incredibly hard but if it’s for you, you got this” or put your big girl panties on and handle it. There were many times while reading I would say to myself “she just said that a couple pages ago” and is very focused on telling the reader she went from a corporate employee to heading to nursing school. Wishing there was more details as to what nursing school doesn’t prepare you for. Or mention more detailed mistakes made for future nurses to avoid. Lots of grammatical errors throughout. Overall it was an alright book; I think it needs some work.

[Daria Marshall · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this since I had just graduated from nursing school and wanted a break from studying for my NCLEX. I was feeling defeated and like no matter what I did, I was nowhere near ready for what was to come.

There were parts of this book that really resonated with me and made me feel confident that I would be successful. There were other parts that I didn't particularly care for. It felt a little repetitive at times and there wasn't really that much new information from other books that I have read.

It's always nice to read that others are scared about what they are about to go into and that others make mistakes. Nobody's perfect and we all start off as newbie "baby" nurses. As long as we put in the work and have a fantastic team surrounding us, we'll all be okay.

[Nicole Rae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe I’m lucky - all the inspiration and reflection on the nursing profession isn’t exactly new or radical to me. Many of my instructors still work on units while they teach, and they tell us how it is. But I still enjoyed reading it, and I’m a lenient reviewer, so 4 stars it is.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was going to be a book about funny nursing stories but it was really more like “nurses are awesome” and a lot of words to describe how. Not really geared towards me obviously since I’m not a nurse.

[Juliana · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book was a joy to read. i laughed and cried. highly recommend 💯

[christina prater · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought it could have been a lot better, a bit disappointed

[Anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

I took the title for its face value and thought this book was going to teach me important clinical facets of safe nursing practice that I wasn’t taught in nursing school. I was very wrong. Instead it seemed to focus on the author’s experiences in her personal life, her family life, her career and her memoirs. I am not a “baby nurse,” and I am struggling to recall anything in this book that applies to me and my nursing career with the exception of nurses eating their own, dealing with unsavory colleagues and avoiding teaching hospitals in July. Overall I found book repetitive and uninformative, and the author’s humor fell flat for me. The cover and title are misleading in the fact that this book is largely a memoir for the author. There is a large portion devoted to her mother’s diagnosis and how she dealt with it, along with letters the author wrote to her family, friends, colleagues and future children. I wanted to dnf when I got to this section, but I felt I had to see the book through. The only ppl I would recommend this book to would be someone considering nursing school, not a new nurse or a seasoned one.

[Ashley Bracken · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like that she shared her experiences and how she deals with the challenges of being a nurse, from being a new grad to working with peers (& leaving the drama to Grey’s Anatomy), to advocating for your patient even if it means questioning the physician & advanced practice team. That’s it’s okay to cry after a rough shift and even when you’re a season salty old nurse you’ll still have shifts that kick your ass. She also mentions how important it has been for her to take time for her to in turn provide the best care for patients. I’m nervous for my own nursing journey but thanks to this book, along with friends of mine who are nurses, I feel like while it will have it’s unique challenges, I am still more excited than afraid. I’ve always been told that my heart is too big for my job and this book just reinforces that I’ve made the right decision to pursue nursing☺️

[Madison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Genuinely, this book is for people in the medical field. And in that same vein, if you have never been in the medical field, it is highly likely that you will not relate to what the author is trying to convey to new nurses. Do I think this book was 5 stars? No. Do I appreciate hearing from a seasoned nurse that EVERY NURSE starts in the same boat? Yes. This book is more an acknowledgement of what nurses experience. If you need a pep talk, and your anxiety is crazy high before a shift, this is a nice little reminder that it’s going to be ok. She said it at the beginning folks, she’s looking to mentor new nurses. I don’t think it will be helpful to apply these lessons to other experiences, because it’s not for anything but the unique experience of nursing.

[Kade Gulluscio · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm so stuck on how I feel about this one. I've listened to this one VERY slowly over the last week or so.. It took me FOREVER, because I just wasn't as into as I would hope.... but I really hate not finishing a book once I start it.

This book is ... part memoir, part 'how-to'.. There's a lot of humor in there, and i THINK i would enjoy this book more if i were a nurse.. or at least in the medical field. So in some ways, I feel like I'm not qualified to even review this, haha.

It's a very quick read at 135 pages, so it was also a pretty quick audiobook. But it really all just fell flat for me... which i hate to say about any book.

[Chelsea · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book felt like 3 different book ideas jumbled (a bit sloppily) into one short book.
1) advice to new nurses
2) her journey as a nurse through her mother's cancer diagnosis and journey
3) personal letters to her husband, future children, physicians, and coworkers about handling her as a person who is a devoted nurse

I read this book for advice and was a little disappointed by the other stuff that got thrown in. I did appreciate the honesty about how funny, tiring, stressful discouraging, and sad it can be to be a nurse.

[Jessica Jackson · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5. DNF. Listened to the audiobook read by the author. Maybe I would have enjoyed more reading with my eyes, but this was pretty substance-less and the style and humor weren’t for me.

[Elaine Soloniuk · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining book meant to encourage a new nurse graduate. This can be the cheerleader when your nursing instructors are no longer there to cheer you on.

[Milicent · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don’t think there’s a need to be Transphobic in a book? Discussing what defines a woman and pronoun discussion that would make me gutted to have them as a nurse…

[Jess · Rating 1 out of 5]

Easily the worst book that I have ever read. Most of the book is common sense, such as, don’t be mean to others. It is badly written and has a lot of weird snippets that were borderline inappropriate on many different levels. This book was recommended to me when I graduated nursing school by many, I’m truly not sure why.

[steph🌸 · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's definitely an interesting concept for a book. It's written by someone who pursued a corporate career and then made the switch to nursing, but the title is misleading. This book isn't instructional, and sounds more like a motivational speech you'd hear in a high school gymnasium.

Schwartzbach has some interesting stories to tell, and her chapters were mostly short and concise, but about a third of the way into the book, she really lost me.

She repeated phrases and advice tidbits throughout the book, and made a lot of grammatical mistakes.. she has a degree in English!

I really read a sentence that said, "...you're might feel like you've got the short end of the stick much of the time." ???

Also the print job on this book is horrible. I'm all for saving the planet, but the margins make many pages illegible unless you bend the spine of the book backwards. Almost every chapter ends with a blank page; I think they could've just given us some legible margins and kept the blank pages. And some pages are printed in a super dark ink, while others are a faint gray color.

I really wanted to enjoy this book, since every nurse I follow on Instagram has raved about it, but the book really plays like a motivational speech and spends a lot of time giving props to the nurses reading it (and even includes a list of reasons why people should date nurses).

If you work as a nurse this book might translate better, but I can't really recommend this piece to anyone.

[Regina Robbins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uplifting and funny

I am reading this book as a veteran nurse in a novice/newbie roll. I was proficient if not an expert in my previous roles when I found myself in a desk job telling myself this would be great for retirement at the age of 41. I desperately tried to convince myself to like my job and stay but alas I couldn't do it anymore ( i lasted 6 years) When I went back to patient care if was to OB/L&D. It's the best move Ive ever made but the absolute scariest thing I've ever done! Sonja's book took me though all the emotions i felt as a 26 year veteran stepping into a novice role. I felt my head nodding up and down on agreement with her stories and anecdotes and thinking "this is why I do what I do" and her 'soap box's about nurses learning to not 'eat their right's as some archaic right of passage but as a form of bullying is so on point and mimics how I have !over and how I want to continue to live my nursing life. Because being a nurse is not what I do, it not a job or just a paycheck or even a profession for me it IS who I AM - at my core. Definitely a quick heartfelt book all newbies or old timers should consider reading

[Stephanie Huss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

I'm a new nurse and this book helped me feel confident in my new role. I'm not the only one who is terrified and excited to be a nurse. I'm not the only one who will make mistakes! This book helped spark the fire again and remind me why I chose nursing! I loved this book!

[Madison · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m still a greener nurse (heading in to year three) so i have always wanted to read this book to get some new insights of a seasoned nurse. while i appreciate her focus on self care and looking for a bright side, this was just pages after pages of cliches and quotes found on tumblr posts circa 2012 and i was so disappointed i didn’t learn anything worthwhile.

[Kendall · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was funny at times, witty at others, and definitely had some good advice. However, I found it to be very repetitive and not all that profound. Maybe if I hadn't already worked in hospitals as a tech prior to becoming a new grad, I would have gained more from this book.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I honestly don't think many non-nurses can relate. Also, the trip down the med-surg memory lane was somewhat terrifying.

[Lenny Husen · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75 stars. AUDIO BOOK/AUDIBLE VERSION, read by the author, who did an excellent job narrating her own "book". She has a nice voice and comes across as sincere, capable, smart and likable.

I am getting fatigued with this type of "book" which is really just a bunch of blog posts--a BLOGBOOK.
Dear Sonja, you have stuff to say that is spot-on and worthwhile. You definitely have solid advice here for nurses as well as doctors too! You clearly love the nursing profession as you should. It is wonderful to hear your pride for what you and your fellow RNs do everyday. The work you and your colleagues do, the care you give patients, is an endless source of inspiration and gratitude as a physician working with you amazing people. I LOVE nurses, and I am glad you shout it from the rooftop that everyone should feel the way I do.
What was difficult for me, listening to you, is that you repeat yourself A LOT. You beat every concept to death with repeating words and phrases over and over--I realize, you were trying to be passionate, but for example, saying AS A NURSE YOU WILL... AS A NURSE YOU WILL... AS A NURSE YOU WILL... 23 times in a row with different endings to the sentence just didn't work--it was grating. You come across as a person who has had an easy time getting everything she wants, any job she wants--which is admirable but also boring and annoying. You are, what? 30 years old? You have been a nurse for HOW long? 8 years full-time not counting nursing school? Couldn't you have co-authored this book with someone with more experience than you?
And you are SO afraid of saying ANYTHING actually vulnerable or possibly offensive that the title of your book is the most interesting thing about it! Sonja, if I edited this book it would literally be half as long. Just to get through it, I had to speed you up. There was so much about YOU and not nearly enough about your patients.
You said the word "nurse" or "nursing" 7,452 times during this short book--actually, I made that number up, but whatever amount it was, it was too many.
How I wish you had been negative and snarky, instead of perky and ingratiating. You could have told stories that would have REALLY given an idea of the tribulations RNs go through--the crappy patients and arrogant doctors or examples of RN supervisors or colleagues who treated you or a friend badly--but you were afraid someone might be upset. GOD FORBID, someone be angry or offended by your BLOGBOOK. What if, you actually talked about MISTAKES you made or fellow RNs made? OH MY GOD, the word would be out!!! Well, if you had, you would have had a book worth listening to, in my opinion.
All I can say is, you are a super nice kid. And I bet, you will be a great RN someday, if you stick with it full-time and don't get bored. I think your BLOGBOOK will be fun for some "Baby Nurses" to breeze through.
Just wish someone had edited your book and given you feedback because--SO much of your advice is genuine and valid, and in a shorter version as a handbook, or longer version with more and edgier anecdotes, it would have been much better.

[Michelle Lewis · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Our role as nurses is not a glamorous one; it's not an easy one; it's not a pristine and perfect package and it never will be."

A a "newbie nurse", I was drawn to this book because of its kick a$$ title. If the title can capture how I feel at almost every shift, what other amazing things might be in this book? The book started strong as I was hanging onto the author's every word. She managed to capture ALL the feelings I feel as a new nurse while also encouraging me in a natural, non-Lifetime movie/corny way that other newbie nurse books I have read do. She keeps it real about the dynamics of nursing and working with others in a hospital setting.

The book seemed to lose its steams after the first couple of chapters. I felt that the author ran out of things to talk about it and the book took a turn that I didn't see coming. While the author was being vulnerable to sharing her story, the place in the book this chapter was didn't flow with the overall book.

I read this book at a time when I needed to have validation about my current feelings and thoughts about nursing that only someone in the same field as me could offer. Equally validating was that this author had a similar journey into nursing as me so it was great to hear how she compared her before nursing career to now. However, I felt this book doesn't offer many tips and tricks that I was hoping it would to help me navigate through nursing with these new feelings and thoughts. But, I did feel like how the author states she doesn't have all the answers but that she hopes by sharing her experiences it will guide us in some way.

Definitely a must-read for any new nurse! I enjoyed the funny writing, blatant honesty, and overall take she has on nursing.

[Loren ReadsItAll · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Oh Sh*t, I Almost Killed You! A Little Book of Big Things Nursing School Forgot to Teach You" is an invaluable resource for nursing students and professionals alike, deserving of a well-earned five-star rating.

This book fills a crucial gap in nursing education by addressing the practical aspects of nursing that are often overlooked in formal training. It provides real-world insights and advice that can make a significant difference in a nurse's ability to provide quality care and navigate the challenges of the healthcare environment.

The title itself reflects the book's candid and down-to-earth approach, offering a sense of humor and relatability that many nurses can appreciate. It tackles topics that nursing school may not fully prepare you for, such as communication with patients and colleagues, dealing with stress and burnout, and navigating the complexities of the healthcare system.

One of the strengths of this book is its ability to provide practical tips and anecdotes that resonate with nursing professionals. It offers a blend of humor and practical advice that makes it an engaging and enjoyable read.

Moreover, the book's insights into the emotional and psychological aspects of nursing, including coping with challenging situations and maintaining empathy, are particularly valuable.

"Oh Sh*t, I Almost Killed You!" is a must-read for nursing students and professionals. Its candid, humorous, and practical approach to nursing challenges makes it an indispensable resource for those in the field.

[Shelby Harris · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a gal with a fresh BSN, this book did feel like a personal letter written to me. For that reason, I enjoyed it for the most part. And it did trigger some emotion, reignite the fire (currently 2 months into waiting for the arrival of my ATT), and provide what seems like a healthy dose of pragmatism. Howeverrrr. Also as a gal who adores reading and loathes lazy grammar, this book was riddled with more errors and typos than presumably all of the books I’ve read in my entire 26-year life. To the point where I’m considering contacting the publisher. It felt like I was reading the first draft of a high school essay. I loved the content, though occasionally repetitious and scattered, but consistently ended up incredibly frustrated from the astonishing grammatical neglect. I got tripped up so many times I eventually thought I was being punk’d and tried googling what going on, but found no acknowledgement of this headache of an embarrassing issue. It’s wonderful that someone is speaking out to advocate for our profession, but please do it professionally. Select a competent editor/publisher and do it right.
End scene.

[Jodi · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a veteran nurse, I didn't find much of this book applicable, and frankly, much of it was so specific to the author's region of the country and nursing speciality that I don't know if I would have found it useful even as a new nurse ("baby" nurse, as the book refers to them). I found the title misleading, as I only recall maybe two instances where the author recounted anything she has ever done that may have ended up causing a negative outcome for a patient. It's a catchy title, I guess, but I would have put more effort into telling stories that were actually related to the title. I did appreciate the last part, where the author actually recounted stories from her own experience and talked about the rewards of a mostly thankless job. The way she described how we give of ourselves for complete strangers was a great synopsis of the profession. I am glad I came across this book, even though I wish the entire thing was like the very last part.
Also, I listened to it, and I still noticed some of the grammatical errors that others noted are in the print version (many odd phrases and strangely constructed sentences).