Mental Health Days

When should you take a mental health day?  When you are going to be worthless to your co-workers if you go to work.  I don't understand mental health days personally but if it means that I am not going to have to work with someone who is going to be bitching and crying because they got into trouble either at home or at work then by all means take a mental health day. 
Then I start thinking,  I haven't had to take a mental health day and I have dealt with depression and loss of a child (although I did take a month off after that).  I haven't had to take a mental health day after working the weekend from hell where the looney bin emptied out and they all visited the ER or everyone decided that that weekend was "Take a dumb, stupid risk weekend", and we had trauma after trauma roll through the door.  Does this give me the right to say "buck the fuck up?"  I would like to think so sometimes.

Nurse octopus

Ever feel like during a trauma or post-arrest resuscitation that the primary nurse gets treated like she is an octopus?  Well, I have and I know many others have as well.  It is like a mutation occurs in the eyes of doctors when they look at nurses in these situations and they see a being with multiple arms that have the amazing ability to manifest drips, pumps, tubing, O.Gs, and Foley's and this being can accomplish everything in a matter of minutes. 
In case anyone does think that this being exists it doesn't nor does it have the power to manifest items that are randomly yelled out during these situations.  In fact the more you yell out the less is going to get done.

Signs you might be a seeker

So I have worked as an ER nurse for close to 9years and been a nurse for 13, and some of the things that go on you just can't make up.
I think that when you become an ER nurse that on your forehead is stamped "Stupid".  Why would I say such a thing?   Because how else could you explain the absolutely wild stories that people tell you to get drugs that they don't physically need but their bank account or their addiction does.
My favorite are the people who will actually injure themselves to obtain their drugs. 
You are an addict and a seeker when you:  1.  Visit 10 ER's in a 24hr period; 2.  Prick your finger to drip blood into a urine sample and the try to say you have a kidney stone;  3.  Have over the top reactions and scream for pain medicine when you have stubbed your toe;  4.  Stomp out of the ER pissed and cursing at us when we refuse to give you narcotics.  Just to name a few.