Hannah Elizabeth

I shared a few months ago that my trust was switching from uniform to scrubs . Staff still had the option to order the original uniform of dresses or a tunic and trouser combination, in the new colour scheme, but most went for the comfier option with scrubs.  As I was leaving the community, it seemed like a lot of people had their orders coming through. I was hopeful mine would arrive before I went to the hospital, but sadly not. Luckily, it didn't take too long as I did get a message on my second week to say that they were ready. I ended up having to miss a few hours of work whilst awaiting a PCR test result, following new trust guidelines changing over the weekend, so I ended up picking them up on my way in and wearing them the next day instead.  I was so excited to finally fit in. I love the scrubs. They are so much easier to maintain. The darker colour means it doesn't show stains as easily, plus the scrubs are a much thinner material. They are quicker to wash and dry, don&

I want to apologise for this boring vlog. I didn't record much the last few weeks, I just enjoyed time with my family and a wild puppy.  Click here for the vlog, or watch below.  The year started with a family reunion with my sisters and dad. This was the belated and delayed Christmas celebration and it was so lovely to see everyone, especially the kids. On the Saturday, we drove down and went to see my oldest sister. We had a lovely cooked lunch, followed by a film and lots of games, plus of course, presents. We were all staying at a hotel nearby so we headed back around 11pm.  The next day, we went to my middle sister's for breakfast. It was delicious! We ended up going for a walk to the park, playing with my niece and then had an early tea before driving back. Luke had to leave early Sunday morning for an archery competition so my sister ended up driving me back to Nottingham, as it was only about a 40 minute detour for her, and it meant she got a free service station stop a

Next up in this 2022 series is Carlisle. Carlisle is a border city and the county town of Cumbria. It's close to both the Lake District and the Scottish border, making it an ideal middle ground tourist destination and giving it it's nickname: the Great Border City. We recently took a glamping staycation trip and I loved the day we spent in Carlisle, it was most unexpected.  1. Visit Carlisle Castle. It's a shame the castle is only accessible with purchase of an overpriced ticket, but castle is prestigious and so in tact. It looks perfect and it's signature brick work is beautiful.  2. Learn in the Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery. This little building has such an interesting design, the architecture is beautiful and the inside is full of hidden gems.  3. Marvel at Carlise Cathedral. Following a similar suit with the castle, the red brick work continues. It looks perfect and is free to walk around inside. It also has some lovely remains in the gardens from a previous

As I do every year, I once again am writing my New Year's Resolutions. I somewhat wish I'd thought of these before the New Year was here, because I'm not feeling well at the moment but nevertheless, I have tried to think of the important areas I want to focus on this year. Each year, I try to pick a word to summarise them all, so for 2022: health .  Exercise regularly. As I mentioned in my reflection post, this was also one I had on last year’s resolution list and I honestly failed big time. This year I want to make it a priority. I’ve felt myself becoming lazier and lazier, fatter and fatter. I want to make sure to get fitter, move regularly and incorporate fitness into my daily life. I want to make sure there is a mixture of fun activities: swimming, Zumba, yoga, walks, HIIT.  Read consistently. I have so many books in my to-read boxes. I feel like I’m not even making a dent in them but I really want to read them. I’m now back in the hospital so working 3 to 4 days a week

I very briefly discussed an unexpected event in the latter half of last year. At the time I wasn’t ready to talk about it straight away, but as I look back, I realise how important it is to talk about the topic that happens more regularly than you would expect.  As you can see from the title, last year I had a small pregnancy scare. I can’t remember the exact date now but I seem to think it was in September. My partner and I were apart quite a lot, with work and business meetings, so it was a bit of a difficult time in the relationship, but nevertheless we were still together. 54% of young women report that they've had a pregnancy scare, and more than 40% went on to experience an unintended pregnancy. I have been on the contraceptive pill for over 2 and a half years now, and since the first 3 months I haven’t had any spotting or bleeding. Due to shifts I don’t take the pill at the exact same time every day, but I do take it regularly and I’ve never missed a pill so it was quite unu

As promised, the series continues. This time, I’m picking one of my local childhood cities and also the capital of my home county. Welcome to York! York is full of history and culture. It is one of the cities famous for it's wall surrounding the centre, founded by the ancient Romans. I went many times growing up and I am always amazed my how well it has been maintained over the years. Plus, I still find new things to do as the years go by.  1.  Relax on the Hop-On Hop-Off Bus Tour.  If it's your first time in York, the bus tour is a great way to see the landmarks quickly and easily, whilst also enjoying an informative tour guide.  2. Walk the York Walls.  Possibly my favourite activity and something I like to do on each visit. It's free to walk around and they are still very much in tact. I also enjoy that there are ample opportunities to get up and down, plus the views are lovely.  3. Explore York Minister.  The huge 13th-century Gothic cathedral, is complete with medieval

I think everyone came into 2021 hoping it would be better but yet also minimising expectations to avoid disappointment. I barely knew anyone who had Covid-19 prior to December 2021 and then everyone I knew seem to get it. Today, I want to look back on the year and reflect on how I did with my resolutions. I'll be honest, with everything going on, I haven't looked at them since writing them. I would normally try to reground myself and make a plan to achieve them a couple of times throughout the year but sadly not this time.  Achieved This year I really wanted to be more sustainable. I feel like I did well achieving this goal and I am really happy with the positive changes I have made. I've supported lots of small businesses, including switching regular products to eco-friendly versions for shaving, cleaning and washing for example. Small changes even like recycled wrapping paper or using silicon moulds are great alternatives. I also continue to make little changes to limit

This wasn't exactly the post I thought I'd be writing because after my partner and his entire family tested positive, I genuinely thought I had Covid-19. Unfortunately, I did not, so instead, I spent a whole week alone, isolating in my house, feeling sad and sorry for myself.  I worked the two bank holidays following Christmas Day and as I woke up from my night shifts, Luke came over. We got ready and headed out to a local Chinese restaurant for a double date. It was lovely. That evening I woke up with a slightly sore throat and a message saying that one of the women I had looked after the previous evening had suddenly deteriorated and been diagnosed with Covid-19. I was heartbroken and of course, couldn't get back to sleep so I headed downstairs and did a lateral flow. It was negative and I couldn't decide if the sore throat was because of the message and a placebo effect, or not. Nevertheless, I went back to sleep, waking Luke and informing him in the process.  The ne