As a North Carolina Paramedic who wants to further her career in the medical field, I think becoming a registered nurse I can make a positive impact on society. I can show anyone young and indecisive about what they want to do with their life that making one decision does have to be the final decision. I was a 24-year-old single mom with no job just looking to get some quick education so that I could work. I started as an Emergency Medical Technician. I moved on up to Paramedic. By then, I was two years older and I was able to start a real career rather than a part-time job hopping like I had been doing since my divorce. For the next seven years, I have served my community by taking care of people who are in need. I have held the hands of little old ladies who were scared, teenagers who had wrecked their car and were upset and had someone to tell them it was okay, taking cared of people who didn't know exactly what medical condition they had so I helped educate them as much as I can. Also, I learned from doctors and nurse who has taken over the care of these same patients. I always had to hunt them down and figure out the outcome of my patients. Now, as I continue down this road of furthering my education, I plan to become a registered nurse. I want to be a nurse who can relate to the patients outside and inside a facility. I want them to know that I understand that my prior education will help me take better care of them. I want the ability to go out to these patients post-care so I can help them as I did as a paramedic when it was pre-care. I want to show anyone who thinks that they can not do it, that they can. I want them to know I am living proof that your do not have to settle for one job. You do not have to pick just one career. I was an twenty four year old single mom who dropped out of college years before because she was pregnant. My choices at twenty four doesn't have to be my final choices. By being versatile, you can make your career work for you. All you have to do is believe in yourself and not give up.

Hello! I would like to introduce myself as Tara Lynn Carter. I am 33 years old female. My pronouns are she/her/hers. I am a single mother of a teenage boy whom I love dearly. Also, I am a dog mom to a rescue puppy named Bailey. I am a North Carolina Paramedic who loves her job and has been practicing for seven years now. I have always identified myself as a bisexual female ever since I could remember. Back then, I just did not know what it was called. I found myself having huge crushes on males and females. I was confused because in middle school I saw people being bullied for possibly being gay. At the time I did not know what being gay meant. So I kept my feelings to myself. I dated males just like the other females in my class did. I always knew that something was off with me. As I started high school in 2004, I met a young lady who helped me figure out that what I was feeling was not strange. This is when I figured out what bisexuality was. I started expressing my opinions more out loud the older I got. When I graduated in 2008, I was completely fine with who I was as a person. Once I graduated in 2008, I found out there were more people just like me. I met some amazing people. These people have impacted my life because being a part of the LGBTQ+ community I felt more accepted than I did back when. I also dared to start openly dating men and women. When questioned about it, I can stand up with my head held high. I can be proud of who I am rather than soft opinionated as my friends call my beginning stages. Now I am a very loud openly bisexual female who is not ashamed or scared to be exactly who she is. In 2014, I decided to pursue Emergency Medical Services which led me to become a Paramedic by 2016 with an Associates Degree in Emergency Medical Sciences in 2018. I have been practicing Paramedic medicine since 2016. I knew I always wanted to do more with my life, so now I have decided to start a Paramedic to RN program. Being a paramedic, you have many different types of patients that you come into contact with. Sometimes you have to be a mom figure, therapist, social worker, educator, advocate, etc. without seeing the result. As much as I love being a paramedic, I would love to become a nurse who can have a more focused specialty with seeing results.

In paramedic school, there is a saying that you learn from day one "Always go back to your basics". For the longest time, I did not understand what that meant until I started working in the ambulance. This simple 6 word saying has taught me that on the ambulance you always go back to where it started. You can have all the intensive training in the world but if you don't go back to where you started then you will never make a difference. So as a single mother who completed paramedic school 7 years ago, I always go back to my basics when life becomes overwhelming. My basics would be my son to start with. I will sit down with my son and watch our favorite TV shows or series. I will play on his gaming system with him. Sometimes, we will go to our favorite store 2nd and Charles. We will browse books, games, and toys to see if there is anything we are both interested in. We always try to find new ways to spend time together. Sometimes, I just sit around while he talks about things he learned in school or a random topic he has researched. My son has taught me some amazing things for someone his age. Next, I call my mom and stepdad who have been huge supporters since becoming a single mom. I will go over to their home and just sit and talk. They allow me to express my feelings as needed. I can always count on them to help me as much as they can. If they can help me, then they do. If they can't, they make sure that I am led in the right direction. After that, I spent time with my best friend Angel. She is a single mom as well, who is also a paramedic. She understands our line of work and how it affects us. We will go do dinner, sit and talk for hours on end. We text each other every single day. If it's whole conversations or just small things to remind each other that no matter what we will be there for one another. Finally, I tend to spend some time alone. Once alone, I tend to write in a journal, listen to music, and perform as much self-care as possible. I take the time to process everything or anything that is happening. I take this time to meditate and reflect on the advice I received or researched on my own. And during all of the chaos in the world, I have an adorable puppy named Bailey who keeps me company. We go on walks and spend as much time outside as possible during this time. If I do become overwhelmed to the point I need relief right then and there, I cuddle with Bailey. She is absolutely one of the best distractions that I could ever have.