Today we’d like to introduce you to Christina Hogg.
Hi Christina, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I always knew I wanted to help others. Even as a kid, I loved doing random acts of kindness and volunteering in my community. As I got older, I found my passion for science, especially about the human body, and chose to go into nursing. Nursing school was tough but I graduated magma cum laude and got my license in the summer of 2021, right in the middle of the pandemic. I started working in the neuroscience ICU, a hotspot for strokes, seizures, cancer, and traumatic brain injuries. I love getting to save lives and make the worst of peoples’ days a little bit better as a career.
Modeling was an accident to be honest. I saw an ad on Facebook for a scouting agency and filled out the application on a whim, forgetting about it afterward until I received an email asking for a follow-up shoot. I decided to go through with it and actually ended up enjoying it a lot. Being in front of a camera was fun because I could show off my personality and create art with my body. I also feel, in some ways, that I’m also helping people by modeling because I am able to show them my creativity through my photos and display how the average person can become a beautiful piece of art.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Nursing has not always been easy for me. I wasn’t diagnosed with ADHD until after I graduated college, which contributed to severe test anxiety. I had to take my 240-question, 4-hour long final exam 5 times before achieving the passing score of 90% because I had no testing accommodations and my anxiety made my mind go blank. A lot of my confidence as a nurse was shot because of this, and I spent the first few months of my nursing career shying away from responsibility and taking charge in critical situations, letting others take the lead when my patients were in crisis because I felt like I wasn’t smart enough or capable enough to manage them on my own. I’ve learned more recently though, through months of therapy and building confidence in my practice, that my grades in school do not define my ability as a nurse. I will never learn to be a leader unless I try.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a neuroscience ICU nurse at a major hospital in Atlanta, ga (Emory University Hospital). We specialize in ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes, seizure disorders, brain cancer, traumatic brain injuries, and more. I am still new to the unit, but I am starting to make a name for myself as the one who is willing to go above and beyond for both her coworkers and her patients. When my coworkers need a shift covered, a patient turned and bathed, or a swap on chest compression for their coding patient, I’m there for them. I take the saying “Leave the place better than you found it” very seriously and apply it to my work often. I try to make my patients’ days a little better in some way, whether it’s talking to them, braiding their hair, cleaning up a mess, or giving them a life-saving medication, I will do whatever it takes to make the worst experience of their life a little better.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
I love reading. I’m particularly into fiction. My current read is the Darker Shade of Magic series by V. E. Schwab. As someone who experiences a lot of business and stress, both in the hospital and in front of the camera, reading fiction provides some sense of relief from reality. I also use the Apple Calendar and Reminders apps on my phone often to keep up with the constant schedule changes, meetings, photoshoots, work days, and other events. It helps because I make a lot of plans through my phone, but I’m not always in front of my physical calendar to add things to the schedule. This way, I have my most current schedule in front of me at all times, whether it’s on a weekly/monthly basis or just focusing on the day ahead of me.
Contact Info:
Image Credits
Soul Studios, Atlanta GA
