6:00AM: wake up....well, actually my alarm goes off, but I don't get out of bed until 15 minutes later. Which causes me to have to jump into the shower, rush around like a mad-woman trying t o get everything together so that I am not late for my 7AM meeting in lab. Yeah, we have didactic sessions at 7AM once a week to get us prepared for next years clinic / treating our athlete-patients.
8:00AM: go to class for...four, I mean three hours. I decided that I was too tired to stay in class. So I skipped out on one of our neuroanatomy lectures. I decided sleep was more beneficial. I don't know if that was smart, I guess we'll see when the Monday exam comes around.
12:00PM eat lunch and talk on the phone with Mum for 45 minutes. This did me a world of good. She is such a great listener and lets me vent all I want without judging me. I always feel better after I have talked with her.
1:00PM: study neurophysiology
2:30PM: meet with my group for my Complementary and Alternative Medicine elective class. I take extra classes for extra credit because I don't think that medical school is busy enough for me. ha!
3:30PM: finish up the neurophysiology lecture
6:00PM: eat and skype with Mum. :)
7:00PM: study neuroanatomy, pediatric cardiovascular exam. Honestly, I got up to pee once. When I finally finished up my legs hurt and then I realized that I had studied in the same spot all day. I wouldn't be surprised if someday in the headlines we read: "Med student dies of DVT from studying too much!"
12:00AM: do my dishes and put my Magic Cookie Bars into plastic baggies to freeze because they are going to make me fat because I can't stop eating them all. No human being should eat an entire batch of them in a matter of days!
12:20AM: get ready for bed, write this, and now I am going to put on a lecture on my computer so that I can listen to what I have already learned this evening. Audio reinforcement is always awesome! ....that is if I don't fall asleep while listening, which has been known to happen.
In any event....Good Night!!!!!
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
5 New Things I Learned Today
1. Why, while I was skating, I didn't get dizzy from spinning. My brain learned how to suppress the automatic reflex that causes us to get dizzy. This is why I could skate forward after spining dozens of times around in one spot.
2. I learned that physiotherapists and occupational therapists often have to go and do a screen of an elderly person's home after they have had a debilitating injury or illness in order to ensure safety in the home.
3. Learned the steps involved in a well-womens physical exam.
4. I learned how to check to see if somebody has a hernia. I can't wait to do one of those in real-life :S
And finally...
5. The only time a rectal exam should not be done when there is a complaint in the area is:
a) if the physician doesn't have fingers
b) the patient doesn't have an anus
2. I learned that physiotherapists and occupational therapists often have to go and do a screen of an elderly person's home after they have had a debilitating injury or illness in order to ensure safety in the home.
3. Learned the steps involved in a well-womens physical exam.
4. I learned how to check to see if somebody has a hernia. I can't wait to do one of those in real-life :S
And finally...
5. The only time a rectal exam should not be done when there is a complaint in the area is:
a) if the physician doesn't have fingers
b) the patient doesn't have an anus
Monday, April 19, 2010
5 Things that Made Me Feel Like a Medical Student Today
1. the first thought that I have when I wake up is....oh, I'm gonna be late for class
2. the highlight of my day is that we got a mark back on our pathology exam, which now means that I get an A in the class
3. I placed fried up ground beef into numerous ziplock baggies to freeze so that I don't have to cook meals in the next couple of weeks. 2 minutes in the microwave and viola....TACOS!!
4. I joked with a doctor today about how much fun diagnosing the thoracic inlet is
5. I am eating left-over spaghetti at midnight after studying for 5 hours straight
2. the highlight of my day is that we got a mark back on our pathology exam, which now means that I get an A in the class
3. I placed fried up ground beef into numerous ziplock baggies to freeze so that I don't have to cook meals in the next couple of weeks. 2 minutes in the microwave and viola....TACOS!!
4. I joked with a doctor today about how much fun diagnosing the thoracic inlet is
5. I am eating left-over spaghetti at midnight after studying for 5 hours straight
Friday, April 16, 2010
Kiss the Boo-Boo Phenomenon
I am currently studying neuroanatomy and neurophysiology and came across a phenomenon that I thought was extremely interesting.
Basically we call it the "Kiss the Boo-Boo Phenomenon". Although this is not the technical term for it (it is actually called the Gate Theory to Pain), but I thought that it was interesting.
There is actually a reason why Mum's and Dad's kiss a 'boo-boo' of a child. The light touch of a kiss actually travels down nerve fibers that relay the information faster than the pain fibers. So the light touch of a kiss actually reaches the brain before the pain signal does, and essentially blocks out the pain signal, leaving the child feeling only the light touch signal.
Pretty neat!
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Hard Work Pays Off
Well, I finished this string of exams. And I did very well, if I say so myself! :)
Today was endocrinology physiology and I actually got perfect on the exam. I am so happy!!!! Too bad I don't love the material though. You would think that if I could get perfect on the exam that I would love that material the best, but this was not the case. I actually enjoyed studying the physiology of the heart, kidneys, and gastrointestinal tract better; but didn't do as well. Go figure.
I put everything I had into these lasts tests that I am so tired. It is just after 9PM and I am going to bed. I am so tired that I can barely keep my eyes open.
I had a busy day as well. I volunteered at a high school talking about medical school (which was a waste of my time, but that is another story in and of itself), and then I slept, then I had my elective class about Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Today's speaker was an integrative pharmacist. She was an amazing speaker, extremely intelligent, and very interesting to listen to. I thoroughly enjoyed her presentation this evening.
Today was endocrinology physiology and I actually got perfect on the exam. I am so happy!!!! Too bad I don't love the material though. You would think that if I could get perfect on the exam that I would love that material the best, but this was not the case. I actually enjoyed studying the physiology of the heart, kidneys, and gastrointestinal tract better; but didn't do as well. Go figure.
I put everything I had into these lasts tests that I am so tired. It is just after 9PM and I am going to bed. I am so tired that I can barely keep my eyes open.
I had a busy day as well. I volunteered at a high school talking about medical school (which was a waste of my time, but that is another story in and of itself), and then I slept, then I had my elective class about Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Today's speaker was an integrative pharmacist. She was an amazing speaker, extremely intelligent, and very interesting to listen to. I thoroughly enjoyed her presentation this evening.
Monday, April 12, 2010
One more exam to check off my list
Now 11 more exams to go. (and 42 days until I am a quarter of a doctor) :)
I totally rocked my neuroanatomy exam today. I was above the standard deviation and everything. I don't think that I have ever studied as hard in my life. Essentially I learned four days worth of studying in three. Which was painful, but I managed to do it. Yay!
I have come to the conclusion that, no matter what happens on my never-ending string of exams, as long as I do my best, I have to be happy. This means that if I put everything I have into an exam, and write the exam knowing that I did everything that I possibly could have done, then I have succeeded. It is a great feeling when this work does work out, but when/if it doesn't at least I have no regrets.
I totally rocked my neuroanatomy exam today. I was above the standard deviation and everything. I don't think that I have ever studied as hard in my life. Essentially I learned four days worth of studying in three. Which was painful, but I managed to do it. Yay!
I have come to the conclusion that, no matter what happens on my never-ending string of exams, as long as I do my best, I have to be happy. This means that if I put everything I have into an exam, and write the exam knowing that I did everything that I possibly could have done, then I have succeeded. It is a great feeling when this work does work out, but when/if it doesn't at least I have no regrets.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Tired....of....pathology.....
Oh man, I will be SO HAPPY when tomorrow is over and pathology is finished. I will have survived 32 lectures of pathology as of 10 o'clock tomorrow morning. And I am not looking back!
I don't know what it is about pathology, but I hate studying it. I shouldn't dislike it so much because the material does seem like it should be interesting. But it just doesn't strike me as something fun to study. Actually, I dreaded studying for this exam.
This may be partially due to the fact that I know that I am NEVER going to be a pathologist. I can't imagine working this hard to go and take a residency for 5 years to look at slides and specimens, sit in a lab all day looking at microscopic cells and then doing autopsies for the rest of my career. Nope. Never gonna happen. I think that I might go insane! I want to be a doctor that interacts with patients, gets to talk with them, take histories, do procedures. (Although, never having call at the hospital and making $250K / year does sound attractive...not enough to make me go into pathology though).
Enough about my rant on pathology. My studying is almost over and then I can say that I have completed another medical school course and move on to my next exams(neuroanatomy and physiology).
Night!!!!
I don't know what it is about pathology, but I hate studying it. I shouldn't dislike it so much because the material does seem like it should be interesting. But it just doesn't strike me as something fun to study. Actually, I dreaded studying for this exam.
This may be partially due to the fact that I know that I am NEVER going to be a pathologist. I can't imagine working this hard to go and take a residency for 5 years to look at slides and specimens, sit in a lab all day looking at microscopic cells and then doing autopsies for the rest of my career. Nope. Never gonna happen. I think that I might go insane! I want to be a doctor that interacts with patients, gets to talk with them, take histories, do procedures. (Although, never having call at the hospital and making $250K / year does sound attractive...not enough to make me go into pathology though).
Enough about my rant on pathology. My studying is almost over and then I can say that I have completed another medical school course and move on to my next exams(neuroanatomy and physiology).
Night!!!!
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Surgery Day
Today was so incredibly fun!!!!
I got into a workshop for OB/GYN & Surgery that took place for four hours this morning. I was excited but it turned out to be even more fun than I had anticipated.
We learned so many cool things.
I learned how to hand-tie knots that would be used to suture things back together. I would consider myself to have decent manual dexterity, but this was really hard. We learned how to do a two-handed square knot and then a one-handed square knot. Eventually I will have to become efficient at doing the one-handed knot since this is helpful when holding an instrument in one hand and still be able to suture things up. In addition, we learned how to tie knots with instruments too! (ie learn how to do isolated stitches and uninterrupted running stitches). You would think that normal ppl like to tie with their hands, but for some odd reason I enjoyed working with the needle and suture material better; it was finer and more detailed.
Next, we learned how to intubate a dummy-person. This was pretty neat too! Honestly, they have to be rough and apply a lot of pressure to establish an airway. I just wonder how many teeth are broken by medical students while learning how to intubate in the OR. I imagine quite a few considering it is so easy to hit the teeth when forcing the tube down the person's throat.
We also learned the steps that go into creating a sterile field, surgical scrubbing of the hands, gowning up, and setting up a mayo-stand. I didn't realize how much care goes into creating a sterile environment for surgery. I suppose that this is a good thing though because I certainly want the greatest of care when I have my surgery! No staphylococcus aureus infections for me please!
Then we learned various OB/GYN procedures as well. We learned: a sutureless vasectomy....as described: "effective, permanent contraception in 10 minutes or less!" Also, I learned how to close an episiotomy, place an intrauterine device (Mirena and copper types), and also a manual vacuum aspiration (MVA).
The MVA was kind of cool. We set up a hand-held vacuum device, and then used a papaya as a model cervix/uterus. Did you know that a papaya resembles a cervix and uterus? I didn't! But it is the same shape and everything! We gradually dilated the "cervix" of the papaya and then placed the vacuum in to suck the guts out of the fruit simulating the actual procedure. It was kind of neat to think that I could actually be doing this one day.
Having this experience makes me wonder if I would actually be interested in surgery. But I guess I can't tell until I actually experience the real thing out on clinical rotations.
I got into a workshop for OB/GYN & Surgery that took place for four hours this morning. I was excited but it turned out to be even more fun than I had anticipated.
We learned so many cool things.
I learned how to hand-tie knots that would be used to suture things back together. I would consider myself to have decent manual dexterity, but this was really hard. We learned how to do a two-handed square knot and then a one-handed square knot. Eventually I will have to become efficient at doing the one-handed knot since this is helpful when holding an instrument in one hand and still be able to suture things up. In addition, we learned how to tie knots with instruments too! (ie learn how to do isolated stitches and uninterrupted running stitches). You would think that normal ppl like to tie with their hands, but for some odd reason I enjoyed working with the needle and suture material better; it was finer and more detailed.
Next, we learned how to intubate a dummy-person. This was pretty neat too! Honestly, they have to be rough and apply a lot of pressure to establish an airway. I just wonder how many teeth are broken by medical students while learning how to intubate in the OR. I imagine quite a few considering it is so easy to hit the teeth when forcing the tube down the person's throat.
We also learned the steps that go into creating a sterile field, surgical scrubbing of the hands, gowning up, and setting up a mayo-stand. I didn't realize how much care goes into creating a sterile environment for surgery. I suppose that this is a good thing though because I certainly want the greatest of care when I have my surgery! No staphylococcus aureus infections for me please!
Then we learned various OB/GYN procedures as well. We learned: a sutureless vasectomy....as described: "effective, permanent contraception in 10 minutes or less!" Also, I learned how to close an episiotomy, place an intrauterine device (Mirena and copper types), and also a manual vacuum aspiration (MVA).
The MVA was kind of cool. We set up a hand-held vacuum device, and then used a papaya as a model cervix/uterus. Did you know that a papaya resembles a cervix and uterus? I didn't! But it is the same shape and everything! We gradually dilated the "cervix" of the papaya and then placed the vacuum in to suck the guts out of the fruit simulating the actual procedure. It was kind of neat to think that I could actually be doing this one day.
Having this experience makes me wonder if I would actually be interested in surgery. But I guess I can't tell until I actually experience the real thing out on clinical rotations.
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