Sunday, September 8, 2013
first one
they say every physician remembers the first time one of their patient's dies. what they don't say is how to prepare for that. while I'm not yet a physician, I had my first patient die today. I wasn't at the hospital to find out. I logged onto the electronic medical record to check-in on her because I knew she wasn't doing well, and there I saw it... time of death: 656pm. so odd how this person serendipitously entered my life 11 days ago, and just as quickly left. funny how impacted I feel by this whole event. i think a lot of that had to do with the fact that she was a fellow physician who still seemed to have so much life ahead of her... anyway, that's enough sadness on the blog front. just wanted to document a not-so-frequently-discussed side of medicine
Thursday, August 15, 2013
MS3
Quick recap:
*So... STEP (my first round of medical boards) is OVER. Scores came out, and I was quite the happy camper. Pretty thankful that those 6 months of misery weren't all for nothing :)
*Cruise to the western Caribbean with my mom, sister, and 2 friends from med school was the best way to unwind after studying for so long and also a good way to end living in Galveston - I have to say, living across the street from the cruise terminal has its advantages!
*I MOVED TO AUSTIN! - I was really doubting this rather rash decision and second guessing myself, but now I'm SO THANKFUL to have taken that leap of faith. I absolutely love this city, love being away from the drama in Galveston, and am really excited to only be an hour away from my sister who is a sophomore at Baylor!
So jump ahead... I'm now a 3rd year medical student, meaning I roam around the hospital and get in the way and serve no real purpose! But it is totally fun, and people call me doctor, and I've stopped correcting them because it's at least fun to pretend ;)
My first rotation (July) was in outpatient internal medicine. I worked in a geriatrics clinic with an amazing doctor and had so much fun with the old people! It was a great experience and clinic hours are pretty glorious. No weekends? Last patient at 430? Yes please.
My second rotation (August) is inpatient internal medicine at the hospital. A typical day involves showing up around 7am, reviewing my patients' overnight labs/vitals/etc then going and examining them and writing progress notes. I then meet up with my team of residents and attending doctor, and we round on all of our patients. The afternoons are spent goofing off with the other med students, pretending to study, going to lectures, and then we also admit patients from the ER. One day a week we have to stay late, but I've gotten pretty lucky so far. I haven't been at work later than 8:15pm, and that was only once, so I think I've had it pretty easy!
My next rotation (September) is going to be GI consult - meaning we see all the patients who are hospitalized and have complicated GI problems...
It's crazy to think that I'm already 1/6th of the way through 3rd year.... that leaves only... 652 days until i'm a doctor. and have real responsibilities. FRIGHTENING.
School aside, Austin is GREAT. Maybe a little over the top hipster, but I rather like all their fun things like food trucks and live music and healthy lifestyle..... it's pretty cool living in a city that has ban plastic bags at the grocery store!
*So... STEP (my first round of medical boards) is OVER. Scores came out, and I was quite the happy camper. Pretty thankful that those 6 months of misery weren't all for nothing :)
*Cruise to the western Caribbean with my mom, sister, and 2 friends from med school was the best way to unwind after studying for so long and also a good way to end living in Galveston - I have to say, living across the street from the cruise terminal has its advantages!
*I MOVED TO AUSTIN! - I was really doubting this rather rash decision and second guessing myself, but now I'm SO THANKFUL to have taken that leap of faith. I absolutely love this city, love being away from the drama in Galveston, and am really excited to only be an hour away from my sister who is a sophomore at Baylor!
So jump ahead... I'm now a 3rd year medical student, meaning I roam around the hospital and get in the way and serve no real purpose! But it is totally fun, and people call me doctor, and I've stopped correcting them because it's at least fun to pretend ;)
My first rotation (July) was in outpatient internal medicine. I worked in a geriatrics clinic with an amazing doctor and had so much fun with the old people! It was a great experience and clinic hours are pretty glorious. No weekends? Last patient at 430? Yes please.
My second rotation (August) is inpatient internal medicine at the hospital. A typical day involves showing up around 7am, reviewing my patients' overnight labs/vitals/etc then going and examining them and writing progress notes. I then meet up with my team of residents and attending doctor, and we round on all of our patients. The afternoons are spent goofing off with the other med students, pretending to study, going to lectures, and then we also admit patients from the ER. One day a week we have to stay late, but I've gotten pretty lucky so far. I haven't been at work later than 8:15pm, and that was only once, so I think I've had it pretty easy!
My next rotation (September) is going to be GI consult - meaning we see all the patients who are hospitalized and have complicated GI problems...
It's crazy to think that I'm already 1/6th of the way through 3rd year.... that leaves only... 652 days until i'm a doctor. and have real responsibilities. FRIGHTENING.
School aside, Austin is GREAT. Maybe a little over the top hipster, but I rather like all their fun things like food trucks and live music and healthy lifestyle..... it's pretty cool living in a city that has ban plastic bags at the grocery store!
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Reappearance
Last night I stumbled upon my blog and ended up reading through a bunch of old posts. I know, I know, I haven't posted in OVER A YEAR now. Completely terrible, and I plan on eventually trying to recap second year since apparently I'm almost a third year now and haven't posted since first year... Anywayyyy, I'm in the middle (or should I say end) of studying for my first round of medical boards -- basically THE TEST that determines your residency, so kind of a big deal. Also the reason I decided to go MIA off FB and twitter starting back in January... Which has been kind of amazing, actually. Anyway, I digress. So basically I've been a study machine since January 7th and will hopefully be back after June 10th with a better life update! June is going to be a crazy month! Boards, moving to Austin, cruise, 3rd year orientation in galveston, and then the whirlwind of hospital rotations in Austin begins! Frightening to think that I'll actually have some patient reaponsibilities, but I guess that's why I've been studying my face off for 2 years :)
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
MS2
so i realize i've been pretttty quiet on the blog front lately, but i've been a teensy bit busy! last week we had finals, and i finished out my first year of medical school! - so surreal. i feel like the year totally flew by! not that i'm complaining. life just goes by really fast when you are constantly counting down to an exam!
anyway, the year ended on a good note, and now i'm drowning in free time and not sure what to do with myself! it's so bizarre just sitting on the couch watching tv and surfing the web without feeling guilty! love.
this summer i'm staying in galveston to do research. we get elective credit that can buy us time off in 3rd and 4th year, plus research looks great on residency apps! yes, they are already freaking us out about applying for residency. no, i still have no idea what i want to do! i've got time, right?....
other summer plans include baking to my heart's content, volunteering at the free clinic, tutoring the incoming first years, going to the beach (so easy to forget i live half a mile away!), and playing with my friends! plus p90x. one of my guy friends recruited me to do it with him... wow, just wow. first day kicked my butt, primarily because it was about a bajillion pushups. today was the cardio workout: MUCH better! and it is so nice having a workout buddy - accountability and it makes you way less likely to crap out whenever you have someone yelling at you to keep going!
more posts to come! promise!
anyway, the year ended on a good note, and now i'm drowning in free time and not sure what to do with myself! it's so bizarre just sitting on the couch watching tv and surfing the web without feeling guilty! love.
this summer i'm staying in galveston to do research. we get elective credit that can buy us time off in 3rd and 4th year, plus research looks great on residency apps! yes, they are already freaking us out about applying for residency. no, i still have no idea what i want to do! i've got time, right?....
other summer plans include baking to my heart's content, volunteering at the free clinic, tutoring the incoming first years, going to the beach (so easy to forget i live half a mile away!), and playing with my friends! plus p90x. one of my guy friends recruited me to do it with him... wow, just wow. first day kicked my butt, primarily because it was about a bajillion pushups. today was the cardio workout: MUCH better! and it is so nice having a workout buddy - accountability and it makes you way less likely to crap out whenever you have someone yelling at you to keep going!
more posts to come! promise!
Saturday, February 18, 2012
remember me?
remember that time i used to blog? yah, kind of fell off the bandwagon: oops.
so it's been about 2 months... but you haven't missed much! just more of the same. studying my face off and living for the weekend after the test! - the weekend after our midterm was super fun. we made homemade pizza, went out, and ended up going two-stepping :) - granted, i'm the world's worst dancer and can't follow anyone's lead to save my life, but it was fun nonetheless!
other updates... just committed to a summer research project in galv. it is clinically-based and has to do with the psychology of over-eating and food addictions. sounds pretty interesting! also means i'll be here all 8 weeks of summer with the exception of a weekend trip here and there. oh well, can't whine too much! besides, most of my friends will be in town, so it will be fun to actually be able to "be friends" without the stresses of constant studying!
also went and volunteered at the free clinic this week for the first time. it was so weird! we actually got to pretend we were doctors! i got to take the patient history, perform part of the physical, and almost got to do a PAP smear. too bad the lady had a tricky cervix... and by tricky i mean really high up and difficult to reach. wow - that must sound really bizarre to non-medical people. i'm so used to talking about weird body fluids/parts/functions with my friends like it's no big deal. i forget that IS NOT NORMAL, haha.
anyway, hopefully i'll be popping back in without waiting another 2 months!
so it's been about 2 months... but you haven't missed much! just more of the same. studying my face off and living for the weekend after the test! - the weekend after our midterm was super fun. we made homemade pizza, went out, and ended up going two-stepping :) - granted, i'm the world's worst dancer and can't follow anyone's lead to save my life, but it was fun nonetheless!
other updates... just committed to a summer research project in galv. it is clinically-based and has to do with the psychology of over-eating and food addictions. sounds pretty interesting! also means i'll be here all 8 weeks of summer with the exception of a weekend trip here and there. oh well, can't whine too much! besides, most of my friends will be in town, so it will be fun to actually be able to "be friends" without the stresses of constant studying!
also went and volunteered at the free clinic this week for the first time. it was so weird! we actually got to pretend we were doctors! i got to take the patient history, perform part of the physical, and almost got to do a PAP smear. too bad the lady had a tricky cervix... and by tricky i mean really high up and difficult to reach. wow - that must sound really bizarre to non-medical people. i'm so used to talking about weird body fluids/parts/functions with my friends like it's no big deal. i forget that IS NOT NORMAL, haha.
anyway, hopefully i'll be popping back in without waiting another 2 months!
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
BREAK!
have to start off with a NEWT photo dump since he has yet to make an appearance on the blog...
ANYWAY, 4 months of blood, sweat, tears, and cadaver juice later, i can finally say i survived my first semester of medical school! SUPER pumped. also pretty proud of myself for how well i did! exciting news: i scored the highest grade in the class on one of my finals :) - i think that might be a first ever. like including since kindergarten - haha, sad but true!
it is crazy how this time last week i was a ball of stress, and now i'm mellow as can be. i have no earthly idea what to do with this free time and have found myself taking 2 hour naps and going to be ridiculously early! i also started reading the hunger games and have done some baking. this past weekend, i got to celebrate lindsey's wedding with her and also enjoyed a mini-maas reunion with kara, cecilia, megan, and maddie! i also got to run back to galveston for a few days to play with my friends there, and we had the best beach bonfire! so fun! already looking forward to a repeat before school starts
it is definitely strange being back home, and i already miss my galveston life and friends! friday i am jumping a flight to pennsylvania to spend the holidays with my mom and her family, and then i'll be back for new year before heading back to galvy a few days early to party it up with my friends before the next semester
Thursday, November 17, 2011
9.375% MD
survived yet another test! - which brings me one step closer to that MD :) - i'm officially up to being 9.375% of a doctor... yes, i do celebrate the litte things because if i didn't, i might go crazy!!!
we are down to a lab final, a practice of medicine final, and a biochem final. and then christmas... aka THREE weeks of NOTHINGNESS. guess who is excited?! especially since we are kicking off the break with lindsey's wedding! so excited for her and for a maastricht reunion!
in other news, if you haven't seen my facebook or twitter, i randomly decided to get a cat a few weeks ago. one morning, i saw a lizard dart across my kitchen floor. the next day i came home with a cat. logical? i'm not sure about that. but i haven't seen a single roach or another lizard since i've had him! anyway, he is a siamese mix with pretty blue eyes who i got from the galveston humane society. and while he is absolutely crazy cakes and drives me all sorts of insane, i love him terribly and don't think i could go back to living all by my lonesome. the con: everyone now seems to think i'm the crazy cat lady. and my friends totally like my cat more than me. but i think i can deal with that!
i'm learning entirely too much about my parenting style though, and it is scaring me! first off, i have definitely learned that i am NOT ready for a baby. i was starting to think that could be cute or whatever (i know, don't ask me why? must be my biological clock speaking), but having a cat has made me realize how selfish i am. so NOT ready to be completely about another person. additionally, i found myself feeling guilty for studying so much last week and ignoring the cat. so i bought him toys and a bed and other treats. why do i have a feeling that this will be me when i get older? "here kid, sorry i missed your _______. i was popping out a baby. but here's a ______ to make up for it" -- i really don't want to be THAT mom!!!
other exciting things lately:
- last night was our italian themed dinner party! all i have to say is that my friends are wonderful. and great cooks. and super hilarious. and it was exactly what i needed after the test! -- did i mention that i was so stressed that my muscles started aching, and i had acid reflux the morning of the test?! yah, ridiculous. never had these issues in undergrad...
- we also decided that we are going to have a friends thanksgiving on sunday! which has been abbreviated to "F-giving" -- kind of hilarious. i'm also converting all my friends over to pioneer woman. i just can't seem to understand why people would use any other recipe?!
- my friend Yara and I have decided to get on a gym kick. you know, with that whole bridesmaid thing coming up in a month. probably shouldn't have slacked off so long, but my life has been just a LITTLE bit busy
- super excited because my mom and sister are coming to stay with me on tuesday! and then wednesday i head home for thanksgiving. andddd NEWT gets to meet CLOE. should be all sorts of hilariousness since cloe has never had any other pet interaction in almost 12 years! eeek
okay, that's probably enough babbling. hope everyone is getting into the holiday spirit! i definitely did once i saw the red cups at starbucks :) - that, and i can't wait to start baking pies! so happy!!
we are down to a lab final, a practice of medicine final, and a biochem final. and then christmas... aka THREE weeks of NOTHINGNESS. guess who is excited?! especially since we are kicking off the break with lindsey's wedding! so excited for her and for a maastricht reunion!
in other news, if you haven't seen my facebook or twitter, i randomly decided to get a cat a few weeks ago. one morning, i saw a lizard dart across my kitchen floor. the next day i came home with a cat. logical? i'm not sure about that. but i haven't seen a single roach or another lizard since i've had him! anyway, he is a siamese mix with pretty blue eyes who i got from the galveston humane society. and while he is absolutely crazy cakes and drives me all sorts of insane, i love him terribly and don't think i could go back to living all by my lonesome. the con: everyone now seems to think i'm the crazy cat lady. and my friends totally like my cat more than me. but i think i can deal with that!
i'm learning entirely too much about my parenting style though, and it is scaring me! first off, i have definitely learned that i am NOT ready for a baby. i was starting to think that could be cute or whatever (i know, don't ask me why? must be my biological clock speaking), but having a cat has made me realize how selfish i am. so NOT ready to be completely about another person. additionally, i found myself feeling guilty for studying so much last week and ignoring the cat. so i bought him toys and a bed and other treats. why do i have a feeling that this will be me when i get older? "here kid, sorry i missed your _______. i was popping out a baby. but here's a ______ to make up for it" -- i really don't want to be THAT mom!!!
other exciting things lately:
- last night was our italian themed dinner party! all i have to say is that my friends are wonderful. and great cooks. and super hilarious. and it was exactly what i needed after the test! -- did i mention that i was so stressed that my muscles started aching, and i had acid reflux the morning of the test?! yah, ridiculous. never had these issues in undergrad...
- we also decided that we are going to have a friends thanksgiving on sunday! which has been abbreviated to "F-giving" -- kind of hilarious. i'm also converting all my friends over to pioneer woman. i just can't seem to understand why people would use any other recipe?!
- my friend Yara and I have decided to get on a gym kick. you know, with that whole bridesmaid thing coming up in a month. probably shouldn't have slacked off so long, but my life has been just a LITTLE bit busy
- super excited because my mom and sister are coming to stay with me on tuesday! and then wednesday i head home for thanksgiving. andddd NEWT gets to meet CLOE. should be all sorts of hilariousness since cloe has never had any other pet interaction in almost 12 years! eeek
okay, that's probably enough babbling. hope everyone is getting into the holiday spirit! i definitely did once i saw the red cups at starbucks :) - that, and i can't wait to start baking pies! so happy!!
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