1 final down

Just finished my final for Neuroscience and I have to take notes of a couple of things:

Before I write more about this studying thing...please take note that I have been getting by with cramming a lot of information closer towards the exams. All the information we're learning is fascinating but to do well in medical school (at least here), there is certain information you just have to memorize. Yes, understanding definitely helps. But when there is a minute and a half given for each question, it really helps when you can recall things off the top of your head. So I have made a new regimen to studying that has helped....not sure about working but it definitely helps on test questions

- Look at objectives, they really do make test questions from them...holy smokes.

- Practice questions are just to test yourself, but in no way resemble the test

- Review ALL of the material once (better yet, twice) before the test day or two

- Go back to material you're weak on...and if you don't get it, go over it again....and again, until it sticks. Do whatever you need to - draw it out, color it, make stupid symbols and ridiculous explanations. 

Pray to God and hope that you'll get through....with this amount of pressure to pass these tests and get through, sometimes I need luck and some blessing.

That's all for now. Now for a good nap....

Halfway through Term 2

Haven't written anything in a long time here because I've shifted to using Tumblr...which seems like a viable blogging medium during the semester. But, do not fear, I'm here to update on Ligamentum Flavum.

Term 2. What can I say. It started out so well, with just Parasitology and CPM. Parasitology was really interesting to me...maybe the professor did a great job at keeping things interesting. But I had a great work ethic going for the first two weeks. After the classes finished, everything went downhill. Everything except for the workload.

I had lost my motivation for a long time...and my only saving grace at this point had been Cardiophysiology. At one point, I went to classes only for the Cardiophysiology lectures. The professor had a great sense of humor and all of the material just seemed to compile in my head really well. I could connect to it, apply it and explain it inside out. Neuroscience was the completely opposite case. It had too many overwhelming lectures and the focus of what to study was just a jumble.

As for Genetics and Immunology, two random classes in my opinion. Immunology started to make sense towards the end but Genetics is just a lot of information that doesn't connect very well. The diseases presented in class, however, clicked with diseases we learned in Neuroscience or from Anatomy/Biochemistry last term. But in my opinion, they could have done a better job with how the lectures were organized.

Overall, the semester has been much more relaxing than last term. One big thing I've learned is how to ask questions. And this continuous questioning and filing of information in my head organized information in my head better. Midterm studying involved a lot of studying the 2 weeks before the test. But I think critically judging the information I had at hand improved my reasoning skills.

Another thing I've noticed throughout the semester - all of my friendships have blossomed. In some form or another. Maybe I've spent too much time on this. But living in this new dorm with different roommates and neighbors helped me cope much better with stress. Sometimes, I forget that we're on an island away from all of our individual worlds. School, classes, struggling for our own routines is bringing us together, to a certain extent.

There is so much more to write....but I will leave it there because of 8am lectures....

Adios for now. 

Wassap Term 2?

So it's been a wonderful winter break. Mostly because it was very much needed and I utilized to the full extent by catching up with family, friends, food and sleep. These are starting to become luxuries in life - I guess I'm finally entering adult life.

This break started out very interesting. At first, I sighed with relief to finish the term....I was home again. But on the other hand, I was constantly fiddling in my head about stress. I didn't have anything to stress about. So I was stressed, worried, constantly looking for panic attacks or some sort of heavy pressure on my body (like when you sit in a garbage bag with your head out and vacuum it out....you feel the atmospheric pressure and basically can't move even if you tried as hard as you can...you guys should try this, it's fun). And then the dreams....the dreams with random medical information I've learned in Biochem....or Anatomy. But mostly Biochem. Ceruloplasmin to be specific.

After two weeks of this, our family got together with our cousins. Getting together with family relaxed me a bit. The medical school dreams started to wear off. I was "away" from my home in the US but still with family. I always had a constant urge to learn something new though. So I started learning Word of the Day. Zeitgeist, Taciturn, Duckboard, Raillery....and it's about to stop soon because I'm losing interest.

I also did manage to catch up with a lot of movies. Sherlock Holmes 2 was the first one...awesome movie. That movie kept my brain working, which I really enjoyed. I'm starting to realize that I can't keep my brain idle for too long....which may or may not be a good thing. I'm so restless if I do the same things everyday. There are only few things that I can do regularly and never get sick of - sleep and eating food. I sincerely love the feeling of sleep and eating food.

Lets see...new years. My first New years in New York City was pretty epic. We stood on the Brooklyn bridge (because we hate the stupid ball drop which I have seen for countless years on TV)...and waited for the huge time display to turn 12:00 and for the fireworks to blast over the river. And hey, 2012 is here. Seems too uneventful right now compared to all the other years I've anticipated. It's probably because I've utilized 2011 to the fullest extent.......and will be doing the same with 2012!

So my flight is tomorrow. It's gonna land directly in Grenada. Straight in the air and down. Boom. Back to "reality". Reality in the Caribbean. I still can't seem to grasp that medical school is part of my life. Major part of this winter break, I've spent aligning my ideas/beliefs/experiences with the world back home. We're so isolated from the US and the "world"....takes time to place yourself in the circle again.

But good news is, for the first time in my life, I'm ready for this change again. I've never felt this way. Usually I need a couple of weeks, sometimes months or years trying to adjust to new changes such as moving or starting school again. But this time, I'm all packed and ready. I guess this was an appropriate amount of time for break for me. How did SGU know that? Good planning on their part.

I can see myself being stuck in the rut very soon and very fast...so blogging might not happen until my first set of finals. Which by the way are in TWO weeks! Yikes.

So peace out ya'll, for now....and I wish you a very happy & healthy new year!

Wassap Term 2?

Butterscotch

Sort-of-finish-line with Gossip Gubernaculum

Yes, it's been so long since I've written on this blog that it's Christmas time! Such a jolly time. Christmas music, sweaters and socks are the quintessence of this time of the year. But I must reflect back now, to the tough times - the times through finals, pre-final studying/cramming/recalling and failing at these mentioned activities.

Post-midterms was definitely better in terms of coping with stress, catching up with classes and trying to stay sane with 8 hours (or more) of studying a day. In fact, I didn't feel horrible deep down when I took a day off during the week to watch a movie with friends or cook a proper dinner for myself and my roommate.

In terms of material - it wasn't really a smooth ride. Especially Biochemistry. We learned at least one cycle and it's clinical relatives every lecture. Biochemistry lectures per week were about 8 week while Histology only had 3. Anatomy kept it's pace at 7-8 lectures per week though. Catching up with the material wasn't too bad but the concepts and material became harder to retain and required more integration. This is what I learned to do post-midterms - integration. As you might expect, the study of medicine builds upon itself. But it only does if you build it in your brain. To quote one of my friends, "connect and recall" is what we need to constantly do as students. As simple as that sounds, it's not. You see something and you build it to your previous knowledge. Not so easy if "previous knowledge" is still something you're trying to master.

Efficiency - how has this improved? I knew what type of studying works for me and what doesn't. For the most part at least. I started making concept charts for Biochemistry pathways and memorized the hell out of Histology. Anatomy - spent a lot more time with lecture notes and atlas. And my finals grades improved, which suggests that these new, efficient study methods helped me. But there is always room for improvement.

So this term, we also has an exam called OSPE (Objective Structured Practical Exam). This exam consisted of all the clinical correlates mentioned in our classes and had stations for physical examination. This exam accounted for an insignificant portion of our practical exam in 4th term. But I worried about it and studied for it. We were told multiple times to not pay too much attention to it by our review session instructors and other upper term students. And it was true. One exam that actually followed the rumors and advice. It was easier than expected and the physical exam questions were simple enough. However, I found myself extremely nervous during the test. It was the first time we were being tested in a examination setting as "doctors". We had to wear professional clothing with our white coats with fake patients. Greeting the patient, performing the correct technique for liver percussion or testing the sternocleidomastoid, and saying thank you at the end of it seemed dreadful. Why was I being tested for this already!? I haven't learned everything yet! How do I evaluate myself if I'm right!? There's no process of elimination to figure it out....all of these thoughts raced through my mind before, during and after the test. And I'm afraid to say, these thoughts are just the beginning of it all....
I'm excited nonetheless for such challenges and the complexity it adds to my life.

A special note to my roomie: This is the first time I've had to share a room (besides family). Thanks for amazing late night talks about our lives, things we've learned in class, lesbians, weddings, siblings, philosophy, news, marriage...(I think that covers a lot of topics already lol). Thanks for starting Gossip Gubernaculum with me! Thank you for waking me up every morning with your alarm...and having a good laugh about it....everyday lol. A huge thanks for laughing about the million problems in our room. And to all of our cooking experiments and meals together I can never forget - thanks for enriching my circumvallate papillae. You're a great person and I value our friendship very much. Thanks to everything. It has been a wonderful experience starting medical school with you =)

Shoutouts to family, friends and an awesome bf back home for keeping me sane! Thanks for bearing with my long periods of not-speaking to them because of studying =)

At this point, I think it's safe to say that we have reached our sort-of-finish-line in medical school - end of Term 1! Here's to a great rest of winter break and a strong start to Term 2 filled with Neuroscience, Genetics, Immunology, Physiology, Parasitology and round 2 of Bioethics! Will keep you guys posted on what's up during winter break.

బట్టర్ స్కాట్చ్ 

81 milligrams of Aspirin

It's 4:27am and I should be sleeping. I could finish reviewing my notes on Nitrogen Metabolism. But I'm gonna write here instead. I've isolated Ligamentum Flavum for too long. It's been normal for me to up at this time either studying or feeling anxious about tomorrow's study session. I've been studying for about two and half months. Sadly, I still haven't figured out how to be efficient with time or my study session. Maybe I am sometimes but I don't know when/what that is. And yes, getting a lot of work done is considered productive but our daily intake of information is so large, it's hard to tell. It's like swimming in the ocean here. Sometimes you're swimming so hard for a good 5 minutes and you realize, you haven't moved that far. I mean, look at the ocean. It's astounding.

Speaking of shooting stars, I've seen at least 30 shooting stars so far. I ran out wishes to wish for. And after the 18th one or so, I just enjoy that jolt of excitement in my heart when I see one. Some of them are very distinct and stay in the sky for a good 3 seconds. They're truly gorgeous. I wish I could catch one and sit on and be wished on.

So classes. Yes, I've been attending classes since midterms. In fact, I haven't missed any yet. But it still feels like we took our midterms last week. In Biochemistry, we recently learned what happens when people ingest 81mg of Aspirin (among a million other compounds, enzymes, cofactors and all). I mention this specific detail for a reason. It's one of the details I've always wondered about. 81milligrams. Or any amount of milligrams of a drug. How do doctors know what specific dose to give to a patient? Well, I learned how 81mg of Aspirin works in our body to the cellular and enzymatic level. It's considered a low dose. And it made realize how important every detail in my notes will help me be a better physician later on. At the end of the day, you can only depend on your knowledge to make sound decisions; for now, I'm happy that learning about the lengthy eicosanoid pathway will help me prescribe an NSAID to a patient.

I have to put down my thoughts about SGU in general. I've been treated really well around here. The professors have always been encouraging to us as a class and during office hours. One of our Anatomy professors told us a story about a student from years ago who attended SGU - Bob. He apparently studied intensely during his Basic Sciences classes without taking a breaks. Ever. And he was able to get through medical school with a good GPA and was able to land a residency somewhere in California. But sometime during his residency, he shot himself because of all the stress in his life. Yes, this isn't an encouraging story at all. But our professor told me this story in person and he mentioned it to the entire class. And his point was to relax at least once a week. I'm starting to realize how much more stressed I was pre-midterms. Yes, we did have one extra class - Bioethics, but relaxation never crossed my mind and I was continuously under stress and being stressed was the normal state of my mind. After midterms has been much better in terms of the way I relax and noticing when I should stop studying.

So the biggest lesson I've learned so far in medical school is to realize my weaknesses and improve on them. Everyone has strengths but mastery of material and understanding requires careful introspection. And that minute detail you know you'll forget, remember it and come back to it again. And again. And again. Until you remember it so much, you can teach it to someone else.

RandomSome of my friends and I have been feeling this peculiar thought everytime we try to remember the date. We still think it's August or closer to September. Time somehow froze in our mind. I guess that means we're living every moment right? I have no idea. But I've certainly enjoyed the random study sessions at Subway, dancing the night away 5 hours after our midterms, concocting food out of random ingredients, having an elaborate discussion about the innervation of the forearm on a walk, that 10 second glimpse of the ocean as I slowly descend the steps to cadaver lab, climbing up the huge hill that has become a "good exercise" for the day, and best of all, late night talks on the dock.

Time for some sleep...keep smiling =) Make it meaningful.

Taylor

I've been wanting to write a blog post but got caught up with all the fun after midterms around here. Our school really cares about us and realizes that we need to relax after a marathon week of midterms. And by marathon, I mean a marathon. We had 3 midterms - Monday, Wednesday and Friday. We studied at all times of the day...and night. I would review by myself, with a group of friends, with my roommate, and in my sleep. It's like my brain was programmed to process and connect dots at all times. This is how a computer must feel.

But I'm glad that's over. At least for the moment. I feel somewhat successful getting through the first set of midterms of medical school. By the end of the week, my brain felt overloaded...it was a rather strange feeling. I felt nothing. And all I craved for was a good meal at the end of it all.

Now, I'm trying to get back into a routine. Or rather figuring out what a routine would consist of.

I realized that I don't go to the dock as much. The purpose of going to the dock was to relax, relieve my stress and just take in all that the ocean has to offer. I guess with midterms and post-midterms relaxation right in my room, I haven't needed it much. It's become more of a social spot to go to with a bunch of friends at the end of a fun night.

Speaking of nights, at the end of each night after studying at Taylor Hall, I spend the 30-50 or so steps walking slow, yet steady, enjoying the sight of the sky. I've always appreciated the existence of stars and the moon. Here in Grenada, they're much clearer. But I usually start noticing everything I've studied that night. Tonight, I could see the epidermal ridges interacting with the dermis. I could point to you, every layer of the epidermis and dermis in that white ghostly figure. And when I look down, I see dense connective tissue lining the curb of the street. Call it sad, pathetic, mentally disturbed...I call it the evolution of a medical student's mind. Every person has a lens through which they see the world. Even though I love this new lens I'm creating in medical school, I want to be able to see the world through all of it's colors. I wonder what others see when they look up during a busy day to notice the sky and it's vastness.

I have much to write about....but I will keep you guys hanging for now. 

Unified ocean

Picture yourself standing on cliff of an island. Imagine a storm pouring down on the ocean. Now picture yourself being in it and watching the rain pour down on the ocean and creating that blurry haze from seeing that island in the distance but at the same time, feeling completely connected with the ocean in the pouring rain. I was there. I closed my eyes, to make sure it was all real. And it was. After that I jumped into the warm, Caribbean ocean water. The ocean instantly embraced me with all of its glory. What am I compared to it's majestic strength? Just another one of those humans who can be swallowed and washed away....
Usually, I'd want to take as many pictures as I could. But in that moment, it was too powerful and overpowering to witness nature's beauty. There is no way a picture or any number of pictures could have captured the wondrous sensation.

It was definitely a good break from 4 weeks of studying non-stop (almost). I feel more alive. I also cooked some food that can last for the next two days.

And as for what's going on education-wise around here, we just took our first quiz in medical school. It was called the Unified Assessment Quiz, about 5% of our grade (in each class) and it's purpose is to make sure we are keeping up with the material and making sure we're studying the right way to perform well on tests. There were 25 questions for each subject - Anatomy, Biochemistry & Histology and we had an hour and 45 minutes to complete it. It's amazing how much everyone has studied for a 5% quiz. Some people said it was like studying for a final...this, I agree with. I was up till 4:30am this Saturday trying to understand every detail of Biochemistry. Oh yea, and I have been studying every day since the first day of classes. After the quiz, I felt like I should have studied more. I guess we'll never be well-prepared. But studying definitely helped me answer questions and put down correct answer choices, so I have to give it some credit. Understanding and memorization are key to scoring some easy points. In reality, the true test of our knowledge will be our patients. Hopefully when we encounter patients with Sickle Cell Anemia, we remember that there is a point mutation in their genetic code or realize that we need to do a spinal tap in between L4 and L5 to test their cerebrospinal fluid.

To quote my Anatomy professor, all of us feel as though we graduated from medical school. But as the evening approaches, I feel the need to get back to my routine. I value my free time like a delicious piece of Dove milk chocolate (with raspberry filling), and I realize the importance of keeping up with the material. I have a small aspiration though...someday, somehow, I want to be "ahead" of the material.

In our last Bioethics Small Group Discussion (this class will be ending next week...and yes, that means a final exam on Monday), there was a peculiar phrase that the facilitator mentioned that caught my attention immediately. Our topics of discussion included Physician Assisted Suicide and Climate Change and it's effects on health. As we neared the end of a case, the facilitator said, sometimes physicians make decisions for "The Greater Good". I can't imagine making a decision for the "The Greater Good". Isn't that what Batman or Spiderman would do? How does patient-assessment, ordering CAT scans/MRIs or even writing a prescription help the greater good. What is the greater good when it comes to a patient or a family? It is specific to certain medical cases, yes, but it's amazing how much power is being invested in us, future physicians.

My poetic skills came out tonight and I shall share some of my less-than-average creativity with you guys. I didn't know what to title it so I'm calling it:

The Greater Good

a drop of rain descends
stretches and relaxes
and meets my epidermis

part of it squeezes through
and the rest bounces,
surrenders to gravity
and oscillates with
the gentle wave

Sayonara until next time.