Two weeks in and the water's up to my neck...

Well, I can say that I have survived two weeks of med school. Oddly enough, it feels like 2 months! I never imagined that I would retain the amount of information that I have already learned; and yet, I am still completely feeling overwhelmed. The brain is truly amazing. More on this craziness later.

Some facts of med school....once you're in that is

Okay, so while I was stressing out yesterday about some things, I couldn't help but think about some things that my wise friends have taught me (thanks Shannon and Justin!). Here are some things to remember when you are in med school:

Priority of importance for gaining that desirable residency spot (least to greatest):

3. Grades (surprise, surprise, but yes, grades don't matter as much as they did in undergrad. For Pete's sake, if you can make it to the end, and you're the last in your class, you'll still be a Dr!)

2. Board scores - whether it's USMLE or COMLEX, these will be the real test of what one's mental capacity is.

1. PERSONALITY and ability to GET ALONG with your peers and superiors - no one is going to give a residency to someone they don't think fits or is a pain in the gluteus maximus! To quote one of my most favorite movies, "So just play nice!"

Priority of importance for other things while in medical school:

1. GOD - all too often, it becomes way to easy to stop going to church, praying, or doing devotions in order to study more or whatever! He is such an important center for realizing what is important and what is not so much.

2. Family - keep up with them! Call them, text them, email them, whatever! I have found (yes, it's been only one week, so I'll have to keep you all posted on how this goes) that they are my encouragement outside of the heavenly help.

3. Friends - it's hard to keep up with everyone, but think about those relationships that you really cherish and try to keep in contact with them.

4. Mental Health - this ties into all three of the above things (how I love OMM! It not only helps with physical manipulations of the body, but also mental ones. We are multi-faceted beings and each part needs to be cared for.)

5. Physical health - to quote the Dean of Students at OSU COM, "Eat healthy, excercise, and get alot of sleep." Hard to always do this, but students who tend to have meltdowns are usually missing out on one part of this list.

Okay, back to studying anatomy. Those are my pearls. Cast them not before swine:-)

My report for the day: not enough sleep, not enough coffee, too much histology and too much anatomy.....................................

Histo and all that fun

So, technically, I'm supposed to be studying right now, although my mentor says that she hasn't heard of MS1's studying the day before classes start. I have already seen quite a few of my class, so I think this year is going to be very good. It's a scary thought to be facing the hardest semester of my life. All the time during undergrad was spent focusing on just getting in to med school. Hardly any of that time was spent thinking about what life would be like if I did get in. To tell you all the truth, it's pretty darn scary from this end. I have a stack of books probably 2 feet by now (and that's not even all of them!). For all of you pre-meds out there, a word of advice: DON'T buy what the professors want you to have in your school's bookstore. Get it online if possible. I think all of the books I am supposed to have amount to $1000 for the semester, but I have been blessed to have two mentors who have generously offered their old books to me. Also, I didn't know that many textbooks have e-book versions that you can find online too. So, some interesting tidbits. Well, it's back to histo...no more slackin:-) Love ya all. Peace out!

So I'm finally feeling like a med student, well, sorta

Sorry for the lack of frequent blogging. I've been busy since last Thursday getting "oriented". It's been really good. As I was telling my good friend Shannon (how I love thee, let me count the ways), I am feeling truly cared for and appreciated here. Unlike some med schools (ahem, no names mentioned), by the time it's all said and done, I will have had 7 full days of pre-class orientation. We started out last Thursday going to a local lodge to hang out, do group get-to-know-you's, and basically just relax. Friday, the school actually brought in an etiquette and protocol expert to teach us how to dress, how to eat properly (in both American and Continental style, my my), and a bunch of other little goodies that I'm sure will come in handy in the near future. During those first two days, we also spent extensive time reviewing Meyers-Brigg personality tests that we had taken and applying those to the life we will have in medicine. It was quite interesting in some areas. I guess I didn't really realize that I was that much of an introvert (yes, surprise, surprise). It also talked about stuff that I wasn't so surprised at- like that I liked order and would get annoyed when things weren't so and I couldn't control them. Monday we met with college administration, all of whom seem quite helpful. This place is definately one that truly wishes their students to succeed. They do not have a "weed-out" procedure of any kind. Yesterday, I went to OMM lab (Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine) where we learned a few techniques. I think I am really going to enjoy that lab. It seems more relaxing than anything else. I also learned my CPR again, so apparently, I'll be able to save your life if need be:-) Today, we've been going over the rules of Anatomy lab and Histology lab and then we get some other goodies such as HIPAA training and sexual harassment classes. Such fun!
For those of you reading this who are still a couple steps away from med school, it has been wonderful moving to a different town and state; however, Monday was probably the first truly stressful day I had (can we say, car, computer, and life problems, not to mention ruined birthday?). I guess it was just a precursor to some of the stress that will be to come. All in all, I am so happy to be here and I have to say that it feels like the right place. Well, I'm off to class. Love and hugs to all! Mwah!

Home...?

Well, after several hectic weeks of wrapping things up and packing, I finally left the only state I've ever lived in and headed down to Cowboy territory, or is it Sooner? I guess that would depend on who you are talking to:-) It was really sureal driving into Oklahoma. It finally hit me that I had reached that ineveitable stage of life--adulthood. It's a weird feeling to realize that you have to take care of yourself now and that you are pretty much alone. I was expecting to feel like more of an outsider- well, at least a non-Oklahoman. I was expecting to stick out like a sore thumb with my "Yankee" accent, but Tulsa just seems like a hotter version of Indiana. It's really nice. After I had settled in a bit at my apartment, I hung out with Uncle Nathan and Aunt Kayse. I love my apartment. It's a half-basement apartment and all tiled. I really appreciate that because I won't have to worry about cleaning carpets. Today, I mostly unpacked. It's truly amazing how much junk I've managed to accumulate. I makes me think of just how materialistic I tend to be at times and it was a good reminder that I don't really need any of it. Speaking of material things, Nate and Kayse bought a new house. It's pretty amazing and they got a good deal on it. I have a feeling that I will be doing some housesitting in the near future and they are getting the urge to get out town. It should be interesting. I look forward to keeping everyone posted. Well, until another day, adieu!