Just realized I haven’t posted anything this month. I’m such a gunner, you guys. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the term, Urban dictionary defines “gunner” as:
A person who is competitive,overly-ambitious and substantially exceeds minimum requirements. A gunner will compromise his/her peer relationships and/or reputation among peers in order to obtain recognition and praise from his/her superiors.
Ex. That chick in the front row of our class who always raises her hand, takes on additional assignments, and wrote a 25 page answer on our final when all that was required was 10 pages is such a gunner.
Thank you, Urban dictionary. I hope that cleared things up. And helped you understand that I’m so NOT a gunner. But hey, at least it’s still January and I haven’t totally missed the deadline.
Anyway, January has been interesting. We started out the semester with a Pharm exam. It was a pretty relaxed week for me since all I had to do was study for that. But half our our class also had to do ACLS training (which required 10ish hours of class time), so that made it a stressful week for them. I did ACLS training the next week, right after our Path exam. I thought I’d hate it, because I generally don’t love stressful situations or making quick decisions. But I ended up loving the simulation stuff! It was pretty fun to be “in charge” and say stuff that makes you sound like a doctor on Scrubs or Grey’s Anatomy. Pretty surreal to think that we could potentially save someone’s life one day, thanks to that training.
We also had St. Vitus (aka med school prom) thrown in the mix. I missed most of it since I was across the street at a wedding, but I caught the last 45 minutes or so and I think everyone had a blast!
The Muncie group pre-gaming before St. Vitus. I was at the wedding, but they look like they had a blast!
Everyone has Step 1 on their mind right now. Most of us are taking it late May or early June, before rotations start on June 8. I think the 2 key things I’ve learned this month is:
1) Throw out preconceived notions. Don’t go into anything assuming you’ll love it or hate it, because you never know until you try!
It’s pretty fun learning new things about yourself and easier to do so if you don’t already have a bias (or are at least open to changing your opinion).
3/4 of Table 6 during the last bit of St. Vitus
2) Med school is one aspect of your life, not your whole life. I think this is a lesson worth re-learning as often as necessary. This semester, I know Step 1 will threaten to take over everyone’s lives. But I’m determined not to let it. Thankfully I have some great friends who are on the same page…so we’re still going on walks in the snow and watching movies and hanging out…instead of spending all our time studying. Life/work balance is so important. Remember to take care of yourself, workout, sleep, and enjoy your life!! You only get one chance at this adventure, so enjoy it!
That’s all for now, amigos!
