Anyone else feeling down during 4th year?

[medgirl2016]

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Everyone always says 4th year of med school is the best, but I have not felt this way at all so far. It has been incredibly stressful dealing with the application process, constant traveling for interviews, and meeting new people and pretending to be enthusiastic about the programs. I feel inadequate on a daily basis and the prospect of being a doctor so soon is terrifying to me. I'm also somewhat of an introvert so I have felt awkward at most of the pre-interview social events and even sometimes during the interviews. I haven't loved most of the programs I've been to (matching in Ob/Gyn) and am just worried in general about the next stage in my career. I think it's just daunting not quite knowing what to expect during residency. I've also taken time off from doing rotations, so the days that I am not interviewing I often stay in bed for a long time. Has anyone else gotten cold feet or felt this way during their 4th year?

 

[Cinclus]

I'm not really terrified of being a doc soon (I am excited about beginning my specialty training), and I enjoy the interview days themselves and doing some exploring in the different locations, but yeah, elements of the traveling can be pretty tiring, frustrating, and lonely. Specifically being alone in hotels when I'm used to being at home with my partner and pets. I have enjoyed meeting other applicants and have quite liked and felt like I had a good fit with the vast majority of the programs I have visited. I am a bit anxious about constructing my ROL, but it's due to liking varied different things about each program and being unsure how to weight these things...should probably go with gut feeling. I also have these months off for interviewing, but I mostly get restless after being at home with nothing in particular to do; I have been focusing on my hobbies. Staying in bed all day sounds miserable. If your mood has also been low, maybe some counseling or psychiatric services are in order.

 

[eye love lamp]

The people who said fourth year was nothing but puppies and rainbows only selectively remember the short period AFTER match day (if they matched well and had a nice cash flow from daddy to go on fun vacations). Most of fourth year was very stressful worrying about if your four years of medical school would be all for nothing.

 

[starstarie]

Light box therapy

 

[Qwerty10]

Medgirl, I think you've described my entire experience thus far. You are definitely not alone.

 

[Dave89]

Fourth year is great if you've got a ton of money to blow on leisurely activity. If you're living on loans, having nothing to do for several months besides spending chunks of money on flights and hotels is a recipe for boredom - unless you like hiking, biking, and other free activities.

 

[gogodre]

I agree. I fail to see what's fun about this year. For me interviewing has been stressful. I always leave unsure of the impression I made and feeling like I could have answered the questions better. I also felt that during 3rd year I had a role on the medical team (or at least people were actively trying to foster that impression). In 4th year it seems like people just expect you to show up half the time and occasionally pretend to pay attention. I miss feeling useful.

 

[Slack3r]

4th year is a waste of time and money and wildly overrated.

 

[Dave89]

Interviews haven't been stressful; what's really eating at me is that this year is costing dozens of thousands of dollars. That is unconscionable.

 

[DocVapor]

Agreed, 4th year is terrible so far. Busting your a-- for the audition rotations, then jumping straight into travelling all over creation for several months until you can finally slow down after interviews are over. I'm even starting nights in the E.R. tonight. No-one told me that 4th years were going to have to work night shifts in the ER over Christmas.

I'm just waiting until my last interview is done. That's the promised land, and I set up my last couple rotations to make full use of my time before starting my intern year.

 

[Porfirio]

4th year is great for me. I have had time to go to the gym, read for fun, see my family, eat tons of food, help my fiancée plan our wedding, and play a ton of video games. I scheduled my interviews for 1 a week, so the travel has not been bad. The cost has been horrible, though.

I am applying EM, so I had to do away rotations for SLOEs. I did aways in different locations, and turned it into a vacation. I did some pretty fun stuff as each one. The cost was pretty high, but I was able to afford it on loans.

 

[235009]

No-one told me that 4th years were going to have to work night shifts in the ER over Christmas.

Welcome to the rest of your life in EM

 

[DocVapor]

Welcome to the rest of your life in EM

Working holidays is nothing new to me. I am also going into Anesthesia, not EM, so holiday call won't be as bad at where I hope to get a job.

It's just that as a 4th year, I am not a critical staff person in the ER. My EMS experience will help some, but again the chances someone will die if I am not in the ER over Christmas eve night is slim.

Edit: this is a required rotation for me, and I had other plans for the rest of the year's schedule, which is why I am doing it now.

 

[235009]

Working holidays is nothing new to me. I am also going into Anesthesia, not EM, so holiday call won't be as bad at where I hope to get a job.

It's just that as a 4th year, I am not a critical staff person in the ER. My EMS experience will help some, but again the chances someone will die if I am not in the ER over Christmas eve night is slim.

Edit: this is a required rotation for me, and I had other plans for the rest of the year's schedule, which is why I am doing it now.

In that case they might let you leave early if you pout hard enough. Also I guarantee you noone will die because you aren't in the ER. That goes for your whole rotation 😉

 

[J ROD]

Yeah, I don't see where 4th year is great but it has been better to me than the other years. I have more control over my schedule and what I do.

And, I did not have the costs and travel hell since I applied to a less competitive specialty. The stress of Step 2's and then doing all the interviewing and lastly praying you rank well and match do weigh one down.

It is not a piece a cake I was promised but it is better than any of the other years.