Bad start to second semester.

[dnomla]

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Hello. I am a first year premed student. I have a 4.0 grade average in 21 credits, but I am not doing well this semester. I have gotten B's on everything in everyone of my 5 classes (18 hours).

I am studying more than I did first semester, and I am doing a lot worse. I know the stuff, but I am making errors when it comes time to take the tests.

Does anyone know how I can get back on track?

I really dislike school. Could my brain just be wearing down from a semester of hating life? I am trying to decide whether I should study more, or if I should just relax and try to enjoy life more.

I dont have any friends because I have unrealistic expectations of others and the world in general; I am too stuborn to hang out with people I dont respect and enjoy being around. I enjoyed the isolation for a while, but I am starting to wonder if it is decreasing my scholastic aptitude.

My other theory is that I no longer really care enough. I dont get nervous at all before tests like I did in the begining of my first semester. Maybe I am subconsciously realizing that it does not really matter, but I consciously still care a lot.

My third theory is that my switch from eye glasses to contact lenses has decreased my testing skills. Last semester I wore glasses (with small round lenses) during the week and saved my contacts for when I was doing things like swimming. I always thought that the glasses helped on tests because when wearing them I have very little perepherial vision due to the small lense size, so I was forced to focus on and only on the test.

I cant even type this post correctly. I keep typing stupid stuff like "know" when I mean "no".

I apologize if this is the wrong forum to post this type of thing, but I enjoy complaining about my life on the internet.

I have a physics test tommorow morning from 8:00-8:50. I will try to break my all B streak. I will be wearing my glasses in addition to a lucky belt and shirt. The test will have many easy questions, so my grade will be determined on my accuracy while rushed.

On a side note, do you ever feel like you are nothing but a chemical machine? I used to believe in a soul because of consciousness, but my subconsciousness is taking over to a point that I am having doubts. You know how when you are driving and talking to someone you drive completly subconsciously (you dont think, "I am going to turn", you just turn). Sometimes everything is that subconscious for me. It first happened on finals day; I got A's on them all, but I felt like I was watching myself take the tests from a 3rd person perspective. Everything was automatic and very little if any conscious thought took place. Sometimes it seems like my whole life is like this; just thoughtlessly perpetuating routines while my life passes by. These first few weeks have gone by fast.

 

[DrMom]

whoa! Way too serious for the lounge.

moving to the pre-allo forum...

 

[Will Ferrell]

Hey man- chill out. This is only the begining of the semester and a few B's never destroyed anyone. School and getting into med school is important, but it's not worth going bald over. Just stay confident, study, and appreciate however you do.

It's still your freshman year, so you shouldn't have a problem finding friends you fit in with. Brighten up your attitude and make academics appear to be not your lone value. I'm not saying to go wild, but a little time away from work and self-induced stress cheers you up and gives you a better attitude.

Don't think you're psychotic and losing your mind - it's typical of premeds their freshman year.

 

[virilep]

wow. this might be the first post ever moved from the lounge INTO pre-allo... but yeah. all u gotta do is chill out. grades will come. but u gotta make sure not to stress out... ur still in undergrad.

 

[synapse lapse]

You need to relax. Go out and find some friends, and get confortable with idea of disappointment, because we all fail at one thing or the other. It's only your first year of college, now you should be making friends and finding yourself. Stop stressing!

 

[Newman8r]

hahaha ahhhh you are hilarious, you remind me of a slightly younger me - except I fixed the problem BEFORE it affected any grades.

well, all you have to do is go to a psychiatrist and get some really cool medicine. Who knows, you might be a methylphenidate man, or maybe you are a benzo bro. Maybe you need some antidepressents, I'm not sure

yes, medication is the answer.... trust me, this is an awesomely easy way to fix your problems



ummm, but if you don't want to do that..... you could try meditation, yoga, more exercise, become more organized, find a better way to study, go to office hours if you don't, stuff like that.... but yeah, go with the medicine

 

[funshine]

you are the first troll that's made me laugh 😀

on the other hand, i think you're serious about your problems, despite the trollishnesss of your post (at least i hope 🙂 otherwise i'm just stupid)

you should definitely take up some non-academic, non-premed activities you really like. Then you'll have less time to worry about how to maximize your performance in classes, and i think you'll start getting your "scholastic aptitude" back.

 

[suruhanu]

As the previous posters have said: relax!! If you're planning on becoming a medical student, you need to learn how to juggle studying (lots of studying), a social life, and being able to take care of yourself. Medical school interviewers look at your personality, your competency, and how you will "fit in" with their particular medical school. Being a hermit and not socializing at all only hurts you in the long run (especially since your future profession requires great people skills). You're only in your first year of college, so you have plenty of time to figure all that out. My advice - do well in school ("well" meaning A's and B's - B's arent gonna kill you man, and neither are C's), get out more, make some friends, and enjoy college - it should be the best years of your life!!!

 

[dnomla]

I got a perfect score on the physics test.

I believe that I have diagnosed my problem in the other classes. During my first semester, most of my classes involved learning a very small number of concepts which others found difficult for some reason. For example, In general chem 2 we devoted a few weeks to acids and bases, and a few weeks on elementary nuclear chemistry. I understood these concepts immediately after they were presented, while others were never able to fully grasp the ideas. So the tests were easy and they were graded easy. Contrarily, my classes this semester involve learning a large number of very easy concepts. I know them, but so does everyone else, so it appears that I will have to study significantly more to retain my edge. (I also won’t turn my next organic chem test in an hour early, the careless errors killed me)

 

[Kazema]

Trooooooooooooooooooooolllllllllllllll

 

[Without Wax]

Hi dnomla

I also think you are a troll.

but anyway, if you are that stressed out, how about taking a year off, travel?

or spend a year in a foreign country as an exchange student, I heard many medical schools like that stuff.

I have a friend who spent a year at Oxford and he said it was the best time of his life.

 

[suruhanu]

i'm new to this site - what's a troll? thanks.

 

[tank you]

i think making friends will help u to feel better. then u will probably do better in classes.

 

[musiclink213]

everybody needs friends and social interaction. no matter what you do, you're going to need to learn to get along and cooperate with others, as well as trust them that they're not going to stab you in the back. personally, i think that is a bigger problem than getting a few B's. Because think about it, as a doctor, you'll be working with a bunch of other people: patients, nurses, residents, attendings, volunteers, janitors. you need to learn to trust them to do their job properly, the same way they're going to have to trust you. and it'll be hard for them to trust you if you constantly ignore them or don't respect them.

go find yourself some normal, non pre med friends, get insanely drunk one night, join intramural sports, and actually find a life outside of school. otherwise, you might just be the only 20 year old with gray hair.