Desensitizing as a Pre-Med

[rchapman200]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hi everyone! Recently, I have been discerning a career in medicine, and I am nervous about all of the "gross" aspects of medicine...

I am not an overly squeamish person. I can look at blood or organs, and I have even watched a few surgeries. However, broken bones and things stuck in bodily cavities really get to me (Carpal tunnel surgery was gross to watch). I don't have a desire to be a surgeon or an orthopedic physician, but I am still nervous about how I will react to these kinds of situations. I have a shadow set up with an ER physician in a couple months, but the thought just won't leave my mind.

I wanted to know what your thoughts are regarding desensitizing myself as a pre-med. How should I deal with my sensitivity to these types of injuries? Will medical school help to desensitize me more? Is there anything that is hard for you all to look at or think about?

 

[Cornfed101]

The more exposure you get to it the easier it gets. There are a ton of specialties that don't involve broken bones and things stuck in bodily cavities... in fact, that seems very specific. Why are you shadowing an ER physician since you have a higher likelihood of running into that? Why not shadow a PCP or another non-surgical specialty?

I have trouble hiding my facial expressions when I smell something off-putting... it is something I will have to get over.

 

[Med Ed]

I wanted to know what your thoughts are regarding desensitizing myself as a pre-med.

Or you could just continue working hard at school, socializing with friends, and perhaps dating someone nice.

 

[Rachapkis]

If you have not seen the TV show Doc Martin, I highly recommend it. It is about a highly successful, but irascible, surgeon who develops a fear of blood. The fear causes him to move to a sleepy village and become a sole practitioner.

 

[Doctor-S]

Hi everyone! Recently, I have been discerning a career in medicine, and I am nervous about all of the "gross" aspects of medicine...

I am not an overly squeamish person. I can look at blood or organs, and I have even watched a few surgeries. However, broken bones and things stuck in bodily cavities really get to me (Carpal tunnel surgery was gross to watch). I don't have a desire to be a surgeon or an orthopedic physician, but I am still nervous about how I will react to these kinds of situations. I have a shadow set up with an ER physician in a couple months, but the thought just won't leave my mind.

I wanted to know what your thoughts are regarding desensitizing myself as a pre-med. How should I deal with my sensitivity to these types of injuries? Will medical school help to desensitize me more? Is there anything that is hard for you all to look at or think about?

In time, you will grow accustomed to (and familiar with) certain things that cause you to feel squeamish such as broken bones.

You'll "be in the moment" and you won't be thinking about feeling queasy.

Instead, your exposure to different things in medicine will grow higher (more abundant) and you'll become increasingly resilient and desensitized to the things that may have caused you to feel squeamish in the past.

We've had med students and interns gag or faint when seeing a gaping wound gushing blood for the first time ... eventually they get over their squeamishness. Please don't faint on top of our patients, okay? 🙁

 

[Sleepingdoc]

Hi everyone! Recently, I have been discerning a career in medicine, and I am nervous about all of the "gross" aspects of medicine...

I am not an overly squeamish person. I can look at blood or organs, and I have even watched a few surgeries. However, broken bones and things stuck in bodily cavities really get to me (Carpal tunnel surgery was gross to watch). I don't have a desire to be a surgeon or an orthopedic physician, but I am still nervous about how I will react to these kinds of situations. I have a shadow set up with an ER physician in a couple months, but the thought just won't leave my mind.

I wanted to know what your thoughts are regarding desensitizing myself as a pre-med. How should I deal with my sensitivity to these types of injuries? Will medical school help to desensitize me more? Is there anything that is hard for you all to look at or think about?

Great now Ortho or general surgery is now eliminated ... great you are now narrowing down what you wanna do. I really hated wound care, feel like fainting during debridement.

 

[Blueprint Med School]

Plenty of squeamish pre-med and med students in the world. They go in to specialize in less squeemish specialities, and OR nurses understand that these students might need to sit on a stool during a particularly gory surgery.

David D, MD - USMLE and MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

 

[Medic741]

Hi everyone! Recently, I have been discerning a career in medicine, and I am nervous about all of the "gross" aspects of medicine...

I am not an overly squeamish person. I can look at blood or organs, and I have even watched a few surgeries. However, broken bones and things stuck in bodily cavities really get to me (Carpal tunnel surgery was gross to watch). I don't have a desire to be a surgeon or an orthopedic physician, but I am still nervous about how I will react to these kinds of situations. I have a shadow set up with an ER physician in a couple months, but the thought just won't leave my mind.

I wanted to know what your thoughts are regarding desensitizing myself as a pre-med. How should I deal with my sensitivity to these types of injuries? Will medical school help to desensitize me more? Is there anything that is hard for you all to look at or think about?

This is completely normal. Medical school will intellectualize these things to a point that they won’t bother you anymore.

You’ll also be n+2 years older, where n is your years to matriculation in medical school before you’ll be exposed to these things. Time maturing will also help as perspective tends to make things easier to cope with

 

[Isoval]

I've eaten while looking at what I can only describe as "butt spaghetti" (Ascaris lumbricoides).

You'll get used to it.

 

[deleted966164]

Get out of your comfort zone. Go tech in an ER, clean people covered in feces and flesh eating beetles...

 

[Cornfed101]

flesh eating beetles

Is this a common occurrence in your ER? I've only seen this in The Mummy...

 

[deleted966164]

Is this a common occurrence in your ER? I've only seen this in The Mummy...

It happens more often that we wished for. Usually older, neglected patients. 🙁

 

[82Scout]

Get out of your comfort zone. Go tech in an ER, clean people covered in feces and flesh eating beetles...

Y'all's ER has other things besides people with heartburn complaining of chest pain?

 

[deleted966164]

Y'all's ER has other things besides people with heartburn complaining of chest pain?

You know... we get the usual. I don’t think it’s any different. We get a good mix of normal cases and butt spaghetti lolz