Do medical students and doctors have time to pursue hobbies and have a social life?

[Perchperkins]

Hi folks! Hopefully I’m posting this in the right section. I’m a premed student and I love science. However, I also have other hobbies like painting, creative writing, hanging out with friends and what not. I understand that medical school is very demanding and that many students become burnt out. However, how much time do medical students usually have for hobbies? What about doctors?

I’ve heard so many mixed answers. If anyone would be so kind I’d love to hear what your weekly or daily schedule looks like. Thanks. :,)

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[deleted889094]

Absolutely. I spend just as much of my time on things outside medical school. If you're real clever, you can even done a way to make your hobbies work for your resume. I do some illustrations for some different educational stuff, for example.

 

[deleted1082375]

This year has been a no go. Second year has been insane. My profs have told me that things get back to normal after this semester though.

 

[mvsrocks]

Not a med student yet, but I'd think it would depend on your goal specialty and how competitive it is

 

[pBar]

Learn to carve out time for the things you love. That in part means, learning to be comfortable not always knowing everything in class or get perfect scores on evaluations. Once you learn to be comfortable with that and figure out how to prioritize what is most important to you, you can find the time. Easier said than done.

 

[Goro]

Hi folks! Hopefully I’m posting this in the right section. I’m a premed student and I love science. However, I also have other hobbies like painting, creative writing, hanging out with friends and what not. I understand that medical school is very demanding and that many students become burnt out. However, how much time do medical students usually have for hobbies? What about doctors?

I’ve heard so many mixed answers. If anyone would be so kind I’d love to hear what your weekly or daily schedule looks like. Thanks. :,)

Yes, they do. But keep in mind that especially for med students and residents, it won't be like before med school.

 

[deleted1079620]

Yes, but you have to be intentional with your schedule in order to make it happen. Some of your hobbies like creative writing and painting can be great stress relievers, which you will need.

 

[Gilakend]

The sentiment that is constantly said to me is that your life/lifestyle can really look (within reason, you have to work enough to cover overhead obviously) however you want it to. Work less, make less, but more free time.

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

Yes, but not as much as it was. I would say about 50% less.

 

[longhaul3]

In med school, absolutely. Way more free time than if you had a real full-time job. In residency, definitely a challenge depending on your specialty. Pick one or two hobbies and spend a few hours a week doing them. After that, it completely depends on what your practice looks like.

 

[FlowRate]

It's variable with your own personal study efficiency, the rigor of your courses/rotations/residency/attending responsibilities, and your personal goals. Many of the best docs I've known intentionally make time to do things that aren't medicine.

There will absolutely be periods of time during the med school and residency process in which you have very little free time. But those periods of time, for most, will be measured in days or weeks, not typically months.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

not as much as before med school, and it varies depending on the block or rotation. But even in busy blocks I was still able to keep up some of my hobbies to some degree. I start surgery in a month and am not expecting much free time, but I’m still gonna make some effort.

 

[CaptainZeki]

One of my favorite hobbies is scuba diving. And guess what I’m doing next week? Hehe

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

One of my favorite hobbies is scuba diving. And guess what I’m doing next week? Hehe

One of my classmates got her solo skydiving cert during M1 and 2.

 

[CaptainZeki]

One of my classmates got her solo skydiving cert during M1 and 2.

Ooo always wanted to try skydiving.
Depending on how Covid plays out, I may pursue my divemastership next summer!

 

[Detailsmatter]

you most definitely can. Its all about managing your schedule because at the end of the day your academics have to take priority. I feel like most people who "spend all day studying" are actually just inefficient with their studying. It could be that they just have to work that much harder but honestly I find that pretty rare in my classmates. You really should not be studying more than 8, absolute max 10 hours per day (actual study not just wasting time). In essence its like a full time job and you should have time for everything you want to do as long as you plan for it

 

[hmockingbird]

Med school yes, although personally my brain (and eyes) couldn’t handle reading and writing after doing mostly text-based studying all day. I did more photography and watching movies. Residency even more time limited but it depends on the rotation too. I traveled internationally every year in residency during my vacations. As an attending definitely. I also chose not to do a fellowship in part bc I wanted to work seriously on my writing career instead.
My advice would be time management and working on your study skills so you study smarter not harder.

 

[Sky138]

Absolutely. I spend just as much of my time on things outside medical school. If you're real clever, you can even done a way to make your hobbies work for your resume. I do some illustrations for some different educational stuff, for example.

Teach me your ways XD

Question for you guys: Are you guys using anki and if you are, are you keeping up with all your reviews? Between the 1300 cards per day, class, and research, I don't really have that much time for much.

 

[deleted889094]

Teach me your ways XD

Question for you guys: Are you guys using anki and if you are, are you keeping up with all your reviews? Between the 1300 cards per day, class, and research, I don't really have that much time for much.

I only use Anki but I don't keep up with all reviews. I figure I can just skim first aid now that I've seen the material a few times already.

 

[Detailsmatter]

Teach me your ways XD

Question for you guys: Are you guys using anki and if you are, are you keeping up with all your reviews? Between the 1300 cards per day, class, and research, I don't really have that much time for much.

Typically I do like a 9-5 or 8-5 schedule. Reviews will take 2-2.5 hours. Then like an hour or so for the board relevant stuff and anki for that days lectures. If needed, 2 hours to watch in house lectures on 2x. Then that leaves about 2 hours to do research a day which I kinda use as a flexible time. I can work on research or I can do practice questions etc. Just kinda whatever I need for that day

 

[sarine]

I decided to put my mental health first and sleep at least 12 hours a day