Effects of Medical School/Training

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JimmyB123

JimmyB123

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I'm pretty curious to hear responses from people in medical school, or perhaps applying for residency, or even further long in their medical training. I know it is sometimes difficult to compare your present self with who you were in the past, but do you think medical school/training has changed you in certain ways? If so, how?
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Only an Ms2, so no clue how I'll change in coming years. But so far, it's definitely changed me...any difficult experience does.

Not sure how to really describe it...I feel more burnt out, but I also feel like I'm stronger mentally and emotionally having gone through the things I did.
 
I've contracted cynicism.
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Well, I've only been in one semester but I have noticed some changes in myself...

- I've become more impatient with people and I value my time a lot more now. I don't know why I've become more easily irritated. :/

- Little things that used to upset me just kinda roll off or have a minor effect on my mood. I think as you get exposed to more stress you just stop caring about the little things so much.

- I'm better at working in groups and doing things outside of my comfort zone now.

-I've become even more introverted and reclusive. I tend to close myself off under stress. Sometimes I just don't want to talk to people or see anyone, it's getting kinda hard.

- I might be developing a bit of a depression. I just don't feel things emotionally anymore. It's like things that would arouse some kind of emotion just kind of wash over me these days or the effect is dull relative to what I used to feel.

This kinda paints a bleak picture but I do think I've grown as a person and changed for the better.
 
Smurfette said:
My handwriting has gotten worse.

and I sometimes discuss things in public that I forget aren't normal conversation topics for most people.
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I am truly curious to see if my handwriting will decay. I won't be under the same writing constrains that classes above me were as computers continue to become more and more implemented. I also am pretty anal about my handwriting. But everyone tells me it will happen.
 
JVav said:
I am truly curious to see if my handwriting will decay. I won't be under the same writing constrains that classes above me were as computers continue to become more and more implemented. I also am pretty anal about my handwriting. But everyone tells me it will happen.
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My school is pretty much completely integrated into electronics so the only time I ever use a pen is to pay my rent at the end of the month. Yes, my handwriting has reverted to elementary school status.
 
JVav said:
I am truly curious to see if my handwriting will decay. I won't be under the same writing constrains that classes above me were as computers continue to become more and more implemented. I also am pretty anal about my handwriting. But everyone tells me it will happen.
Click to expand...

Mine is still legible, just not nearly as nice as it once was, except my signature, which has become a few legible letters followed by a squiggly line. When signing prescriptions, FMLA paperwork, miscellaneous insurance forms and other crap all day, signing my name in a quick scribble sort of just happened.
 
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TheShaker said:
Well, I've only been in one semester but I have noticed some changes in myself...

- I've become more impatient with people and I value my time a lot more now. I don't know why I've become more easily irritated. :/

- Little things that used to upset me just kinda roll off or have a minor effect on my mood. I think as you get exposed to more stress you just stop caring about the little things so much.

- I'm better at working in groups and doing things outside of my comfort zone now.

-I've become even more introverted and reclusive. I tend to close myself off under stress. Sometimes I just don't want to talk to people or see anyone, it's getting kinda hard.

- I might be developing a bit of a depression. I just don't feel things emotionally anymore. It's like things that would arouse some kind of emotion just kind of wash over me these days or the effect is dull relative to what I used to feel.

This kinda paints a bleak picture but I do think I've grown as a person and changed for the better.
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I'm almost finished and it's interesting to hear that others feel at once much more impatient with less emotional reactivity, while also having an robust ability to deal with the continual frustrations (oh you didn't do that thing we asked you to do 1 million times....whatever I'm not even mad I'll just do it myself...)

Overall I have grown and I am not sheltered (took years off, worked my whole life, from poor family)...I did well but man med school can take its toll. It's gets harder and harder to stay true to yourself, your core.

Best of luck
 
M1 it was easy, but boring

M2 it was easy, but Step 1 was annoying/sad times/waste of time

M3 started off fun because you are "finally learning medicine," but as the year goes on you get tired of the constant extra **** you have to do, constantly changing the way you present a patient to make someone else happy, constantly having to try to be "friends" with the interns and residents when many of them are very unhappy people, and having to constantly hear "you guys have it so easy these days, well back in my day" from the attendings as they pimp you over things that: 1) are guidelines and change from era to era, 2) have nothing to do with medicine or the patient, 3) are tiny details that no one cares about except their little branch of research. You just have to keep going, and have some fun along the way. M3 is the worst when it comes to having a life outside of medicine, but it is an intense time of learning and seeing medicine (much of it that you will never see again).

M4 not sure yet, I start in 2 months

My medical school experience has been a roller coaster - live for the highs, and hold on for the lows.
 
Smurfette said:
and I sometimes discuss things in public that I forget aren't normal conversation topics for most people.
Click to expand...

This.

Maybe it's a surgeon thing but I've realized that sometimes I talk about pus and other unsavory things during meals and only the surgeons at the table don't think twice about it.
 
A couple things, as an MS3 finishing up 3rd year:
1. Changed the way I value time. In college I would spend time to save money; In med school and beyond, I'm spending money to save time.
2. Got used to making huge decisions I'm not prepared to make. Little things you do in med school determine the rest of your life. You can't possibly have the knowledge equipped to handle every decision.
3. Started getting respect. It's funny to think about now, but there was a finite point I can recall where I started taking on meaningful authority/leadership roles and gaining respect. As a traditional-track student who had previously had no reason to be looked at this way (i.e. most authority I'd held was a club fair in college), this was a bit of a personal transformation for me.
 
JimmyB123 said:
I'm pretty curious to hear responses from people in medical school, or perhaps applying for residency, or even further long in their medical training. I know it is sometimes difficult to compare your present self with who you were in the past, but do you think medical school/training has changed you in certain ways? If so, how?
Click to expand...

I'm a resident now. I definitely want to smack the pre-med jerk in myself. Medicine is humbling and year after year you grow in a certain way and realize that the way you judge others for their accomplishments and their choices says a lot about you, not them. Medical school me was also a jerk with a shorter fuse. Believe it not, residency mellowed me out. Check back with me in a few years 😉
 
1) Medicine is humbling.

2) In contrast to some others above me, I find myself actually being more patient. I think it's a combination of my preceptor being a pediatrician and my wife occasionally berating me when I get irritable at having to change my schedule.

3) I've mellowed out in general.

4) I've gotten a little chubby around the waistline.

5) I really, really value holidays and vacation.

6) I make much better use of my time.

7) My handwriting was never legible, and I don't foresee any improvements.

8) I appreciate sun and warmth a lot more. Residency in FL or CA, or bust?

9) Med school makes me feel dumb in spite of having learned a bunch already.

10) In general, I have fewer ****s to give than ever before.
 
NeuroSpeed said:
Truthfully, one of the most profound changes in myself that I have noticed since starting 3rd year, is how much more I enjoy and appreciate a nice, quiet, relaxed bowel movement.

I also bet I am not the only one.
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I began reading that sentence with a different expectation on how it would end. Thank you for sharing though.
 
So as someone finishing their 3rd year:

I have stopped idealizing medicine and have realized how limited it is.

I have realized the importance of my faith, family, and friends and have learned to give these areas of my life priority over school.

I have learned that enjoying the journey is just as important as the end point. This is true especially in medicine where the end point is so far away and so uncertain.

I have learned that it's okay to not know everything and it's more important to realize that you don't know everything. Humility is a very important trait for those that want to be happy in medicine.

Like others, I have learned that time is a MUCH more valuable resource than money. Especially time well spent.

I have come to value sleep more than I ever have before.

I am a totally different person than when I started med school and I am SO thankful for that. Med school has made me grow emotionally and spiritually.
 
MS4 here, so can't speak for residency.

But overall I don't think medschool has impacted me badly and more importantly my spouse would agree. Medschool itself is not terrible if you find cool people you connect with and don't make school the most important thing in your life. I could see medschool being absolutely miserable, but if you surround yourself with non-gunners it can be an awesome time.

It does change you some though, so much of medschool (and medicine) is about finding whats important and not getting distracted by non-important stuff, so sometimes I feel internal frustration with spouse or family members when we are trying to plan or decide something and they just wont get to the point.

Some things about medschool really suck though, I hate that as a clinical student your always out of your element and as soon as you understand how some clinic/service works your back to going somewhere else and you dont even know where to find the fax machine 🙁, let alone how to deal with this new type of patient that your attending has spent decades working with.
 
Sirach38 said:
I have learned that enjoying the journey is just as important as the end point. This is true especially in medicine where the end point is so far away and so uncertain.
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So true. This is a huge thing for me too. Sometimes I feel that the "end point" of medical school is just a series of misunderstandings and unrealistic expectations of what the future holds. The land of milk and honey is just a moving target. When you're in undergrad, you feel you've "made it" in med school, until you realize you haven't. Then in residency. Then in your job. Then...something new.

Enjoying the journey is the only way to be happy.
 
kirbymiester said:
So true. This is a huge thing for me too. Sometimes I feel that the "end point" of medical school is just a series of misunderstandings and unrealistic expectations of what the future holds. The land of milk and honey is just a moving target. When you're in undergrad, you feel you've "made it" in med school, until you realize you haven't. Then in residency. Then in your job. Then...something new.

Enjoying the journey is the only way to be happy.
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100% how I feel. If one isn't happy now, the future is unlikely to be much different unless something within changes.
 
kirbymiester said:
So true. This is a huge thing for me too. Sometimes I feel that the "end point" of medical school is just a series of misunderstandings and unrealistic expectations of what the future holds. The land of milk and honey is just a moving target. When you're in undergrad, you feel you've "made it" in med school, until you realize you haven't. Then in residency. Then in your job. Then...something new.

Enjoying the journey is the only way to be happy.
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Well said.
 
i now say penis and vagina more than i say d ! ck and pu $$ y. and I've begun to think that most people are stupid. and beginning to understand why doctors are @$$ holes.
 
TheShaker said:
Squatting?? What are we, animals?
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Arabs? Persians?

Before some ignorant fool attempts a character assassination and calls me racist or some other foolishness...In my travels in the middle east, the common denominator was the squat "toilet" situation.
 
WhippleWhileWeWork said:
Arabs? Persians?

Before some ignorant fool attempts a character assassination and calls me racist or some other foolishness...In my travels in the middle east, the common denominator was the squat "toilet" situation.
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You have inspired me to do more research, and I have come across this: http://squattypotty.com/

Both form and function!


Anyway, I was dead serious about my post earlier, for anyone that thinks it was a joke or I was trying to troll. Here's why for anyone that can't get past the "ewwie" part.
1) It is guaranteed ALONE time, whether in clinc/hospital/at home.
2) It is a great stress reliever, especially after double-booking of patients put you 2 hours behind.
3) It can give you a few minutes to check up on texts or voicemails from family and such
4) If you do insist on thinking about medicine, it often can clear your mind point you in the right direction
5) There are more great things about it that I thought about earlier, but are slipping my sleepy mind right now.
 
WhippleWhileWeWork said:
Arabs? Persians?

Before some ignorant fool attempts a character assassination and calls me racist or some other foolishness...In my travels in the middle east, the common denominator was the squat "toilet" situation.
Click to expand...

I was gonna do that, but facetiously. I think it's pretty common in Asia as well.
 
Sirach38 said:
So as someone finishing their 3rd year:

I have stopped idealizing medicine and have realized how limited it is.

I have realized the importance of my faith, family, and friends and have learned to give these areas of my life priority over school.

I have learned that enjoying the journey is just as important as the end point. This is true especially in medicine where the end point is so far away and so uncertain.

I have learned that it's okay to not know everything and it's more important to realize that you don't know everything. Humility is a very important trait for those that want to be happy in medicine.

Like others, I have learned that time is a MUCH more valuable resource than money. Especially time well spent.

I have come to value sleep more than I ever have before.

I am a totally different person than when I started med school and I am SO thankful for that. Med school has made me grow emotionally and spiritually.
Click to expand...

Agree with the above.

Especially the bolded.
 
Winged Scapula said:
This.

Maybe it's a surgeon thing but I've realized that sometimes I talk about pus and other unsavory things during meals and only the surgeons at the table don't think twice about it.
Click to expand...
when i am lunching at school with my colleagues, sometimes the conversation invariably dwells into sordid details of clinical practice. i go unphased by it. And i double down until someone says, "please we are eating"
 
kirbymiester said:
A couple things, as an MS3 finishing up 3rd year:
1. Changed the way I value time. In college I would spend time to save money; In med school and beyond, I'm spending money to save time.
2. Got used to making huge decisions I'm not prepared to make. Little things you do in med school determine the rest of your life. You can't possibly have the knowledge equipped to handle every decision.
3. Started getting respect. It's funny to think about now, but there was a finite point I can recall where I started taking on meaningful authority/leadership roles and gaining respect. As a traditional-track student who had previously had no reason to be looked at this way (i.e. most authority I'd held was a club fair in college), this was a bit of a personal transformation for me.
Click to expand...
you started gaining respect as a ms3? LIARRRRRR!
 
TheShaker said:
Well, I've only been in one semester but I have noticed some changes in myself...

- I've become more impatient with people and I value my time a lot more now. I don't know why I've become more easily irritated. :/

- Little things that used to upset me just kinda roll off or have a minor effect on my mood. I think as you get exposed to more stress you just stop caring about the little things so much.

- I'm better at working in groups and doing things outside of my comfort zone now.

-I've become even more introverted and reclusive. I tend to close myself off under stress. Sometimes I just don't want to talk to people or see anyone, it's getting kinda hard.

- I might be developing a bit of a depression. I just don't feel things emotionally anymore. It's like things that would arouse some kind of emotion just kind of wash over me these days or the effect is dull relative to what I used to feel.

This kinda paints a bleak picture but I do think I've grown as a person and changed for the better.
Click to expand...
Was I the only one that read this and thought that the each bullet point contradicted the previous one?

I'm more impatient and easily irritated - but the little things just roll off me

I work better in groups and going outside my comfort zone but don't want to talk or see anyone while also becoming more reclusive and closed off.

I feel less emotion, bleak picture of me, I think I have become depressed; I have grown and changed as a person for the better.

Wtf.
 
Tman90 said:
Well if that's the kind of stuff I'll learn in medical school I can see how it can be life changing
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i never learned that in med school, but i learned that medicine knowledge is a long life achievement
 
slopes23 said:
Was I the only one that read this and thought that the each bullet point contradicted the previous one?

I'm more impatient and easily irritated - but the little things just roll off me

I work better in groups and going outside my comfort zone but don't want to talk or see anyone while also becoming more reclusive and closed off.

I feel less emotion, bleak picture of me, I think I have become depressed; I have grown and changed as a person for the better.

Wtf.
Click to expand...

Hah, got a good chuckle. Didn't think twice at first pass.
 
slopes23 said:
Was I the only one that read this and thought that the each bullet point contradicted the previous one?

I'm more impatient and easily irritated - but the little things just roll off me

I work better in groups and going outside my comfort zone but don't want to talk or see anyone while also becoming more reclusive and closed off.

I feel less emotion, bleak picture of me, I think I have become depressed; I have grown and changed as a person for the better.

Wtf.
Click to expand...
Med school definitely hasn't been good for his dissociative identity disorder.
 
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