Happy in Med school - NOT

[velo]

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So which part of studying for more than 10 hours a day in the library makes you guys happy?

And when did this excessive memorization become analogous to "continuing education"?

And why are so many medical students out of shape and neurotic?

-b

Um, with the exception of these past 2.5 weeks spent studying for boards I have never spend 10 hrs/day in a library studying. First two years I would just go to class, study a few hours to keep up, and ramp the studying up a bit before the exam. I got mostly honors. And are you telling me you didn't have an hour a couple times a week to go to the gym? please.

Maybe the people who complain about studying all the time...A) just like to complain. or B) are no good at studying.

 

[typeB-md]

I don't know where you go but most of my classmates are fit and hot! I'm always embarrassed that I don't look as good as all of them....


type A's tend to be a little neurotic - that's just reality.

one last thing - it's called delayed gratification....you can't be ecstatic every second about what you're doing - sometimes you do **** because you'll use it down the road and it will make more sense at that time. Have faith that your hard work will be rewarded.

i'm familiar with delayed gratification which is why i am pleased with my decision to become a doctor but recognize that this doesn't necessarily mean i'm "happy in medical school."

 

[docsurglace]

People, people, people! Do you realize how blessed you are??? Oh how quickly we forget just how fortunate we all are to be accepted to a medical school! I bet you there are hundreds of rejected applicants that would trade places with you in a minute just to be in your shoes! I know times can get tough at school, but do not lose sight of the fact that you we given a "gift" when you opened that acceptance letter! 🙂

 

[typeB-md]

Um, with the exception of these past 2.5 weeks spent studying for boards I have never spend 10 hrs/day in a library studying. First two years I would just go to class, study a few hours to keep up, and ramp the studying up a bit before the exam. I got mostly honors. And are you telling me you didn't have an hour a couple times a week to go to the gym? please.

Maybe the people who complain about studying all the time...A) just like to complain. or B) are no good at studying.

i was not referring to myself, i have a photographic memory and rarely need to read through the notes more than twice.

i was just asking a general question.

and i am unsure as to where you go to school but where i'm at (top 10 school), the only way to achieve honors is either 1) photographic memory 2) excessive hours in the library studying. perhaps at other schoools this is not the case.

 

[velo]

and i am unsure as to where you go to school but where i'm at (top 10 school), the only way to achieve honors is either 1) photographic memory 2) excessive hours in the library studying. perhaps at other schoools this is not the case.

haha, oh it must be my school right? If you described your school as "top 10" mine is probably above it so lets not flex abitrary USnews nut over this.

I'm sorry, its just medical martyrdom is a pet peeve of mine. I hate how people always love to tell the people below them how hard it gets and how its way too much work, then you get there and find out its just fine. Its work, but not more than you were prepared to handle, and its really all very doable.

From your avator I see you like McCain, so we should be friend not foe. Best of luck with the rest of school!

 

[OSUdoc08]

So which part of studying for more than 10 hours a day in the library makes you guys happy?

And when did this excessive memorization become analogous to "continuing education"?

And why are so many medical students out of shape and neurotic?

-b

Who does that?

 

[velo]

Who does that?

and at long last we've found common ground 😀

 

[typeB-md]

haha, oh it must be my school right? If you described your school as "top 10" mine is probably above it so lets not flex abitrary USnews nut over this.

I'm sorry, its just medical martyrdom is a pet peeve of mine. I hate how people always love to tell the people below them how hard it gets and how its way too much work, then you get there and find out its just fine. Its work, but not more than you were prepared to handle, and its really all very doable.

From your avator I see you like McCain, so we should be friend not foe. Best of luck with the rest of school!

i like your style 👍

I will ask McCain's secretary to send you something nice on behalf of the Senator.

-md

 

[typeB-md]

Who does that?

you are excluded from this discussion because Goljan is your professor. Good professors make school much more fun.

 

[Mayhem]

So which part of studying for more than 10 hours a day in the library makes you guys happy?

And why are so many medical students out of shape and neurotic?

-b

I'd love to be lying to somebody but I've never studied 10 hours. The most I could cop to was 8 and that was back when I was trying to get to med school. Since then 5 hours is the average on a good day and that's more than enough for me.

Oh and i'm out of shape because I'm lazy. I have more than enough time to drag my ass to the gym but guess who won't?

 

[Hoya11]

Maybe the people who complain about studying all the time...A) just like to complain. or B) are no good at studying.

or
C) Are good at studying, but smart enough to realize its mostly BS and dont want to waste their time for an "honors" or whatever else you are in love with about yourself

I find your posts irritating and arrogant..

"God guys, cheer up, I never study and I am awesome!" "This is all completely reasonable" Hear no evil.

 

[Brickhouse]

or
C) Are good at studying, but smart enough to realize its mostly BS and dont want to waste their time for an "honors" or whatever else you are in love with about yourself

I find your posts irritating and arrogant..

"God guys, cheer up, I never study and I am awesome!" "This is all completely reasonable" Hear no evil.

I study hard (but <10hrs/day!) and I'm dead average. Does anyone care?

 

[angel80]

So which part of studying for more than 10 hours a day in the library makes you guys happy?

And when did this excessive memorization become analogous to "continuing education"?

And why are so many medical students out of shape and neurotic?

-b

I don't know about you, but I'm in the best shape of my life right now. Many of my classmates are in great shape too. Those who aren't in good shape probably wouldn't be in any better shape if they weren't in med school. The only time I spent 10 hours a day studying was for Step 1, and occasionally, the day before a big exam that I had decided to procrastinate for. As far as the neurotic part, neurotic people chose medicine. Medicine doesn't make people neurotic.

 

[velo]

or
C) Are good at studying, but smart enough to realize its mostly BS and dont want to waste their time for an "honors" or whatever else you are in love with about yourself

I find your posts irritating and arrogant..

"God guys, cheer up, I never study and I am awesome!" "This is all completely reasonable" Hear no evil

Goddamn it...I've been posting on SDN all this time for one reason and one reason only: To make Hoya11 like me. And now I've gone and ruined it. blast

Seriously though, defensive much? My post was about people who study all day and bitch about it. If these people are good at studying but think its mostly BS and there are more important things to do, than they won't waste their time studying all day will they? That takes those people out of the equation for the purposes of my post.

 

[Ypo.]

Well-there have been times this year that were awesome-and when I look back on how much I've accomplished I feel pretty good about it.

It sucks when all you do is study for tests. Anyone who has two tests a week in medical school knows what I'm talking about. I don't like having my life be unbalanced. That being said, I know if I was truly disciplined (ie-didn't waste so much time on SDN and just procrastinating doing other things) I could get a lot more done-the problem is when I get free time sometimes I just feel burnt out and lazy.

The time you actually spend doing productive studying in med school is greatly overexaggerated. You find out how to be really efficient-for me I have to write things down to commit them to memory. I make my own condensed handwritten notes several days before the test. That usually suffices to get an A in most classes. If it is a harder class, I make sure that I start learning the concepts earlier so that they have time to sink in.
My biggest complaint has been the test schedule.

But I have to say I think years one of medical school was crap punctuated with moments of happiness and excitement that I'm getting closer to my goal.

I think the best thing to do when you're feeling unhappy is to get away from the insanity of medical school. Seriously! I'm not one of those people who is only obsessed with medicine. I have a LOT of other interests and I like to take time to pursue them. That is why this year has been hard for me-the lack of time. But I know it will get better.

 

[Hoya11]

Goddamn it...I've been posting on SDN all this time for one reason and one reason only: To make Hoya11 like me. And now I've gone and ruined it. blast

Seriously though, defensive much? My post was about people who study all day and bitch about it. If these people are good at studying but think its mostly BS and there are more important things to do, than they won't waste their time studying all day will they? That takes those people out of the equation for the purposes of my post.

These people have no choice but to study so that they can compete with people like you.

Im sorry my posts have been offense towards you, im sure your a good guy.

Its just that I have yet to hear you say ANYTHING bad about med school, and I truly believe it is a majorly Fed up system, and that there are many others like you out there who do nothing but rationalize it.

 

[velo]

These people have no choice but to study so that they can compete with people like you.

Im sorry my posts have been offense towards you, im sure your a good guy.

Its just that I have yet to hear you say ANYTHING bad about med school, and I truly believe it is a majorly Fed up system, and that there are many others like you out there who do nothing but rationalize it.

Ok, that's fair, its not perfect. I just largely fail to see the great injustice of it all so, you're right, I tend to be pushed to the opposite extreme.

Its just that this is what I've always wanted to do, I feel very fortunate to be able to do what I've dreamed of doing since I was a kid, and I've always expected it to be pretty much as it is. I feel like we all knew the rules when we signed up-- its a lot of work, a lot of debt, but its doable...thousands of people do it just fine every year.

I also feel like, since undergrad, there's been this contingent of people bound for medicine who just love to play the martyr-- people who seem to enjoy playing the role of "perpetually stressed overworked student" whether there's actually enough work to justify that role or not.

To be fair though, I think one of our legit beefs with medical education is the cost. Student tuition is just a drop in the bucket of the total medical school budget, if everyone died and made me Dean, I'd drop or slash tuition--or at the very least during the clinical years when you play a role in patient care.

 

[chocomorsel]

Who does that?

Some of us need to study like this sometimes. We aren't all blessed with photographic memories. Ok, for me, this hasn't happenned much, but it has. And for the guys who are pulling honors in all their classes, not all of them have photographic memories. Trust me. Many study their behinds off.

 

[OSUdoc08]

Some of us need to study like this sometimes. We aren't all blessed with photographic memories. Ok, for me, this hasn't happenned much, but it has. And for the guys who are pulling honors in all their classes, not all of them have photographic memories. Trust me. Many study their behinds off.

You don't have to study in the library.

And 10 hours a day is excessive.

Learn to make high yield notes.

 

[Hoya11]

You don't have to study in the library.

And 10 hours a day is excessive.

Learn to make high yield notes.

Its not that 10 hours per day is less efficient, its probably just done in order to spend less days per week studying. Some people have regular studying 5-6 days a week for 6 hours/day. Just because someone studies in spurts does not mean they study more overall. It probably means they want more days off and want to just bite the bullet when they have to. I would personally think a routine 5 hours every day would be hell compared to 3-4 10 hour days.

 

[PikminOC]

So now that all these people who posted years ago are full fledged docs, are you happy now?

 

[CassieBagley]

nothing

 

[Geekchick921]

Hello,

I see lots of people post here saying they are happy after their first, second, etc year of med school.

Are you serious?????

What is it you like about med school?

My theory is the only people who like med school either worked at some crappy job between undergrad and med school or suffer from an incurable disease and thus are ridiculously optimistic about everything.

Yup, this actually is really helpful as far as being happy about medical school, even at the times when it sucks. Even the crappy days are better than the mind-numbingly boring jobs I had before it.

ETA: I didn't even realize the OP was 6 years old. Whoops.

 

[Pattycake25]

Hello,

I see lots of people post here saying they are happy after their first, second, etc year of med school.

Are you serious?????

What is it you like about med school?

My theory is the only people who like med school either worked at some crappy job between undergrad and med school or suffer from an incurable disease and thus are ridiculously optimistic about everything.

I enjoy a lot (not all) of the material I am learning, and I REALLY appreciate the company of my peers, who share a huge portion of my anxieties, hopes, and dreams. The price I pay is an intense workload, but it is worth it (especially since I will enjoy almost unparalleled job and financial security at the end of it, and it will be a career I love). If that's a diseased way of thinking, go ahead and diagnose me, but I'll skip the meds.

Edit: CRAP, usually don't get snagged by necros. =(

 

[chiz2kul]

I enjoy a lot (not all) of the material I am learning, and I REALLY appreciate the company of my peers, who share a huge portion of my anxieties, hopes, and dreams. The price I pay is an intense workload, but it is worth it (especially since I will enjoy almost unparalleled job and financial security at the end of it, and it will be a career I love). If that's a diseased way of thinking, go ahead and diagnose me, but I'll skip the meds.

lol thread was started 6 years ago brah

 

[tiedyeddog]

Yup, this actually is really helpful as far as being happy about medical school, even at the times when it sucks. Even the crappy days are better than the mind-numbingly boring jobs I had before it.

ETA: I didn't even realize the OP was 6 years old. Whoops.

Agreed. Seeing how the average job after college sucks for the average joe has really helped me out.

 

[chiddler]

i loved reading this thread.

i'd really enjoy more responses from students 👍

 

[urbanclassic]

I am actually really like medical school so far. Don't get me wrong, it's HARD, but I really enjoy learning about all the science/anatomy that is relavent to medicine... It's super interesting! I was a psych major, and all the science courses were not directly relavent, so learning about the human body is so fascinating to me.
I will say, I did have a crappy job for a year after undergrad, so I definitely am excited able my future outlook, and dealing with ACTUAL professionals of all aspects.

 

[epsilonprodigy]

I am actually really like medical school so far. Don't get me wrong, it's HARD, but I really enjoy learning about all the science/anatomy that is relavent to medicine... It's super interesting! I was a psych major, and all the science courses were not directly relavent, so learning about the human body is so fascinating to me.
I will say, I did have a crappy job for a year after undergrad, so I definitely am excited able my future outlook, and dealing with ACTUAL professionals of all aspects.

This. I feel like I've been complaining a lot lately, and to be honest, it all stems from fear... Fear of not honoring, not "making it" or finding myself to be the clueless one in a sea of geniuses. Let's face it, most of us have never seen such an aggregate of brilliant people as we have in med school. Whether you are comfortable admitting it it not, no longer being top dog can evoke some self-doubt.

Am I scared about not doing well enough? Hell yes, and sometimes THIS makes me unhappy. But in general, I enjoy the actual learning, my classmates and most of the faculty. I think the key to consistent happiness in med school is embracing the "P=MD" mentality, not because you want to skate by, but because you realize that not honoring an exam doesn't mean you didn't learn the material well, and doesn't mean you won't do well on the boards or be a good doctor. Wish I could take my own advice on that one!

 

[FunnyCurrent]

Hello,

I see lots of people post here saying they are happy after their first, second, etc year of med school.

Are you serious?????

What is it you like about med school?

My theory is the only people who like med school either worked at some crappy job between undergrad and med school or suffer from an incurable disease and thus are ridiculously optimistic about everything.

Is it that you are an unhappy medical student or that you are unhappy in medical school?

I am less happy while I am at school. But overall, I am a happy medical student. Maybe try compartmentalizing your life a bit more. I have scheduled hobbies, scheduled recreational classes, scheduled workouts, scheduled vacations, scheduled study breaks etc. Now that I am a second year I know exactly how much I need to prevent burnout. If you can schedule fun into your life you won't feel bad about working hard while studying because you always have something to look forward to.

 

[YH5]

Is it that you are an unhappy medical student or that you are unhappy in medical school?

I am less happy while I am at school. But overall, I am a happy medical student. Maybe try compartmentalizing your life a bit more. I have scheduled hobbies, scheduled recreational classes, scheduled workouts, scheduled vacations, scheduled study breaks etc. Now that I am a second year I know exactly how much I need to prevent burnout. If you can schedule fun into your life you won't feel bad about working hard while studying because you always have something to look forward to.

If he's still a medical student, my guess is that he's a VERY unhappy medical student.

 

[Abby_Normal]

I am pretty content in medical school, or at least I wouldn't classify it as a negative influence in my life. There have been aspects of medical school I have been very unhappy with, but for me that never translated into medical school = miserable. To be honest, in the moments in first year I found myself really not liking school it usually related less to anything going at school itself, but something else in my life.

Though I have sometimes wondered if my neutrality toward ridiculous workloads is more a matter of Stockholm Syndrome than anything else, thanks to having gone right from a high-workload undergrad to medical school.