How do you maintain a healthy lifestyle while on rotations? sleep, food, stress,

[nope80]

---

Members don't see this ad.

I'm wondering from those that have gone through 3rd year or have begun, what are some keys to maintaining a healthy lifestyle? I am starting obgyn this monday and am already freaking out about the 5:45 am arrival in the hospital, the week of night float, and how I will ever exercise and get enough sleep. I'm definitely one of those people that needs every bit of sleep and so I'm wondering, for those like myself, when you have to wake at 5 am when do you go to bed? If we get back around 5:30 pm and sleep at like 10 pm it seems like you almost have very little time to decompress, eat, study, exercise. Any ideas on how to try to balance this? Also, what to people typically bring for lunch - do we even have a formal lunch time or is it eat on the go mostly?

Any advice would be appreciated!!

 

[Rendar5]

you may have to forgo exercise for a couple weeks and eat on the run until you get into the groove of the rotation. If you're getting up at 5, you should be going to sleep at 9pm whenever you can. Yeah I know that sounds early and it is, but learn to adapt to healthy sleep patterns. There's no reason to not get enough sleep ON AVERAGE while on a rotation.

 

[jtlc2345]

As most clinical students I know say, you don't know the definition of tired until you start on the wards.

I always try to make sure that I have at least half a day (ideally a whole day) a week which is a medicine-free zone. Regarding sleep, I always try to make sure I go to bed 7 hours before needing to wake up. The other tip I've picked up is to take every little break during the day that you can - so if your intern/resident/attending tells you to go for coffee, lunch or even home, say 'thank you very much' and politely take your leave.

We don't have formal lunch times as such, you just eat when you can.

Hope this helps

Good luck!

Jonathan

 

[SouthernSurgeon]

I'm wondering from those that have gone through 3rd year or have begun, what are some keys to maintaining a healthy lifestyle? I am starting obgyn this monday and am already freaking out about the 5:45 am arrival in the hospital, the week of night float, and how I will ever exercise and get enough sleep. I'm definitely one of those people that needs every bit of sleep and so I'm wondering, for those like myself, when you have to wake at 5 am when do you go to bed? If we get back around 5:30 pm and sleep at like 10 pm it seems like you almost have very little time to decompress, eat, study, exercise. Any ideas on how to try to balance this? Also, what to people typically bring for lunch - do we even have a formal lunch time or is it eat on the go mostly?

Any advice would be appreciated!!

1) I'm jealous of your start time. On OB I was usually there before 5am
2) Your choice for sleep is to go to bed absurdly early like some of my classmates (7-8pm even for some), or to lose some hours
3) No, there is no "lunch time" on a rotation like OB or surgery. On medicine, peds, and other rotations you might have a protected noon conference time where lunch is provided
4) You will have very little time to decompress. The hardest part about a surgery rotation is finding a way to study when you get home and are already exhausted.
5) The stereotype you always hear is that during third year, the guys lose weight and the girls gain weight. This can be avoided, but it is tough. The first rotation or two it is really hard to find a balance.

 

[45408]

I usually got to the hospital by 5:15 or 5:30 on OB, so I was waking up around 4:30. For that, I'd go to bed around 10:30 or 11. I should get more sleep, but then you don't have as much free time later. Did I exercise often? Nope.

There was never a designated "lunch time," except for the occasional conference, but you can usually find a good time for it. The week of night float should be interesting - we just had traditional call. You'll probably catch a lot of babies.

 

[Law2Doc]

I'm wondering from those that have gone through 3rd year or have begun, what are some keys to maintaining a healthy lifestyle? I am starting obgyn this monday and am already freaking out about the 5:45 am arrival in the hospital, the week of night float, and how I will ever exercise and get enough sleep. I'm definitely one of those people that needs every bit of sleep and so I'm wondering, for those like myself, when you have to wake at 5 am when do you go to bed? If we get back around 5:30 pm and sleep at like 10 pm it seems like you almost have very little time to decompress, eat, study, exercise. Any ideas on how to try to balance this? Also, what to people typically bring for lunch - do we even have a formal lunch time or is it eat on the go mostly?

Any advice would be appreciated!!

It's simple really. You eat what you can when you can. Your exercise will consist of taking the stairs instead of the elevator throughout the day. You sleep however long you can without compromising some unwinding and study time each day. If that means you get 5 1/2 hours of sleep instead of seven, you will survive, even for very long stretches (residents and people with newborns do this for months). You will just be a more tired, but better balanced individual. Isolating yourself by doing nothing but work, sleep, work etc, probably adds to the stress level IMHO. Most stress is self imposed, due to discomfort over being pimped and scolded, or because you don't know things you feel like you ought to know. Develop a thick skin, work hard to improve on any obvious rotation shortcomings, and study as much as possible for the shelf and know that that is about all you can do -- once you buy into this the stress will largely go away.

 

[funshi baba]

instead of waiting till you get home to read up on stuff. If u have the time, look it up right there. that saves u few minutes when u revisit it. How tired u are dictates when u go to bed. Dont worry, after abt a week, u will figure out what time u need to be in bed.

Rotations differs, so u will have to adjust based on the hours. The shorter the hours of work, the better obviously.

My hrs now as an AI is nothing like my 3rd yr. my 3rd yr was laid back but right now, i go to bed around 10-11p (get home around 7p) and get up 3:45a becuase i still ahve to drive 40mins to hospital and pre-round before 6:15a. Anxiety is a norm at the beginnig of each rotation, but u will get past that and kind of figure it out.

good luck

 

[Substance]

Accept and acknowledge your difficult, tired, life during your med III years. Also know that if you select a non-lifestyle field in residency, your life will become even more difficult and tired...if you can't live with that, better get crackin' on the ROAD.

 

[ZagDoc]

I'm on surgery. We have 35 patients on our census. "Healthy" went flying out the window.

 

[penguin24]

It's impt to study when u get home & not give in to the tired feeling, b/c the shelf will creep up.
I still exercised my usual routine during M3, although there were some awkward hours (getting up at 4am sometimes to go running), but that's only during select parts of surgery/OB.

 

[basupran]

I have been a workout fiend for 10 years now and was able to maintain a workout schedule throughout med school. Everyone said it was impossible, that I would not be able to maintain my strength throughout med school but I found that to be a lie. Many of those that didn't 'have time' for the gym were able to talk about last nights american idol. Instead of TV, I went to the gym.

There were times where I had a harder time making it to the gym, but I still made sure I got there at least 3x/wk. During my AIs, I would work 130 hours a week...yes, 130 hours a week. I was q3 no post-call, days started at 5am and ended at 9-10pm unless you were on call. I still made sure I hit the gym no matter what. I stopped cardio during this time because I was already in a constant catabolic state.

Diet:
Everyone has a different idea of a healthy diet, but my goal was to eat 20-30 grams of protein every 3-5 hrs. This was not always possible, but I would always pack a lot of food in the 'cave' and much on something in between cases. My days would start at 5am and run till 9pm + q3 no post-call. I still managed to eat reasonably healthy during this time period and I was vegetarian for over half this month. I would carry cottage cheese, protein bars, milk, etc and keep it in my 'cave' so I would always have access to food. Oftentimes, I kept a quick snack in my pocket for 'emergency' situations.

Exercise:
During psych, I was able to go 5-6x/wk but during my surgery rotation, I was down to 3-4x/wk. During your busy rotations, you will oftentimes get out at 9pm or so. I just went straight to the gym after the rotation and would read for cases in between sets. I am sure that I looked ridiculous, but I could care less. I was going to go to the gym, and nothing was going to stop me....not even school.



With dedication, anything is possible. My grades did not suffer but probably went up because I went to the gym...it was my source of clarity in life.

 

[J1515]

During my AIs, I would work 130 hours a week...yes, 130 hours a week. I was q3 no post-call, days started at 5am and ended at 9-10pm unless you were on call.
.

That's really not that bad. I was on call q2 with no post call days and worked 160 hour weeks. 3am-11pm daily including weekends.

 

[basupran]

Meh....

 

[funshi baba]

That's really not that bad. I was on call q2 with no post call days and worked 160 hour weeks. 3am-11pm daily including weekends.

tell me both of you got in at these particular places.

 

[psipsina]

I have food sensitivities/allergies so I have to bring all my food with me to the hospital (there is nothing safe for me in a cafeteria or vending machine). It is more expensive because I can't take advantage of free meals in the doctors lounge or resident discounts at the cafeteria but I do eat really really healthily. I keep protein bars and pure fruit snacks in my whitecoat pocket and bring some super healthy wraps with me. For dinners I try to make something that will last 3-4 days so most days of the week is just about microwaving. I'm also a big fan of the forman grill. Its totally possible with some commitment.

 

[NucleusAccumben]

That's really not that bad. I was on call q2 with no post call days and worked 160 hour weeks. 3am-11pm daily including weekends.

Does the 80 hour work rule not apply to medical students while doing an AI? Just curious.🙂

 

[pseudoknot]

Does the 80 hour work rule not apply to medical students while doing an AI? Just curious.🙂

There are no legal work hour restrictions for medical students, although some schools have them.

Note that 3am-11pm x7 is 140 hours per week, not 160 (there are only 168 hours total). I find that claim a little hard to believe and even if true, it's an extreme outlier.

 

[FictionalGirl]

It's tough, but you just have to figure out how to balance the rotation with the rest of your life. A lot of people suggest getting to sleep earlier, which I found difficult, no matter how tired I was, since I'm just naturally a later riser. So I was a little more tired, on top of it I had a knee injury and couldn't exercise. Sooooo.... I still managed to stay healthy (as much as possible) during my inpatient IM rotation, which I just finished.

I liked to cook a lot on my day off. I would grill a family pack of chicken breast, make a big stir fry, package it off and bring it to eat, so my food was always healthy and it was good too, because I could just grab it from the fridge on the busiest days (every day!) so that I didn't skip lunch just because i couldn't get to the cafeteria. Days that I forgot my food at home, I could go 13 hours without eating due to business or cafeteria not being open ( I was at the VA, so the quality of the food is enough of a motivator to bring your own)

I made sure that I also didnt' blow off my friends and boyfriend. Even if I knew i was going to be tired the next day, making time for a movie or dinner was important in keeping others in my life happy with me, and therefore more of a positive support system on the days that I couldn't see them.

I also suggest taking a more relaxed attitude. Everybody wants to honor, but due to the whims of attendings, even if you're super-student it may not always happen. So just do your best, bring your study books, look things up on your patients on up to date at work, and then studying won't seem like such a big deal and you'll have more time after work. Work becomes busier, but it also makes the day go by faster.

Also , make sure your car is in good shape!!!! Nothing is more stressful than car problems you don't have time to fix and worrying abou tbeing awake. Also, make sure your alarm clock works!!!!!!!!!!!! TRUST ME 🙂 I KNOW 🙁

 

[Rogue Synapse]

That's really not that bad. I was on call q2 with no post call days and worked 160 hour weeks. 3am-11pm daily including weekends.

Sarcasm is a form of humor that uses sharp, cutting remarks or language intended to mock. This particular quote is also an example of hyperbole, a figure of speech in which statements are exaggerated to evoke strong feelings or to create a strong impression; it is rarely meant to be taken literally.

 

[Rogue Synapse]

I was the guy who gained ten pounds during M3. I'm such a disorganized person, I can't plan healthy portable meals far enough in advance, and my workout routine definitely went out the window. I absolutely have to have some wind-down time at the end of the day to read for pleasure or catch up on news, and planning a workout late at night totally throws me off. Cheap, easy food (even the "healthy options" at a cafeteria aren't too healthy) and lack of exercise was my downfall. I can't imagine how bad intern year will be. I'll have to get my act together. Penguin, if you can get up at 4am to run, you have a special motivational gift that I can only ponder at. I could barely get up at 4am to get to work for surgery/OB.

 

[goodoldalky]

I'm just starting my final week of my M3 surgery rotation and it was tough, just like everyone who's been through it knows. It's not easy to make time to study, eat, workout, see friends/family (at all), stay awake, etc.

But you've got to do it. There's no option to skip the insanely hour-heavy rotations. So keep that in mind. You just do the best you can to make time for your priorities. Realize they may all take a hit for a period of time. But all you can do is work hard and do the things you need to do when you get a chance.
But always remember that no matter how much you're sacrificing during the rotation, it'll be over in a month or two, and if you hate it and can't stand not being able to do the things you need to do, then you never have to do it again. 👍

Likewise, if you love it, you can do it forever. But that's the beauty of M3 year - nothing stays the same, and even your least favorite rotation will be over before you know it.