How many days do you study in a row?

[tco]

I've been studying hardcore for about a week now, and I'm honestly feeling like I need a break. I'm wondering if I'm just a wimp, or if this is my subconscious being smart and telling me to avoid burnout. My exam is on June 30th, so I think that as the date approaches, I'll probably feel more urgency and less fatigue. What are your thoughts on the subject?

For the record, a break to me is a day off, max.

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[lackli]

I started off needing about a day off a week for the first 2 weeks. However I find that after about 4 weeks studying I can study for longer each day without getting tired and don't feel like I need to take that day off any more (or maybe I'm just getting more and more scared each passing day).

Not sure if this is everyone's experience but I feel that I've become used to the suckage of studying ALL the time. This period of my life hasn't been as bad as everyone made it out to be. I'd rate it maybe a 5/10 on the pain scale...definitely worse things to be doing. Then again I still have 3 weeks more weeks so I might burn out major time.

 

[Nellyakgo]

I would think 1 day off after 6 days studying is a good thing. Though I'm saying based on what I've been told. Not based n what I'm doing.

My problem is the opposite. I can't get myself to sit down nearly enough hours to study. And some (most) days none at all...

 

[speedyk]

I would think 1 day off after 6 days studying is a good thing. Though I'm saying based on what I've been told. Not based n what I'm doing.

My problem is the opposite. I can't get myself to sit down nearly enough hours to study. And some (most) days none at all...

Me too. Wish I took summer break before starting to study for this test instead of saving it for after. I can't focus, too burned out already!

 

[Vulcan]

I've been taking a half day off each week. On my 'off' day, I'll do my daily UW block and annotations and maybe half a day of studying. The night I'll take to go do something fun.

 

[quepatho]

I have <4 weeks of dedicated study time to do this in (of which I've used one week already), so I take off half-days (not whole days).

Don't feel guilty about taking a whole day, you have more time than a lot of people and you're starting at a place that most people would envy. If I had more time, I would take off whole days, and then maybe I wouldn't go so crazy.

I will need to have at least one day mostly off before the exam because I am really starting to go a little...😱

It really does hurt me to not have time off. I start reading words like "immunocompetent" as "immunocompromised" and "sensitivity" as "specificity". Kind of makes a difference when you're trying to answer a question.

 

[tco]

I have <4 weeks of dedicated study time to do this in (of which I've used one week already), so I take off half-days (not whole days).

Don't feel guilty about taking a whole day, you have more time than a lot of people and you're starting at a place that most people would envy. If I had more time, I would take off whole days, and then maybe I wouldn't go so crazy.

I will need to have at least one day mostly off before the exam because I am really starting to go a little...😱

It really does hurt me to not have time off. I start reading words like "immunocompetent" as "immunocompromised" and "sensitivity" as "specificity". Kind of makes a difference when you're trying to answer a question.

Unlike some of you, I took a day and a half off after my last exam. I think thats why I feel the guilt creeping in if I were to take a break now!

The last paragraph above is what I noticed last night. I tend to study throughout the day and do questions as I finish up. It was an incredibly hard question set, even by UWorld standards (ag 53% correct). However, I had missed quite a few fairly simple questions (FRC would be increased in COPD, etc.). I feel that a full day might not be so relaxing, because I'll be worrying all day about the material I should have covered. Thanks for all of your opinions. Sorry if there's lot of typos in this...I did it from my phone.

 

[quepatho]

Honestly, if I had about 3-4 more weeks to study I would probably study fewer hours each day and study every day.

I would take a good 2 hour break in the afternoon and most of the evenings off, but I'd do it every day.

But I don't have that time. I am so burnt out it's just crazy.

I took a good year to prepare for the MCAT and I did well BECAUSE I took my time, and just did slow and steady. The levels of anxiety I am feeling right about now are off the charts.

I feel like I can't do this without more time but I'm up against a wall.

I think one's attitude about the whole thing makes a big difference as to how hard one can study.

 

[Day man]

every 7 days i take a practice exam...usually lasts the whole morning then I QUICKLY go over the answers (annotate the crap later) and take the rest of the day off. usually the post test motivation (doing good or bad) and the rest of the day off is enough to keep me going. then again i have 3.5 more weeks...ugh. i also workout 5 days out;ve the week, and walk my dog each day for about an hour...but these long days are killing me.

 

[Nellyakgo]

What about time to do household work, general life errands, cook/eat/clean, talk to (non-med) friends who oh-so-much want to talk to you, spend 1.5 hr on the phone with tech support for your computer, another 45 mins with your bank, etc etc... If I don't bury myself in a library corner, which doesn't happen often, one blink and the entire day is over without having studied at all... Sigh..

 

[unsung]

What about time to do household work, general life errands, cook/eat/clean, talk to (non-med) friends who oh-so-much want to talk to you, spend 1.5 hr on the phone with tech support for your computer, another 45 mins with your bank, etc etc... If I don't bury myself in a library corner, which doesn't happen often, one blink and the entire day is over without having studied at all... Sigh..

This.

I don't know how you guys study 8 hrs or 12 hrs or what not.

I just spent 5-hrs dealing with cat issues, groceries, cooking. And this was after waking up at 10am.

Um... I think I need to be more efficient.

 

[Nellyakgo]

This.

I don't know how you guys study 8 hrs or 12 hrs or what not.

I just spent 5-hrs dealing with cat issues, groceries, cooking. And this was after waking up at 10am.

Um... I think I need to be more efficient.

Are you sure you're not me? My ghost or something?

 

[fahimaz7]

38 days tbh.

 

[Staradmiral]

I don't know how you people are capable of studying all day.
I can study from 7:00am-4:00pm maximum (with 1 hour break total for lunch), at which point my brain is fried. "my neurons are out of glutamate and I cannot absorb anything more" However it is very efficient studying. i do not facebook, email, etc, talk on the phone, during that time.

 

[winkleweizen]

I don't know how you people are capable of studying all day.
I can study from 7:00am-4:00pm maximum (with 1 hour break total for lunch), at which point my brain is fried. "my neurons are out of glutamate and I cannot absorb anything more" However it is very efficient studying. i do not facebook, email, etc, talk on the phone, during that time.

Workout break in bw and diversity in your studying ie (DIT videos first, then questions, then read some, then more questions.)

 

[da8s0859q]

I've been studying hardcore for about a week now, and I'm honestly feeling like I need a break. I'm wondering if I'm just a wimp, or if this is my subconscious being smart and telling me to avoid burnout. My exam is on June 30th, so I think that as the date approaches, I'll probably feel more urgency and less fatigue. What are your thoughts on the subject?

For the record, a break to me is a day off, max.

Take a break. Much more valuable than half-hearted, burned-out "studying," and far more enjoyable.

I woke up this morning and jumped on the couch to watch the ManU / Blackpool game, and I have a week and a half left before the big day. Also planning on a few hours off tomorrow night which I'd otherwise be studying through. Gotta relax a little bit since you'll be studying most of the rest of the time. Maybe it's self-serving, but I just feel like sitting in front of UW when you actually WANT to study because you took some time off is far more productive than otherwise. 👍

 

[justdoit31]

I had 5 weeks of dedicated study time- 3 weeks til exam. I took one weekend day off last weekend (best day ever!). Today I'm going to take most of the day off- already did a UW block and reviewed it, reviewed some notes from last week of studying, and I'm just feeling burnt out after 6 intense days. I want to do a set of 50 subject specific questions this evening but I think that is all I'm going to do today.

 

[ArcGurren]

I took 6-7 days of studying at a go with a half day or 1 day break (usually catching up on TV or something). It worked out well for my sanity.

 

[gpac123]

Dude you ABSOLUTELY need to take a break. What everyone else does is irrelevant...if you need the break you need the break, and this is not being lazy it is doing what you need to do to maximize your efficiency.

Say you decide not to take the break. You are frustrated, you feel ****ty, you find it harder and harder to be focused, and slowly your studying get's less and less efficient as this problem just gets worse with time.

Now imagine taking a break when you really need it, losing a few hours or even a day, and then getting back into hardcore badass kick ass study mode. This is how you have to do it, and only you know how you study and how much rest you need to be efficient.

It sounds like you aren't lazy and just trying to make excuses to get more off time, you are legitimately burnt out...go with your gut.

 

[Fillabuster]

I studied from April 10th to May 18th. Didn't take any days off. But to be quite honest, I had no choice. I'm not as gifted as the other med students.