Mentally checked out post match

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

Momentum70

Full Member
15+ Year Member
Joined
Jul 8, 2007
Messages
190
Reaction score
66
After I took step 2cs in December I thought I had mentally checked out, but I reached a new level of not caring post match. I just finished a surgery elective and my attending turned to me in a routine lap chole tuesday and asked if I was paying attention. I'm on really good terms with the guy so I told him. "Honestly sir, what we are doing has nothing to do with what im going to be doing the rest of my life, and while I used to find it interesting I dont really care" He laughed and told me 4th years post match were pretty much useless. He let me off the final 3 days of the rotation and signed off on all my eval stuff. I only have 6 weeks of rotations left, 4 weeks are complete blow off, and 2 weeks of ICU. Is anyone else having trouble concentrating post match? Or is everyone just trying to have as much fun before the hell of intern year starts?

Members don't see this ad.
 
ZERO concentration here. One rotation left: toxicology. I hope to hell they don't expect too much. And I'm packing my house too - so no reference books at home for me.
 
After I took step 2cs in December I thought I had mentally checked out, but I reached a new level of not caring post match. I just finished a surgery elective and my attending turned to me in a routine lap chole tuesday and asked if I was paying attention. I'm on really good terms with the guy so I told him. "Honestly sir, what we are doing has nothing to do with what im going to be doing the rest of my life, and while I used to find it interesting I dont really care" He laughed and told me 4th years post match were pretty much useless. He let me off the final 3 days of the rotation and signed off on all my eval stuff. I only have 6 weeks of rotations left, 4 weeks are complete blow off, and 2 weeks of ICU. Is anyone else having trouble concentrating post match? Or is everyone just trying to have as much fun before the hell of intern year starts?

I think all of us are. There are a few who are doing electives in their field to prepare for internship, but probably 95% of us don't care anymore.

Shem describes this progression accurately in his book. "Senioritis" progresses to the more serious and debilitating, "FUBIGMI" shortly after the match is over. We're pretty much just fulfilling our time requirements at this point.

On the other hand, imagine what it's like for us military students who matched way back in mid December. Yeah, several MONTHS of feeling like that.

My last full rotation is Neurology, so I will try to pay attention since I matched into psych.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
I have one week left in my required 4th year rotation in internal medicine, but every day since the match has dragged on forever. I only wear scrubs at this point, never wear my white coat, and get all my work done as quickly as possible in the morning. If there's a lull in the afternoon without pending admissions, I can usually head out the door by 3.

The only way I can keep any interest is by taking on the surgical patients who roll into the ICU. Another COPD exacerbation? Pass. Excuse me while I wander over to the OR to see if anything is coming our way.
 
This time next year, I will have (hopefully) matched, finished my last rotation, and getting ready to move. You better believe I'm going to be checked out. There will be plenty of stress waiting for me in internship.
 
I can see your POV and I have seen 75% of 4th years in "post-match" mode. But I am hoping to channel my inner 'pre-med' by that time next year and fall into that 25% who still push on to challenge myself. It is easy (and readily accepted) to check out but since testing times are on the horizon, I am doing myself a disservice by taking the easy way out.
 
I can see your POV and I have seen 75% of 4th years in "post-match" mode. But I am hoping to channel my inner 'pre-med' by that time next year and fall into that 25% who still push on to challenge myself. It is easy (and readily accepted) to check out but since testing times are on the horizon, I am doing myself a disservice by taking the easy way out.
Testing times? I will have finished Step I, both parts of Step II by then, no more shelfs, no more interviews, and again, hopefully I will have matched. Those will be over.

Until Step III, in-services, and board certification. :laugh:

Unless you're saying that intern year will be a time that tests us. If that's what you meant, then buddy, I for one have enough other things going on in my life that there is always something challenging to overcome. I don't need to go looking.
 
Testing times = you become responsible for patient care



Testing times? I will have finished Step I, both parts of Step II by then, no more shelfs, no more interviews, and again, hopefully I will have matched. Those will be over.

Until Step III, in-services, and board certification. :laugh:

Unless you're saying that intern year will be a time that tests us. If that's what you meant, then buddy, I for one have enough other things going on in my life that there is always something challenging to overcome. I don't need to go looking.
 
Very easy to say until you actually get to the post match stage.

Checking out is completely normal physiology for the end of 4th year . . . . . .


I doubt it. You are who you are, and nothing changes that. You know, personality and all that jazz.
 
Hm, I always thought you were a 4th year.
You're hardcore, considered a surgical sub-spec. yet?

Well, technically I am a 4th year since I send everything in this September.

As for sounding like a toolbag, I am not judging people for doing what is natural at the end of 4th year. I am saying that some people push through as a matter of principle because once you start slacking, it is a slippery slope.
 
Testing times = you become responsible for patient care

Checking out doesn't mean abandoning doing what's right for the pt, but at this stage of the game, I no longer do/put up with the following:

-arriving obscenely early for no good reason

-staying obscenely late for no good reason

-staying when there's absolutely nothing going on and nothing scheduled to happen and I'm not actively involved in pt care

-write ridiculously long progress notes detailing every previous lab value, lifetime bowel mvmt history, 2nd grade teacher's name, etc

-play the "what am I thinking game" when the questions are so random and trivial that they have no bearing on anything . . . ever ("so what year did the nephrology society coming up with kidney disease staging classifications???)"

-wear my filthy, disgusting, short white coat

-act really excited about something when i'm not even minimally excited about it

-be around those who are outwardly abrasive or unwilling to teach . . . at a teaching hospital

-sit for hours on end waiting for the chance to get a small bite to eat when there's nothing going on

-etc
 
Members don't see this ad :)
...once you start slacking, it is a slippery slope.
No, it's not. If that were true, then anyone who took a vacation should be barred from returning to work. Reality is, we call those folks who don't take breaks "burnt out".

Normal adults know when it's time to be serous and when to relax. No professional (of any type) is "on" all the time. Everyone needs breaks, and the point of those breaks is to come back more refreshed and less stressed. It's fine, it's healthy.
 
As for sounding like a toolbag,

Literally could not have said it better myself! Multiple threads trying to make others feel bad for taking it easy as 4th year winds down, still no success but please keep trying. :laugh:
 
Checking out doesn't mean abandoning doing what's right for the pt, but at this stage of the game, I no longer do/put up with the following:

-arriving obscenely early for no good reason

-staying obscenely late for no good reason

-staying when there's absolutely nothing going on and nothing scheduled to happen and I'm not actively involved in pt care

-write ridiculously long progress notes detailing every previous lab value, lifetime bowel mvmt history, 2nd grade teacher's name, etc

-play the "what am I thinking game" when the questions are so random and trivial that they have no bearing on anything . . . ever ("so what year did the nephrology society coming up with kidney disease staging classifications???)"

-wear my filthy, disgusting, short white coat

-act really excited about something when i'm not even minimally excited about it

-be around those who are outwardly abrasive or unwilling to teach . . . at a teaching hospital

-sit for hours on end waiting for the chance to get a small bite to eat when there's nothing going on

-etc

:thumbup:

Unfortunately, there's always a chance that doing the above will result in failing the rotation and delaying your graduation.
 
Literally could not have said it better myself! Multiple threads trying to make others feel bad for taking it easy as 4th year winds down, still no success but please keep trying. :laugh:

So you're saying I do things better than you?
 
No, it's not. If that were true, then anyone who took a vacation should be barred from returning to work. Reality is, we call those folks who don't take breaks "burnt out".

Normal adults know when it's time to be serous and when to relax. No professional (of any type) is "on" all the time. Everyone needs breaks, and the point of those breaks is to come back more refreshed and less stressed. It's fine, it's healthy.


Taking a vacation is not slacking.
 
Well, technically I am a 4th year since I send everything in this September.

As for sounding like a toolbag, I am not judging people for doing what is natural at the end of 4th year. I am saying that some people push through as a matter of principle because once you start slacking, it is a slippery slope.

So you're a 3rd year student lecturing 4th year students about what they should and shouldn't do. Got it.

All you 4th years just relax, have fun, and learn a little at your own pace. This is going to be the best and easiest few months of your entire life. Enjoy it while you can.
 
i put it some effort with my MICU rotation which was my last big one in february and i will finish with 2 weeks of geriatrics which is essentially shadowing everybody from nurses to social workers to pharmacists so the biggest waste of a rotation i think ever conceived....
 
ditto the checked out. i'm on a sub-I which consists of basically doing nothing but helping out with vitals and rounds in the morning and I find myself not even motivated to do that, lol
 
I'm so envious of you all that my condition is being considered for a new DSM-V diagnosis.
 
As a matched MS4, I avoid staying at the hospital more than 20 hrs/wk. The 4th yrs before me did the same, and the residents say they did the same. This is the last time that we will have to do what we want before we go months on end without having a weekend off. Seriously, enjoy 4th year and drain your bank accounts while filling your sleep accounts. You will put in your hours later.
 
After much consideration, I dont feel guilty about avoiding the hospital at all costs, I feel freedom. We have to enjoy these final couple of months for the the onslaught of intern year.
 
After much consideration, I dont feel guilty about avoiding the hospital at all costs, I feel freedom. We have to enjoy these final couple of months for the the onslaught of intern year.

Whatever lets you sleep at night.
 
Then when I take a three-month vacation between the end of med school and intern year, I'm not slacking? What's the difference?

If you are in rotations and "checked out," then you are slacking. If you are fishing, then you are on vacation.
 
If you are in rotations and "checked out," then you are slacking. If you are fishing, then you are on vacation.
:confused: So what's the difference between a school that graduates in May vs June? Are the June kids more hardcore? What if a June kid took enough electives that he could leave school early? Is he a slacker?
 
:confused: So what's the difference between a school that graduates in May vs June? Are the June kids more hardcore? What if a June kid took enough electives that he could leave school early? Is he a slacker?

You can continue to erect strawman arguments until the cows come home, but the fact remains that giving less than your normal effort in a rotation, and 'checking out', is slacking. You should be ashamed of yourself.
 
There are different definitions of "slacking". I've seen third year students sleeping in their dorms at 10am while on medicine rotations. Post call? nope. Out partying and just "tired". I've seen students sleeping in the library rather than learning on the floors or in the ED. And that was their norm. And they were passing. I've seen others who take at LEAST one personal day every month when they were scheduled to work. Just because. And they didn't consider that slacking (but I sure as heck do).

My definition of "slacking" is not researching chemical structures and not mapping out the chemical reactions in toxicology rotations. My idea of "slacking" is not doing the extra credit work and not reading the optional assignments. My idea of "slacking" is getting 8 hours of sleep every night and NOT researching what the visiting lecturer will be talking about next. My idea of "slacking" is baking my son a birthday cake and planning a birthday party for him - especially since he hasn't had a big birthday party since I've been in med school because I've been studying, had exams, been working on rotations. He's 12 so it's not like he was too young to know any better.

So "slacking" is in the eye of the beholder. And I've got plenty to keep me occupied while I "check out". Like packing, finding a place to live 1500 miles away, etc. So no, I'm not ashamed of myself. Not in the slightest.
 
There are different definitions of "slacking". I've seen third year students sleeping in their dorms at 10am while on medicine rotations. Post call? nope. Out partying and just "tired". I've seen students sleeping in the library rather than learning on the floors or in the ED. And that was their norm. And they were passing. I've seen others who take at LEAST one personal day every month when they were scheduled to work. Just because. And they didn't consider that slacking (but I sure as heck do).

My definition of "slacking" is not researching chemical structures and not mapping out the chemical reactions in toxicology rotations. My idea of "slacking" is not doing the extra credit work and not reading the optional assignments. My idea of "slacking" is getting 8 hours of sleep every night and NOT researching what the visiting lecturer will be talking about next. My idea of "slacking" is baking my son a birthday cake and planning a birthday party for him - especially since he hasn't had a big birthday party since I've been in med school because I've been studying, had exams, been working on rotations. He's 12 so it's not like he was too young to know any better.

So "slacking" is in the eye of the beholder. And I've got plenty to keep me occupied while I "check out". Like packing, finding a place to live 1500 miles away, etc. So no, I'm not ashamed of myself. Not in the slightest.

:laugh:
3rd years get away with that crap?! Attendings don't care?? Wow. :confused:

You're pretty hardcore, but I'm sure it comes with the territory of being a mom. Where are you going to be doing residency? Congrats!
 
You can continue to erect strawman arguments until the cows come home, but the fact remains that giving less than your normal effort in a rotation, and 'checking out', is slacking. You should be ashamed of yourself.
You've told your superiors (in the sense of those further along in training than you) in this thread and elsewhere that they aren't working hard enough. I thought that sentiment needed to be challenged. By questioning the assumptions implicit in your thought process, my posts are an attempt to show you that, while you are welcome to your opinion, you shouldn't push it on others.

This tactic has clearly backfired.

I'll tell you that I worked as hard as I knew how on my rotations. I have no regrets. But never once did I tell my classmates to work harder, or worse, tell a MS4 or resident that they should "be ashamed" for not putting what I thought was the proper amount of effort.
:laugh:
3rd years get away with that crap?! Attendings don't care?? Wow. :confused:
You'd be surprised how arbitrary 3rd year can be.
 
20 hrs a week? Sounds brutal. I'm shooting for around 8 on my last rotation.

Ha, 8 would be nice...perhaps, I should stop being such a 4th yr gunner.

First half of fourth year was brutal. This half has been wonderful, like a dream come true. :love:

Anyone studying for internship/residency?
 
You can continue to erect strawman arguments until the cows come home, but the fact remains that giving less than your normal effort in a rotation, and 'checking out', is slacking. You should be ashamed of yourself.

I suggest you keep your mouth shut when you hit fourth year at the hospital as you will make a ton of enemies - fellow classmates as well as attendings. You are a Carribean 3rd year student telling 4th year AMGs and residents what to do. A small sense of humility might be in order here on your part. Aside from that, even the attendings evaluating you will tell you you're a tool for offering to stay late during post match rotations. I had gotten the "What the hell are you still doing here, you matched already" a few times during 4th year and quickly learned.
 
Checking out doesn't mean abandoning doing what's right for the pt, but at this stage of the game, I no longer do/put up with the following:

-arriving obscenely early for no good reason

-staying obscenely late for no good reason

-staying when there's absolutely nothing going on and nothing scheduled to happen and I'm not actively involved in pt care

-write ridiculously long progress notes detailing every previous lab value, lifetime bowel mvmt history, 2nd grade teacher's name, etc

-play the "what am I thinking game" when the questions are so random and trivial that they have no bearing on anything . . . ever ("so what year did the nephrology society coming up with kidney disease staging classifications???)"

-wear my filthy, disgusting, short white coat

-act really excited about something when i'm not even minimally excited about it

-be around those who are outwardly abrasive or unwilling to teach . . . at a teaching hospital

-sit for hours on end waiting for the chance to get a small bite to eat when there's nothing going on

-etc

I'm a third-year and I already don't do these things (oops).

I've finished the clerkship I'm actually interested in and just trying to survive the others I have to do. Even if the first half of 4th year is intense, at least I will be doing what I want to.
 
I plan on thoroughly enjoying every minute of the wonder that is post-match 4th year. I probably will never get another chance to experience the fabulousness of senioritis, and I for one, will not waste it in the hospital. :hardy:

Anyways it's not like med students get to do too much, or are truly appreciated. And I will be doing these things for the rest of my life, so I think I deserve a few months to take it easy. :D
 
I plan on thoroughly enjoying every minute of the wonder that is post-match 4th year. I probably will never get another chance to experience the fabulousness of senioritis, and I for one, will not waste it in the hospital. :hardy:

Anyways it's not like med students get to do too much, or are truly appreciated. And I will be doing these things for the rest of my life, so I think I deserve a few months to take it easy. :D

For sure. Once you've realized how utterly useless a medical student is and you're no longer being graded, there's absolutely no reason to linger.
 
Top