Starting Studying for Anatomy

[C8H10N4O2Addict]

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So I bought an anatomy atlas (Netter's) on my friends recommendation to start studying early for anatomy.

How does one study anatomy? Memorize all of the bones/muscles/veins/nerves etc. and where they connect? Is there something else? (I know what I said was a lot, just wondering if there is even more to study.)

 

[Depakote]

So I bought an anatomy atlas (Netter's) on my friends recommendation to start studying early for anatomy.

How does one study anatomy? Memorize all of the bones/muscles/veins/nerves etc. and where they connect? Is there something else? (I know what I said was a lot, just wondering if there is even more to study.)

Rob a fresh grave and begin a dissection in your kitchen...

>_>

<_<

Seriously, most of it is just rote memorization until you can start piecing it together.

 

[nmnrraven]

So I bought an anatomy atlas (Netter's) on my friends recommendation to start studying early for anatomy.

How does one study anatomy? Memorize all of the bones/muscles/veins/nerves etc. and where they connect? Is there something else? (I know what I said was a lot, just wondering if there is even more to study.)

I recommend you return the book. You don't need to start studying early. If you got in, you're capable of learning it in class. Don't doubt yourself. And for goodness sake, enjoy your life while you can man! 👍

 

[Law2Doc]

So I bought an anatomy atlas (Netter's) on my friends recommendation to start studying early for anatomy.

How does one study anatomy? Memorize all of the bones/muscles/veins/nerves etc. and where they connect? Is there something else? (I know what I said was a lot, just wondering if there is even more to study.)

DO NOT TRY TO TEACH YOURSELF ANATOMY. YOU ARE WASTING YOUR TIME!! Wait until school starts. They will teach you all you need to know and then some. If you spend too much time on this, you may find you need to unlearn a lot of what you learn. You cannot just look at Netters and know what is going on. Furthermore, you also have no idea what is going to be focused on and important to your anatomy prof, so you will likely waste a ton of time, teaching yourself useless garbage. I realize that you want to get a jump start, but this is simply a bad idea, no matter how you slice it (pardon the bad anatomy pun). Use your free time seeing lots of movies, reading books, hanging with friends. These are the things you will have less time to do when school starts, not anatomy coursework. Good luck.

 

[joe6102]

DO NOT TRY TO TEACH YOURSELF ANATOMY. YOU ARE WASTING YOUR TIME!! Wait until school starts. They will teach you all you need to know and then some. If you spend too much time on this, you may find you need to unlearn a lot of what you learn. You cannot just look at Netters and know what is going on. Furthermore, you also have no idea what is going to be focused on and important to your anatomy prof, so you will likely waste a ton of time, teaching yourself useless garbage. I realize that you want to get a jump start, but this is simply a bad idea, no matter how you slice it (pardon the bad anatomy pun). Use your free time seeing lots of movies, reading books, hanging with friends. These are the things you will have less time to do when school starts, not anatomy coursework. Good luck.

At my school, all of the anatomy is self-taught (for exams, NOT practicals). The lectures and notes are worthless, but Netters and BRS helped me score a few points above average on almost every test.

Everyone here is going to tell you not to study, to enjoy your time off, and that is good advice. But if you're going to ignore that advice and study anyway, anatomy is a good place to start. And it is not a *complete* twaste of time.

 

[OSUdoc08]

So I bought an anatomy atlas (Netter's) on my friends recommendation to start studying early for anatomy.

How does one study anatomy? Memorize all of the bones/muscles/veins/nerves etc. and where they connect? Is there something else? (I know what I said was a lot, just wondering if there is even more to study.)

If you study now, you will just be sick of it by the time you start.

DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME. IT WON'T HELP ANYWAY.

Gross anatomy is all nerves and some arteries, by the way. However, memorizing it in the book is only going to burn you out.

Enjoy your last moments of freedom.

 

[Agent Splat]

I agree with everyone else. Put that stuff away. Enjoy your time before school. Just staring at Netter will be frustrating and not get you very far.

 

[lord_jeebus]

Studying anatomy now will just make you hate it that much more. And learning it from an atlas gives you all the boring crap without any of the sometimes-interesting clinical correlates.

Don't study until school starts, the edge it will give you is minimal at best. You would probably get a bigger advantage by sleeping during the hours that you plan on dedicating to Netter's.

If you absolutely have to read something, get a copy of "How the Immune System Works" and read it leisurely.

But don't study until school starts. Don't get that book. But if we can't stop you, "How the Immune System Works" is a very readable overview type book that will make learning the details easier later on.

But don't do it.

 

[OSUdoc08]

Studying anatomy now will just make you hate it that much more. And learning it from an atlas gives you all the boring crap without any of the sometimes-interesting clinical correlates.

Don't study until school starts, the edge it will give you is minimal at best. You would probably get a bigger advantage by sleeping during the hours that you plan on dedicating to Netter's.

If you absolutely have to read something, get a copy of "How the Immune System Works" and read it leisurely.

But don't study until school starts. Don't get that book. But if we can't stop you, "How the Immune System Works" is a very readable overview type book that will make learning the details easier later on.

But don't do it.

You'd be better off reading:

HOUSE OF GOD

By Samuel Shem, MD

 

[Law2Doc]

You'd be better off reading:

HOUSE OF GOD

By Samuel Shem, MD

Agree. Or Complications by A. Gawande.

 

[Agent Splat]

Agree. Or Complications by A. Gawande.

Or How to Survive a Robot Uprising by Daniel Wilson....Tips on Defending yourself against the coming rebellion.

 

[rgarrig]

Or How to Survive a Robot Uprising by Daniel Wilson....Tips on Defending yourself against the coming rebellion.

LOL I build robots for a living. All I can say about their impending attack is...

Seven Days (whispered)

 

[Law2Doc]

Or How to Survive a Robot Uprising by Daniel Wilson....Tips on Defending yourself against the coming rebellion.

Good one. http://www.robotuprising.com/surviving.htm
I'll have to pick it up. Hope it's more informative than Terminator and I Robot -- those didn't really prepare me at all...

 

[keedz]

So I bought an anatomy atlas (Netter's) on my friends recommendation to start studying early for anatomy.

How does one study anatomy? Memorize all of the bones/muscles/veins/nerves etc. and where they connect? Is there something else? (I know what I said was a lot, just wondering if there is even more to study.)

Dude, are you freaking serious?!!! You're starting to study from NOW? No offense, but that's really lame. No, seriously, that's the lamest thing I've heard all YEAR. Jeez! 👎

 

[Depakote]

I always thought Chuck Palahniuk's Choke was a great book for premeds...

 

[Law2Doc]

I always thought Chuck Palahniuk's Choke was a great book for premeds...

That was a pretty messed up book unless you are into Oedipal (?) complexes and the world of sex addiction.

 

[Depakote]

That was a pretty messed up book unless you are into Oedipal (?) complexes and the world of sex addiction.

Like I said... great book.

>_>

<_<

what?

 

[omgwtfbbq?]

Ah, I'm definitely not a Palhinhuk (i can't spell his name...) fan.
Good medical reading? Oliver Sack's - The man who thought his wife was a hat 🙂 Just great.

That, or "The handbook for hypochondriacs" 1,000 ways excessive and made up illnesses and kill you. its hilarious

 

[LowlyPremed]

I made the same mistake you did and posted a question about being worried about biochem. In the end, I decide that biochem will be tough regarless of if I took the course or study independently or not. So, I decided to relax. I'm going to Europe and then Florida instead.

If you must read something related to anatomy I highly recommend "Stiff" by Michelle? (Mary?) Roach. You won't learn any anatomy but you'll learn some interesting stuff about cadavers.

 

[LowlyPremed]

Sorry Double Post

 

[VPDcurt]

Ah, I'm definitely not a Palhinhuk (i can't spell his name...) fan.
Good medical reading? Oliver Sack's - The man who thought his wife was a hat 🙂 Just great.

That, or "The handbook for hypochondriacs" 1,000 ways excessive and made up illnesses and kill you. its hilarious

It's "The Man Who Mistook is Wife for Hat" and it's a terrible book.

 

[ND2005]

You know, I actually had thought about doing the same in my off-time this semester. Here's why I decided not to:

I'm sure I could teach myself adequately. But when I got to med school, I'd either be bored with the subject right off the bat, or overly confident that I already knew the material. Either way, this would lead to me goofing off in one of my first year courses. So I decided to wait for the real thing to start.

 

[willow18]

Keeping on with book recs. I put in a vote for The Knife Man : The Extraordinary Life and Times of John Hunter, Father of Modern Surgery

An well-written book on an amazing man.

 

[BlazerMed]

How We Die by Sherwin Nuland is a great book.

 

[KAI1927]

If you want to real skinny on anatomy before med school, I suggest Playboy, the "articles" are killer.

 

[Law2Doc]

If you want to real skinny on anatomy before med school, I suggest Playboy, the "articles" are killer.

And you can study its effect on your own anatomy.

 

[docmd2010]

hmmmmmm what would chuck norris say about all this?

 

[TriniToDeBone]

Hey,
I see you're getting a lot of warnings and abuse for your post and I feel for you. Actually I have a friend who is finishing up his first year who told me to do exactly what you're doing. I decided against it because like most people are implying I feel I should enjoy the last days of no stress I have before med school. But I was tempted - so don't feel bad about thinking of studying anatomy early. But think about this - we have all faced difficult classes like Orgo, Physics, Calc, etc as pre meds without having done any pre-studying (I hope). And we have survived and been able to be accepted to med school...so think of anatomy as another of those hard classes that you will face when the time comes, overcome it and in the end successfully get your MD. So relax and enjoy life now - deal with anatomy when the time comes around and save your atlas for med school. 🙄

 

[Law2Doc]

Hey, ... we have survived and been able to be accepted to med school...so think of anatomy as another of those hard classes that you will face when the time comes, overcome it and in the end successfully get your MD. So relax and enjoy life now - deal with anatomy when the time comes around and save your atlas for med school. 🙄

Agree with this. If a med school accepted you, you are capable of doing the work. There is negligible attrition from med school due to failure (just a percent or two) so almost everybody makes it thru anatomy. Be ready to dive in hard from day one (AND NOT BEFORE) and you will be fine.
Use the atlas to beat back the swarm of babes (or whatever your preference) who are sure to be interested in you now that you are going to be in med school. Chill.

 

[Marie_]

Rob a fresh grave and begin a dissection in your kitchen...
QUOTE]

Hilarious!!

 

[humuhumu]

So I bought an anatomy atlas (Netter's) on my friends recommendation to start studying early for anatomy.

How does one study anatomy? Memorize all of the bones/muscles/veins/nerves etc. and where they connect? Is there something else? (I know what I said was a lot, just wondering if there is even more to study.)

There's more to anatomy than just naming parts. Med school anatomy also focuses on patterns, organ systems, anatomical relationships, structure/function relationships, developmental history, imaging, and clinical applications. This sort of conceptual framework - not to mention actually dissecting a cadaver - makes it easier to learn and retain the names of particular structures, especially the ones that are worth remembering for the long haul.

My advice? If you have to study something, study the first chapter or two of a medical anatomy textbook, i.e., the chapter(s) that introduce anatomical terminology and general concepts. Save the nitty-gritty details for med school.

 

[Law2Doc]

If you have to study something, study the first chapter or two of a medical anatomy textbook, i.e., the chapter(s) that introduce anatomical terminology and general concepts. Save the nitty-gritty details for med school.

Except that there's a good chance you will rely on class notes and never want or need to buy an anatomy textbook...

 

[medhacker]

Sorry to go against the crowd.

Personally I think the don't study advice does not apply to everyone.

If you know you are kind of anal about studying then do lay it off and just wait 'till you start school.

If you know yourself and know you are doing it for the right reasons (knowing this class will be tough regardless of how you did in orgo, physics, etc and if are having trouble no-one here is going to help you study or go to the bar with you to drink while regretting you didn't study ) then do it wisely. If you can (which I doubt you will) get a hold of some of your school anatomy handouts for the first exam (if you get the first exam [if they have old exams...you know] it would be golden) and start going at it.

Otherwise, study and have the following type of things packed down:
Brachial plexus
Cranial nerves
wrist bones
The arm with its insertions, actions, innervations etc


If you get this kind of stuff before the class starts you will be ways ahead and will be able to spend more time on the cadaver/radiology etc


Don't worry about people calling you a loser, you know yourself better than anyone else. Best wishes! 👍

 

[humuhumu]

Except that there's a good chance you will rely on class notes and never want or need to buy an anatomy textbook...

Good point - I wouldn't actually BUY a textbook - try to borrow one from the library or a med student. Any information you find in the first chapter of an anatomy textbook will be useful, regardless of the idiosyncrasies of your med school's anatomy course.

 

[ahumdinger]

hey OP, I too considered studying some anatomy before school starts. My boyfriend gave me his copy of Essential Clinical Anatomy. I started to flip through a few pages, and while I could dedicate the time to studying it independently, it would really be nice to have some guidance instead. That's why I think it would be best to wait until school starts. Besides, being able to do the dissections will really help with visualization and memory. If I started now I'd just be bashing my head in by the time classes start, and then I'd still have another semester in front of me. So take the advice given so far and enjoy a summer off.

My dad gave me a copy of "You: the owner's manual." It sounds like some self-help book but it's a really good book about the human body in lay-man's terms. He recommended it to me so that I can learn to explain medical concepts simply. So you should check it out as a light summer read before you get into all the heavy medical jargon.

 

[LizzyM]

If you want to real skinny on anatomy before med school, I suggest Playboy, the "articles" are killer.

And you can study its effect on your own anatomy.

And the pictures provide a good review of anatomical landmarks --

 

[outofhere]

Why study it now? It is so much more fun to study anatomy with the cadaver, and classmates, to play pranks on each other while you study! Also, the book that is helpful (other than Netter's or BRS) is Grant's Dissector. Very helpful for practicals- I memorized it line by line...
As for the suggestion of using playboy to study... I think that may not offer enough details.

 

[Law2Doc]

As for the suggestion of using playboy to study... I think that may not offer enough details.

Good point -- go straight for the more trashy mags. True anatomy is not airbrushed.

 

[Sammich81]

this thread makes me smell the formaldehyde all over again...I had a cadaver so pungent the anatomy professor teared up everytime he got within a foot of her.

So I will agree with everyone else when I say not to study til the time comes, because anatomy is one of the most overwhelming topics since it's not really conceptual, so you need your professors to filter it for you.

But the best resources and strategies for me were:
1. Look at Netter's or Color Atlas of Gross Anatomy the night before the dissection so you have some idea of what to expect.
2. Books like essential clinical anatomy are good. The key in anatomy is not just pointing and naming but the relationship of things to each other, because even though we all have mostly the same parts, it looks different in everyone. So in surgery, you use key landmarks and relationships (this duct always goes under this vessel, etc) to guide you...so study that.
3. Vicks vaporub under your nose. A LOT of vicks vaporub.
4. Pray you get a skinny cadaver. Layer upon layer of adipose is greasy and not fun to dig through.

And my votes for a book to read go to House of God, especially useful to read before 1st year and then after 3rd year when you actually know what all those terms mean, and Complications by Atul Gawande. Complications makes you love being a doctor.

Now please go enjoy your remaining months of freedom.