What is medical school like for students who have anxiety?

[779663]

Medical school is pretty strenuous as it is for regular people, but as someone starting medical school in the fall who already deals with some mild anxiety day to day, what can I expect my experience to be like?

What tips do you have for me?

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[Anicetus]

Medical school is pretty strenuous as it is for regular people, but as someone starting medical school in the fall who already deals with some mild anxiety day to day, what can I expect my experience to be like?

What tips do you have for me?

It's manageable as soon as you get set up with a psychiatrist through your school literally week 1 and check in with them every month or so.

 

[KVBane]

The most important thing is to remember that the other medical students/the administration/the faculty, they dont matter. At times it may seem like incompetence, or just plain drama are running the school. You need to learn to put all of that out of your mind. Some students may seem like they are out to get you, others will be doing incredibly well while studying one tenth of the time you are, others will be gunning and always studying, and always doing extra curriculars. Forget about those people, forget about everyone who isnt you. Focus on doing your work, your studying, and living your life, and never ever let anyone who's not you impact your life.

The most important person at your medical school is you, so don't let anyone get to you - and also don't do anything bad to other people (med school is hard, but no reason to make it more so)

Good luck, you can do this.

 

[Goro]

Sadly, it's a furnace, and I can't recommend it until you get your anxiety under control. I've seen med school break even healthy students.

Medical school is pretty strenuous as it is for regular people, but as someone starting medical school in the fall who already deals with some mild anxiety day to day, what can I expect my experience to be like?

What tips do you have for me?

 

[Foot Fetish]

It can break you, but it can also make you. My social anxiety has actually decreased a lot since I started medical school. I guess it's like exposure therapy. After so many patient visits, oral presentations, and physical exams, you kind of get over the anxiety (if it's social , that is)...just my $0.02

 

[Petypet]

Sadly, it's a furnace, and I can't recommend it until you get your anxiety under control. I've seen med school break even healthy students.

So true. Google med student syndrome.

 

[postbacpremed87]

It can break you, but it can also make you. My social anxiety has actually decreased a lot since I started medical school. I guess it's like exposure therapy. After so many patient visits, oral presentations, and physical exams, you kind of get over the anxiety (if it's social , that is)...just my $0.02

You care less what people think of you because you see so many people. I used to be hard on myself if I stuttered over some words. Now I am like my audience can get over it (i have become more articulate as a result too). My preceptors have grilled into me the "two lines" to present the patient rule. If I go over two lines, then they walk away from me.

 

[OnePunchBiopsy]

1.) Find someone through the school to talk to during your first week (counselor, psychologist, etc.), and follow up with them regularly.

2.) Don't make any dramatic changes before you start ( i.e. don't stop or change any meds).

3.) Take it one day at a time.

 

[779663]

It can break you, but it can also make you. My social anxiety has actually decreased a lot since I started medical school. I guess it's like exposure therapy. After so many patient visits, oral presentations, and physical exams, you kind of get over the anxiety (if it's social , that is)...just my $0.02

This is something I'm kind of hoping for. I'd really rather grow out of a lot of my anxiety than run from it or avoid it. How bad was your anxiety prior to medical school? Mine is fairly low and pretty well managed by me I think (I don't visit a therapist or a councilor or something like that), but it does flare up every now and again depending on the situation I'm in

 

[Stagg737]

Your school has very good counseling and will make your mental health a priority if you seek help. Make a meeting with one of the counselors in the first week, they will give you referrals to some great psychiatrists in the area. They can also talk to you weekly, monthly, or just whenever (like before major tests or high stress weeks). Just establish a safety net early on in case you need it later, don't wait until it starts getting bad as that's to late in med school.

 

[jb94mg]

Very glad someone made this thread; I've struggled with social anxiety and am worried about medical school being too much for me. I'm less worried about being able to find a specialty in which I can thrive than I am about getting through what has been described as a "furnace" that can "break even healthy students." It helps that people are reassuring on here. Interestingly, I've found in the past that caffeine can exacerbate my anxiety (indeed, I think it's considered an "anxiogenic" substance scientifically).

 

[Redpancreas]

Very glad someone made this thread; I've struggled with social anxiety and am worried about medical school being too much for me. I'm less worried about being able to find a specialty in which I can thrive than I am about getting through what has been described as a "furnace" that can "break even healthy students." It helps that people are reassuring on here. Interestingly, I've found in the past that caffeine can exacerbate my anxiety (indeed, I think it's considered an "anxiogenic" substance scientifically).

Exercise helps a lot! And by a lot, I mean a day and night difference in back tension, stuttering, etc. Not proven but I'm sure it makes it so caffeine won't keep you up all night. Also, don't sip coffee slowly, finish it quickly and the ideal time is before 1 but after 10 am.


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[Crayola227]

it is as close to Hell on God's green Earth that you can get, aside from residency

but that's universally true to some degree

 

[jb94mg]

Exercise helps a lot! And by a lot, I mean a day and night difference in back tension, stuttering, etc. Not proven but I'm sure it makes it so caffeine won't keep you up all night. Also, don't sip coffee slowly, finish it quickly and the ideal time is before 1 but after 10 am.

I agree because I think having a toned body feels great. It seems like body satisfaction is something that greatly affects self-confidence.

 

[DrDarce]

The most important thing is to remember that the other medical students/the administration/the faculty, they dont matter. At times it may seem like incompetence, or just plain drama are running the school. You need to learn to put all of that out of your mind. Some students may seem like they are out to get you, others will be doing incredibly well while studying one tenth of the time you are, others will be gunning and always studying, and always doing extra curriculars. Forget about those people, forget about everyone who isnt you. Focus on doing your work, your studying, and living your life, and never ever let anyone who's not you impact your life.

The most important person at your medical school is you, so don't let anyone get to you - and also don't do anything bad to other people (med school is hard, but no reason to make it more so)

Good luck, you can do this.

Honestly great advice. I would also add to make sure you choose good friends. Stress brings out the worst in people so if he/she is a crazy person at baseline you won't want to be around that person when you're trying to study for finals.

 

[CharmanderMD]

Eventually I just got numb to the normal med school stressors like simulations, tests, etc. My biggest issue has been dealing with med student syndrome. I diagnose myself with a terrible disease every week and it's funny logically and I joke about it with friends but at the same time it has been very difficult to deal with and I often can't believe how irrational my mind can be.

 

[IlDestriero]

Look into low stress fields. There are many.
You'll survive school and painful rotations by just grinding it out and counting days.


--
Il Destriero

 

[Cremaster reflex]

It can break you, but it can also make you. My social anxiety has actually decreased a lot since I started medical school. I guess it's like exposure therapy. After so many patient visits, oral presentations, and physical exams, you kind of get over the anxiety (if it's social , that is)...just my $0.02

Throw away account.

To offer a different experience I will share mine. I have suffered from mild social anxiety and generalized anxiety my entire life. I am incredibly uncomfortable being in front of others and giving presentations, amongst other annoying symptoms and situations medical school will put you in. I frequently browse these forums and saw the advice Goro and other knowledgable senior members offered in regards to medical students with mental health issues.

I took there advice and got set up with my school's psychologist and psychiatrist right away. Unfortunately, it has not been all that helpful and my symptoms have probably gotten worse. The difference for me is that in the past I was able to avoid public speaking/being in front of others; it is unavoidable in medical school so I feel bad about myself more often in these situations.

Despite sitting at the top of my class at a top institution I still have little confidence giving oral presentations and in related activities; however, I think this is evidence that it is possible to succeed with anxiety in medical school.

As for the individuals recommending exercise, I agree, exercise is beneficial. However, it isn't always going to solve your problems. Again, I exercise 5-6x a week and am in great shape, doesn't seem to help me much.

Anyways, best of luck. Don't mean to be such a downer but I just want to offer you both sides of the coin. Feel free to message me if you want to talk.

 

[Crayola227]

Throw away account.

To offer a different experience I will share mine. I have suffered from mild social anxiety and generalized anxiety my entire life. I am incredibly uncomfortable being in front of others and giving presentations, amongst other annoying symptoms and situations medical school will put you in. I frequently browse these forums and saw the advice Goro and other knowledgable senior members offered in regards to medical students with mental health issues.

I took there advice and got set up with my school's psychologist and psychiatrist right away. Unfortunately, it has not been all that helpful and my symptoms have probably gotten worse. The difference for me is that in the past I was able to avoid public speaking/being in front of others; it is unavoidable in medical school so I feel bad about myself more often in these situations.

Despite sitting at the top of my class at a top institution I still have little confidence giving oral presentations and in related activities; however, I think this is evidence that it is possible to succeed with anxiety in medical school.

As for the individuals recommending exercise, I agree, exercise is beneficial. However, it isn't always going to solve your problems. Again, I exercise 5-6x a week and am in great shape, doesn't seem to help me much.

Anyways, best of luck. Don't mean to be such a downer but I just want to offer you both sides of the coin. Feel free to message me if you want to talk.

For me, difficulties with oral presentations partly due to anxiety were absolutely crippling to my performance in MS 3 & 4, and it only hurts you more as you go on.

You might do fine in med school and just get passed along, but those oral presentations basically are like 1/3 of your whole job in residency (1/3 with patients, 1/3 in computer, 1/3 communicating with other docs, as my arbitrary breakdown). Communicating with others while you're on the spot and anxious for reasons that aren't even related to underlying anxiety disorders, is requisite.

Being a doctor is about more than getting through med school, or being good with patients. SDN can give you a taste of the flavor of how stressful doctor-to-doctor communication can be, and that communication is essential.

 

[solitarius]

Everybody in medical school develops anxiety at some point. It's just a difficult experience, and not all those difficulties are just academic.

It's just whether you can deal with and how you deal with it.

 

[failedatlife]

It can get bad. Every time I look at charting outcomes or am reminded how much I destroyed myself, the anxiety builds up. Sometimes I come on here and let it out. You can also try exercising, breathing exercises, etc.

 

[GadRads]

Despite sitting at the top of my class at a top institution I still have little confidence giving oral presentations and in related activities; however, I think this is evidence that it is possible to succeed with anxiety in medical school.
.

What symptoms do you think you display when anxious? Being able to control these symptoms might make the anxiety manageable.

Also realize that most people get anxious before any major talk, however such anxiety tends to fade as the talk progresses.

 

[Phenobarbital]

It initially broke me. I had terrible acidity from the stress, coffee, and all-nighters. I had a bleeding peptic ulcer, which took time to get under control with a strict diet of eating light snacks every 2 hours and taking PPIs regularly. I had vertigo at one point, and was prescribed anti-depressants around my 2nd year. I also had psychogenic diarrhea before every exam, which probably lasted the entire duration of medical school, so I was dehydrated pretty much all the time lol. But the good news is, it does get better! I do think I am stronger for it. I can certainly take more stress in my life now. I don't react to things as much, because after a certain threshold, you're sort like "bring it on, world, nothing can touch me" lol. I was such a sensitive and anxious person, and I gotta say, I've calmed down a lot since then, and I'm grateful for it.

I never saw a therapist, so I can't comment on how well that helps, but I did have a small but solid group of friends in my class, who helped me cope with the stress, and as a people person, I guess I need that. Co-depending helps most people. I also returned the favor and gave them pep talks whenever they felt down. Even my most toughest friends broke down at some point, but hey, that's med school for ya. No one is impermeable to the stress.

 

[BeMD13]

I noticed a lot of people said to seek help through the school. I take medication for anxiety and I was not really planning on letting anyone at my school know about it unless it got to the point where I needed some sort of accommodation or something. Is it better to be upfront about it from the start?

 

[Phenobarbital]

I noticed a lot of people said to seek help through the school. I take medication for anxiety and I was not really planning on letting anyone at my school know about it unless it got to the point where I needed some sort of accommodation or something. Is it better to be upfront about it from the start?

I personally wouldn't tell them if I were you. But then again, I was always trying to prove myself, and I wouldn't want them to see me as "weak". That being said, certainly let them know if the stress is getting out of hand, but no, no need to tell them from the start.

 

[sylvi]

Definitely get as much support as you need - therapy/CBT and/or seeing a psychiatrist. Also, DO set up supports within the school itself. They are on your side and WANT you, as their student, to succeed. I went into medical school with a very serious mental illness, and I've had zero problems stem from it - largely because I made sure I had as many safeties in place as possible, and that included talking with student support services through my school. ABSOLUTELY let them know up front IN ADVANCE if there are any accommodations you even might need. I was generally commended for having the wisdom to seek help prophylactically and not succumb to the myth that I needed to "hide" something.

As for the "even healthy people break" thing... as my old boss once said to me, "If med schools kept out people with psychiatric illness, the halls would be empty." A lot of those "healthy" people may in fact have had some underlying problems that came to a head in med school. I actually think those who've had to deal with managing mental illness or other major stressors prior to school (provided they did in fact work on it) are better equipped to cope coming in.

Sorry to get on a soapbox. It just drives me crazy/breaks my heart to see students discouraged or burdened with the additional (false) idea that they can't openly seek help.

 

[Spectre of Ockham]

Look if you don't have tenesmus by the time you're about to be examined by a panel lead by the dean or by the chief of surgery you're either a fool or a genius - everyone gets anxious to quite a high degree even if you are 100% prepared and you know you'll ace the exam.

Keeping your stress levels in check helps a lot , working out , having a romantic relationship (preferably with someone in the field of medicine) , having a core of good friends and eating healthy will make your life much more easier.

Also I recommend you have a habit ready when things get crushingly hard - I go and light a 4mg tobacco cigarette when it gets too much otherwise I might punch somebody and that rarely helps. This is my thing I used to smoke socially and sometimes still light 2-3 cigarettes every blue moon. Everyone has their own escape just DON'T let this emergency escape turn into a vice or it will cause more harm than good. Avoid time consuming escapes like video games or going off for a day - those are time eaters and time is never on a doctors' side.

 

[futuremdforme]

Lots of anxious people in med school. How have you dealt with the most anxiety-provoking moments of your life before? Just thinking of those happening every few weeks instead of once a year.

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

I will preface my 2 cents by saying that this is only applicable to mild anxiety (as OP said they have), not the severe crippling kind that needs medications, etc.

I will offer a slightly different perspective from a surgeon's POV. I have dealt with anxiety my entire life, and at different points it was more severe than others (sometimes I did therapy, and then stopped when it got better). I always thought that to be a good surgeon, I needed to be 100% confident, and I therefore sought to eliminate my anxiety completely. This was unsuccessful and very frustrating-- for many of us Type A people, anxiety is not only a problem, it is also ingrained in our personality. And then, when I was a resident, my mentor and I were talking and I was lamenting how I'd never be as confident as he is, and how I wished I could always inspire total certainty in the OR staff like he did. And he said, "Why would you want to get rid of your anxiety? It is not your enemy. It keeps you from being a cowboy in the OR. It keeps you from rushing through things, keeps you critically evaluating yourself and your work. It keeps you honest. I am still worried before cases, and I still don't sleep the night before a difficult case, even 30 years in. I am still scared. Fear is healthy, and if you learn to channel it properly, it can be a great friend to you."

Hearing that from a man who was so renowned and competent, who never seemed fazed by anything, was shocking. He was the first person who ever made me feel that this part of myself I had been trying so hard to kill was actually not my failure, but could in fact help me achieve success. So as an attending, I still have anxiety, and I still worry, and when the patient has a severe injury, I channel that into commiseration. But ironically, not repressing it actually helped me deal with it and turn it into a productive force... I am an anxious person, and that is OK.

 

[f4reignbeauty]

As someone with anxiety, my best piece of advice is to prioritize self-care, and to be honest with yourself when you're feeling anxious.

 

[MareNostrummm]

Your anxiety should be manageable as long as you don't isolate yourself and maintain consistent social contact..

Psychological disorders are really a sliding scale and have to be constantly managed. You can do it!

 

[MrSunny1]

1-2nd year no problem. 3rd year the attendings/residents can sense anxiety like sharks/blood and they will often make you well aware of it as well by testing your limits everyday. Very difficult to manage plus the competition aspect is dramatically increased as you may feel pitted against your classmates on things like giving presentation, bullpen, getting the best reviews. I can say from experience it is very draining at a competitive instituition and you will most likely either get through it with antidepressants or tons of coffee. It's doable but the anxiety causes a tremendous amount of burnout making the shelf exams way more difficult.

 

[CjOz]

I've always been relatively anxious, but never required medication until med school started. During first year was when it really hit. I wasn't sleeping, I was losing weight, losing hair, and losing interest in medicine. I was on the verge of dropping out when my wife forced me to go see somebody. He put me on an SSRI and I've remained on it since. It saved me. It was a dark time but low dose medication brought me back to who I was. Now I'm a 4th year that will graduate in 3 months and I couldn't be happier.

 

[ab84fan]

It exploited every weakness I had that I was previously able to compensate for, that too within the 1st semester. My life spiraled out of control. I resorted to prescription medication (SSRI) and while it has helped it's still not perfect. I was able to make some balance with my diet, lifting, etc. during 2nd year and finally felt happy again, but now with boards around the corner that balance has gone away.

This is just the way my life is now. I've decided to just aim for a Primary Care type Residency to ensure my life will have a sense of normalcy and lower stress (compared to other specialties) when I'm in practice.

 

[singasongofjoy]

You're not in med school yet, so even though your anxiety is relatively mild, now is actually the perfect time to go seek some psychological assistance - the best time to learn coping strategies for those in-the-moment anxiety attacks is before you actually need them. Also, social anxiety is generally quite treatable if you can find a good therapist who does some exposure and response prevention along with cognitive behavioral therapy. Get some strategies under your belt (and practice them regularly) before you start med school and you'll be starting off on better footing than you are now.

Also, if you don't want anyone to know you're seeking help while in med school (although my guess is it's pretty common to do so), just go see someone outside of the med school. A lot of the faculty at the AMC where I am go to the AMC in the next town over for a lot of medical and psych things just to ensure privacy. Also at some places, notes from psychological visits are kept separately than the rest of medical records, so if someone were to log into the system and look up a patient who had been seen by psych, they would be able to see that there was a visit and with whom, but not the details of the session.

Like others have said I found grad school knocked the rest of the social anxiety out of me due to the amount of exposure. I was in a similar place as you I think (general anxiety I was able to work around for the most part) until partway through my doctoral program. Third year, which was notoriously difficult for my program/lab, did get to me concurrently with some family stuff, but (in retrospect, because it was god-awful at the time) some positive came out of it- sought out some help, had a few therapy sessions, a few months of SSRI, and reached the "bring it on" point where I learned to self-advocate better and say no where I could, and care less about the areas where I couldn't. Hard but good lessons and skills to learn. And +1 to the person above who commented on their mentor reminding them that, in the right context and amount, anxiety itself can be a positive. Learning how to regulate the degree is the hard part, but you've got some time to figure out how to do that more effectively for yourself. Good luck!

 

[779663]

You're not in med school yet, so even though your anxiety is relatively mild, now is actually the perfect time to go seek some psychological assistance - the best time to learn coping strategies for those in-the-moment anxiety attacks is before you actually need them. Also, social anxiety is generally quite treatable if you can find a good therapist who does some exposure and response prevention along with cognitive behavioral therapy. Get some strategies under your belt (and practice them regularly) before you start med school and you'll be starting off on better footing than you are now.

Also, if you don't want anyone to know you're seeking help while in med school (although my guess is it's pretty common to do so), just go see someone outside of the med school. A lot of the faculty at the AMC where I am go to the AMC in the next town over for a lot of medical and psych things just to ensure privacy. Also at some places, notes from psychological visits are kept separately than the rest of medical records, so if someone were to log into the system and look up a patient who had been seen by psych, they would be able to see that there was a visit and with whom, but not the details of the session.

Like others have said I found grad school knocked the rest of the social anxiety out of me due to the amount of exposure. I was in a similar place as you I think (general anxiety I was able to work around for the most part) until partway through my doctoral program. Third year, which was notoriously difficult for my program/lab, did get to me concurrently with some family stuff, but (in retrospect, because it was god-awful at the time) some positive came out of it- sought out some help, had a few therapy sessions, a few months of SSRI, and reached the "bring it on" point where I learned to self-advocate better and say no where I could, and care less about the areas where I couldn't. Hard but good lessons and skills to learn. And +1 to the person above who commented on their mentor reminding them that, in the right context and amount, anxiety itself can be a positive. Learning how to regulate the degree is the hard part, but you've got some time to figure out how to do that more effectively for yourself. Good luck!

Thanks for the advice

 

[IsWhat]

You will probably have classmates who can "wing it" and get by just about every time. Don't be like them. You will significantly decrease your anxiety related to any medical school activity by over preparing - even for the simplest of things.

 

[Eppur Si Muove]

I would also remember when seeking help that you are not the only one; lots of med students have anxiety. There's nothing wrong with seeking help when you are down.

 

[nebuchadnezzarII]

If you couple that general anxiety with just enough social anxiety to avoid seeing psychological service,s you can prepare yourself for a pretty horrible time. But, listen to the smart people here. You can do it. Good luck.

 

[michaelfurey]

It depends what makes you anxious. I have a big problem with anxiety but so far med school doesn't seem to be making me anxious at all. I also think that a high proportion of my classmates have some sort of predisposition to anxiety... Something about the medical field attracts anxious people imo

 

[Mad Jack]

Medical school is pretty strenuous as it is for regular people, but as someone starting medical school in the fall who already deals with some mild anxiety day to day, what can I expect my experience to be like?

What tips do you have for me?

It's awful if your coping skills aren't in order. You'll sink or swim. Oddly, I swam- I rarely have anxiety anymore, preclinical was sop bad it beat it out of me. But it also nearly killed me in the process, so there's that...

 

[ciestar]

I noticed a lot of people said to seek help through the school. I take medication for anxiety and I was not really planning on letting anyone at my school know about it unless it got to the point where I needed some sort of accommodation or something. Is it better to be upfront about it from the start?

Utilize it. They will not care if you use the counseling services. They're there to help you and they only want to see you succeed. I am bipolar with a severe anxiety disorder (well, I cannot get through exams...i panic everytime and get a lower score than I should. Luckily i pass), but I've been upfront about it from the start. It has only gotten worse since school started. Mostly that test anxiety thing. It legit cripples me and I suffer because of it. Then, I score lower than i would like...which leads me to put more pressure on myself to do better. It's a vicious circle I can't seem to escape from, but I have been utilizing the school psychologist (in addition to my personal psychiatrist), other faculty members on the "wellness" team, academic advisors, faculty members in the courses I am taking, and even one of the deans....

They want you to succeed. That is all there is to it and if you run into problems, go to them. It is their job.

I do surprisingly well with SPs and patients, though. Establishing rapport is something I actually excel at, so that is insanely comforting.

Your anxiety should be manageable as long as you don't isolate yourself and maintain consistent social contact..

Psychological disorders are really a sliding scale and have to be constantly managed. You can do it!

HAH! Tell me about. I don't have friends at all...my psych issues really got in the way. I tried to make friends early on, but I struggle... I am naturally introverted so I guess this isn't entirely surprising. With the feeling of "rejection" by my peers (likely not the actual case here), I grew frustrated and gave up in that area. I spend all my time on campus completely alone, with the exception of communication with faculty. (I suck with my peers, I guess). But you're right, isolation worsens the problem. I am seeking help with this, too.

Just for the record, I have passed all my classes. I struggled with biochem and immuno, but I got through it. Everything else >80 (and a 98%...). I am capable, but my own worst enemy. Dont let this happen to you.

EDIT: I am on my phone and can't seem to type or catch typos.

Furthermore, some of my problems were exacerbated by family problems, so that led to extreme distraction. (My mother almost died, my dad's health is poor, and a family member of my SO is dying currently...). Another tip, I suppose. Try to compartmentalize as much as possible.

 

[Mad Jack]

Utilize it. They will not care if you use the counseling services. They're there to help you and they only want to see you succeed. I am bipolar with a severe anxiety disorder (well, I cannot get through exams...i panic everytime and get a lower score than I should. Luckily i pass), but I've been upfront about it from the start. It has only gotten worse since school started. Mostly that test anxiety thing. It legit cripples me and I suffer because of it. Then, I score lower than i would like...which leads me to put more pressure on myself to do better. It's a vicious circle I can't seem to escape from, but I have been utilizing the school psychologist (in addition to my personal psychiatrist), other faculty members on the "wellness" team, academic advisors, faculty members in the courses I am taking, and even one of the deans....

They want you to succeed. That is all there is to it and if you run into problems, go to them. It is their job.

I do surprisingly well with SPs and patients, though. Establishing rapport is something I actually excel at, so that is insanely comforting.



HAH! Tell me about. I don't have friends at all...my psych issues really got in the way. I tried to make friends early on, but I struggle... I am naturally introverted so I guess this isn't entirely surprising. With the feeling of "rejection" by my peers (likely not the actual case here), I grew frustrated and gave up in that area. I spend all my time on campus completely alone, with the exception of communication with faculty. (I suck with my peers, I guess). But you're right, isolation worsens the problem. I am seeking help with this, too)

Just for the record, I have passed all my classes. I struggled with biochem and immuno, but I got through it. Everything else >80 (and a 98%...). I am capable, but my own worst enemy. Dont let this happen to you.

I think you're pretty alright, if it's any consolation. Medical school is just a really hard place to make friends. Even some of the real social butterflies outside of school struggled to connect with people on the inside. Nature of the beast, I guess.

 

[ciestar]

I think you're pretty alright, if it's any consolation. Medical school is just a really hard place to make friends. Even some of the real social butterflies outside of school struggled to connect with people on the inside. Nature of the beast, I guess.

I guess that's just how things work in high stress environments? It does help knowing that, thank you. A lack of support system is what bugs me most I guess. Being able to be alone helps with studying, though!

 

[Mad Jack]

I guess that's just how things work in high stress environments? It does help knowing that, thank you. A lack of support system is what bugs me most I guess. Being able to be alone helps with studying, though!

Yeah, I know that feel- my ability to study has plummeted since I moved back home for clinical rotations. It's a blessing in a way, but a really lonely one.

 

[ciestar]

Yeah, I know that feel- my ability to study has plummeted since I moved back home for clinical rotations. It's a blessing in a way, but a really lonely one.

A lonely existence is tough, but not something I am unfamiliar with. But props to you, living at home would be a detriment to me. (Cannot focus there ever)

 

[nebuchadnezzarII]

Living nightmare.

 

[The Knife & Gun Club]

I never had anxiety before med school and my anxiety has blossomed like a beautiful, tachycardia-inducing flower since I started.

Think of it like being ahead of the game!

 

[Oso]

f.u.c.k.i.ng.s.u.c.k.s

but can be done if you're proactive about managing it properly and have a good support system