What motivated you the most to keep pushing in med school?

[futuredoc0307]

Will be starting med school in few months and I am wondering on what motivated you the most, other than the fact that you don't want to end up homeless with countless debt lol? what's more challenging, the difficulty of concepts or the amount of material demanded to learn? How did you keep yourself on track and motivated?

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[Weirdy]

1st semester it was all of the negative things. Fear of flunking out. Crippling debt. Newly married and seeing my wife give up so much to support me.

I was a wreck. Constant anxiety, didn't learn much cause was trying to memorize everything. Depression, insomnia, a lot of fights with my wife.

By the end of 1st year it was all the cliche things that mattered in life. Seeing my wife come home after a whole day of work and still have dinner and lunch packed for me. Seeing patients in clinic who were having an utter **** day with debilitating pathologies or patients who really sat down and thought the world of me for just existing. Seeing residents who hadn't really slept in days but could still crack a joke. Seeing attendings commanding a burning wreck of a ship with grace and inhuman patience.

Sometimes just seeing parents walk their kids home from school or seeing someone walk their dog happily after work were enough. Reminds you there's more to life than the rat race that is medical school and success.

For now, its mostly people that motivate me. People I see in clinic. Siblings and parents back home. My wife who isn't afraid to drag me through it when I've got nothing left in the tank.

Its people who give a **** about others that keep me going.

 

[dr_kateb]

other than the fact that you don't want to end up homeless with countless debt

Is that not enough for you? That would definitely be enough for me if I get in.

 

[futuredoc0307]

1st semester it was all of the negative things. Fear of flunking out. Crippling debt. Newly married and seeing my wife give up so much to support me.

I was a wreck. Constant anxiety, didn't learn much cause was trying to memorize everything. Depression, insomnia, a lot of fights with my wife.

2nd semester it was all the cliche things that mattered in life. Seeing my wife come home after a whole day of work and still have dinner and lunch packed for me. Seeing patients in clinic who were having an utter **** day with debilitating pathologies or patients who really sat down and thought the world of me for just existing. Seeing residents who hadn't really slept in days but could still crack a joke. Seeing attendings commanding a burning wreck of a ship with grace and inhuman patience.

Sometimes just seeing parents walk their kids home from school or seeing someone walk their dog happily after work were enough. Reminds you there's more to life than the rat race that is medical school and success.

For now, its mostly people that motivate me. People I see in clinic. Siblings and parents back home. My wife who isn't afraid to drag me through it when I've got nothing left in the tank.

Its people who give a **** about others that keep me going.

wow. this needs to be an article. are you currently in your second semester?

 

[Tenk]

Chicks, money, power, and chicks.

 

[futuredoc0307]

Is that not enough for you? That would definitely be enough for me if I get in.

not very motivating in nature, more so anxiety and fear provoking, which would probably make matters worse

 

[futuredoc0307]

Chicks, money, power, and chicks.

glad I'm not the only one with this motto

 

[futuredoc0307]

For me, most of the concepts were not challenging (though some of the biochem and physio processes got a bit complex, but that was more difficult to memorize than difficult to understand). It's just a lot of material at once.

Other than the motivating factors you mentioned lol...reminding myself that everything I did was helping me reach a goal of helping patients. During the pre-clinical years I tried to volunteer in free clinics about once a month as a refresher of what I was working towards.

Im more of a conceptual person. I struggle with memorization much more. this is my biggest fear. as a medical student, what do you do in a free clinic?

 

[puahate]

If you were successful enough academically to get into medical school, chances are you can figure the memorization thing out. Know what worked for you and what didn't in undergrad, and make modifications on the most effective strategies for you until you figure out what works best. Ask for help early and often. You'll get there.

As an M1-M2 in a free clinic, you're probably just taking vitals, asking super basic history questions (medical history, why are you here, etc.). As an M3-M4 you'd do the same type of stuff you'd do on your clinical rotations - seeing patients, doing a full history and physical, and working with a resident or attending to develop a plan for the patient.

Is the free clinic thing helpful so you aren't fumbling in rotations?

 

[BellaWriterChic]

It just gets better, that is what I tell myself. I had a hard block that I was terribly stressed about but friends at school, family, they all were supporting me. We just got final grades from that block and I celebrated over a bowl of jelly beans (because jelly beans are amazing). It really is the little things. Find yourself some friends to motivate you and push you. Support each other. Not just study buddies, but med school buddies as I call it. Because they will be the ones who see when you are stressed when you walk into class. Who will work out material with you but also when to run and grab that coffee at Starbucks (because you do deserve it). And just keep pushing. It seems hard in the moment, but then when you finish that harder section, you look back and go “Yea, I did that.”

 

[puahate]

At least the way my school does it, not really. The vitals, basic history, etc. that the preclinical students do at my school's free clinic volunteering opportunities would be more in line with what an MA or nurse would do on your rotations. So you should be doing way more on rotations as an M3 than you should be doing in a clinical setting as an M2.

So volunteering in the free clinic is useless in your opinion?

 

[ndafife]

So volunteering in the free clinic is useless in your opinion?

Yeah god forbid you help someone in need

 

[puahate]

Yeah god forbid you help someone in need

No, i didn't mean it like that. I am planning on volunteering in med school but volunteering and learning skills would be the best of both worlds. I was just curious about it.

 

[Weirdy]

wow. this needs to be an article. are you currently in your second semester?

End of 2nd year. Podiatry.

 

[Weirdy]

No, i didn't mean it like that. I am planning on volunteering in med school but volunteering and learning skills would be the best of both worlds. I was just curious about it.

Currently volunteer at a free health clinic (multispecialty, not DPM only) and it's great. Depends who you work with and the attendings there.

If they're good people who like teaching, go in and help.
Most of these places rely on 90% unpaid physicians and donations.
They're understaffed and underfunded which means you see some of the gnarliest and normal pathologies. Its great for learning how to present, drilling a mental SOAP note in your head, getting your HPI, PMH, SH, FH, physical down, and even charting. You also learn how to find low-cost techniques for your patients to get medications and programs that subsidize it or certain procedures. I learned a ton of office stuff too like faxing prescriptions, scheduling patients, working an autoclave, labeling and filing, charts, all the stuff they don't teach us that comes with running an office.

Again, depends entirely on who runs it and how comfortable they are, what they're willing to let you help with.

 

[ciestar]

My depression nearly led me to failing second year or dropping out. It was hard. I wish i had general advice, but, you know what you’re aiming for and YOU need to get yourself to your goal.

I didnt volunteer in my school’s clinics and i do very well clinically. (Again, depression.. i didn’t leave the house if i could help it.)

 

[puahate]

Wow you are an incredible motivation. Hopefully you mentor other women

I had no option to quit (I am an immigrant from a family full of doctors), so I didn’t need motivation. It was a non-factor. But I kept my eye on the prize: prestige, self-fulfillment... and the ability to dictate my own life without relying on anyone, ever... especially as a woman. Just shy of my 32nd birthday, I became an attending surgeon while some friends were still trying to “figure themselves out.” Everything I had hoped it would be, it was. And still is.

 

[jhamaican]

debt

 

[Konkurro]

I mentor everyone regardless of gender.
As an aside, I’m not a feminist (at least not the way the word is used in the modern era - “equity feminist” is probably a better term for me). The vast majority of peer reviewed social science shows that it is young men who are suffering from modern education strategies, so they are actually the ones that need help the most. But as I said, I volunteer with both female and co-ed groups.

Wow... You're awesome!!!

 

[Konkurro]

I had no option to quit (I am an immigrant from a family full of doctors), so I didn’t need motivation. It was a non-factor. But I kept my eye on the prize: prestige, self-fulfillment... and the ability to dictate my own life without relying on anyone, ever... especially as a woman. Just shy of my 32nd birthday, I became an attending surgeon while some friends were still trying to “figure themselves out.” Everything I had hoped it would be, it was. And still is.

Do you think 38 is too old be become an attending surgeon? I'm a non trad and interested in ortho and ent but scared ill be older by the time I'm an attending. Is there a bias where residency directors look down on those who are slightly older?

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

Do you think 38 is too old be become an attending surgeon? I'm a non trad and interested in ortho and ent but scared ill be older by the time I'm an attending. Is there a bias where residency directors look down on those who are slightly older?

I knew someone who became an attending at 50. It’s all about what you want personally for your life, and how much you are willing to sacrifice. Some people don’t want to work that hard when they are old. Keep in mind that you will have X amount of years less than your traditional colleagues.

 

[M&L]

Maybe i am wrong, but i always felt like, if i REALLY love something, id rather do that for 5 years than something i dont love as much for 8 years.....

 

[stickgirl390]

Don’t forget the good old-fashion motivation that medicine is the most fascinating thing to study on planet earth. Yeah studying is hard and it gets stressful, but at the end of the day my motivation comes from myself, because I love what I’m doing. Every “pass” on my transcript blows my mind that I’m ACTUALLY doing it, something that seemed so unattainable just 2 years ago.

Basically, you don’t need some awe-inspiring outside force driving you. It is possible that you’ll actually like it.

 

[Dave1980]

You shouldn't really need more motivation than is already baked into the equation. You are on the path to making a very good living and if you fail out you are f*cked.

Med school and training is really not THAT hard.

 

[futuredoc0307]

Med school and training is really not THAT hard.

Love reading that

 

[Konkurro]

I knew someone who became an attending at 50. It’s all about what you want personally for your life, and how much you are willing to sacrifice. Some people don’t want to work that hard when they are old. Keep in mind that you will have X amount of years less than your traditional colleagues.

Thank you for the response!