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whats keeping you sane
- Thread starter gogreenfolks
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🙁 I dunno what to tell ya, cause everything you've listed above is pretty much what keeps me sane... Very close vet school friends definitely help too, but I get that sometimes it's nice to get away from anything that reminds you of school.
Any way you can find a nonchalant kind of part time job that you might enjoy? Or volunteer or something? I kind of like taking part in a few things that I know no one else from vet school (or at least my class) is a part of. Especially things that remind me why I'm here.
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ugh people from school are neurotic! i thought i was but these folks are in a total different level of dedication hahaha.
i was thinking of joining a gym but will i actually have time for it??
i was thinking of joining a gym but will i actually have time for it??
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Join a gym, or there's a plethora of exercises you can do at home with a chair, a piece of floor, and yourself.
My sanity list includes:
1. Reading
2. Keeping up with select TV shows (Big bang theory, NCIS, and usually one other series that I'm trying to catch up on)
3. Taking a walk with the hubby (if you don't have a hubby, a friend works well too, or going by yourself).
4. Cleaning the house (I know, it's strange, but very relaxing)
5. Finding a good craft project. Preferably something that requires lots of concentration while doing it, and that will take a while to complete.
6. Meeting a friend for lunch (keep in mind, I only have 2, yes only 2, close friends that I get together with on a regular basis).
7. My last guilty pleasure is mind numbing puzzle games like Sudoku, and Spider Solitaire.....
Really what it boils down to is finding a few activities that you enjoy, and scheduling yourself to do them for an hour or two each week. The nature of the activity is moderately irrelevant.
My sanity list includes:
1. Reading
2. Keeping up with select TV shows (Big bang theory, NCIS, and usually one other series that I'm trying to catch up on)
3. Taking a walk with the hubby (if you don't have a hubby, a friend works well too, or going by yourself).
4. Cleaning the house (I know, it's strange, but very relaxing)
5. Finding a good craft project. Preferably something that requires lots of concentration while doing it, and that will take a while to complete.
6. Meeting a friend for lunch (keep in mind, I only have 2, yes only 2, close friends that I get together with on a regular basis).
7. My last guilty pleasure is mind numbing puzzle games like Sudoku, and Spider Solitaire.....
Really what it boils down to is finding a few activities that you enjoy, and scheduling yourself to do them for an hour or two each week. The nature of the activity is moderately irrelevant.
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So I'm not in vet school yet, but there are still things that keep me sane. 
Have you tried container gardening? Vet people tend to be animal people but when animals aren't a possibility - we do like our living things in general, right? Plus plants don't whine, leave messes (at least in unpredictable areas...) and if anything they smell pretty good. 😉 And if you can't make it home for lunch to walk 'em - NBD!
Grow something that makes you happy. <3 Or grow something that keeps you fed. <3 Use the time in your "garden" as a form of meditation and bring some color into your life. <3
Have you tried container gardening? Vet people tend to be animal people but when animals aren't a possibility - we do like our living things in general, right? Plus plants don't whine, leave messes (at least in unpredictable areas...) and if anything they smell pretty good. 😉 And if you can't make it home for lunch to walk 'em - NBD!
Grow something that makes you happy. <3 Or grow something that keeps you fed. <3 Use the time in your "garden" as a form of meditation and bring some color into your life. <3
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1) The boy - we talk every night, and I get to see him once every three weekends or so. Definitely thankful that my relationship is a stress-reliever rather than an additional stress-causer like it seems to be for some people.
2) My dog - she's an easy keeper and a great snuggler. Plus it forces me to go on at least two good walks per day.
3) Reading - I don't do it enough but reading bits of a good book really helps with end-of-day decompression.
4) TV - I don't have cable but use a lot of favorite movies and series as background noise while studying. The electronic equivalent of comfort food.
5) Cooking/baking - I make one new, big recipe weekly and eat it for dinner pretty much all week (saves money and usually fairly healthy). School bake sales are also perfect to get the chance to bake more frequently without eating it all myself.
6) Mindless stuff - I take at least 45 minutes or so after school, dinner, and taking care of the pup to surf Reddit, Youtube, and cooking blogs so my brain can completely turn off.
2) My dog - she's an easy keeper and a great snuggler. Plus it forces me to go on at least two good walks per day.
3) Reading - I don't do it enough but reading bits of a good book really helps with end-of-day decompression.
4) TV - I don't have cable but use a lot of favorite movies and series as background noise while studying. The electronic equivalent of comfort food.
5) Cooking/baking - I make one new, big recipe weekly and eat it for dinner pretty much all week (saves money and usually fairly healthy). School bake sales are also perfect to get the chance to bake more frequently without eating it all myself.
6) Mindless stuff - I take at least 45 minutes or so after school, dinner, and taking care of the pup to surf Reddit, Youtube, and cooking blogs so my brain can completely turn off.
Vet school turned me into a compulsive exerciser, when I was previously kind of lazy.... I worked hard in the physical jobs I had, but I never thought, "Hey, I'd like to run until I feel like I'm going to throw up! That sounds like a BLAST!"
Nothing like a rush of endorphins to make you forget how much you hate anatomy. And then when that wears off, your legs hurt so bad in lab the next day that you don't even care about how much you want to stab your groupmate in the eye.
Or. You know. Whatever.
I think if I didn't do that, I'd be an alcoholic. So yeah. Join a gym.
Also I try to make an effort to GO THE HELL HOME. I don't study at school unless I have to (anatomy), and I try to do things that remind that I'm a person, not just a vet student.
Nothing like a rush of endorphins to make you forget how much you hate anatomy. And then when that wears off, your legs hurt so bad in lab the next day that you don't even care about how much you want to stab your groupmate in the eye.
Or. You know. Whatever.
I think if I didn't do that, I'd be an alcoholic. So yeah. Join a gym.
Also I try to make an effort to GO THE HELL HOME. I don't study at school unless I have to (anatomy), and I try to do things that remind that I'm a person, not just a vet student.
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Oh man breenie, you have no idea how much I wish I could be like you. I get like nothing done at home, but don't even leave to go to class half the time... So I have to FORCE myself to stay at school and study. It only happens once in a blue moon and I wish I could motivate myself more often.
And I so so sooooo wish I found exercise to be something other than torture. Trying desperately to get started since I feel like I'm headed towards heart attack by age 35 at the rate I'm going.
And I so so sooooo wish I found exercise to be something other than torture. Trying desperately to get started since I feel like I'm headed towards heart attack by age 35 at the rate I'm going.
Exercise, TV, cooking/baking, and maintaining friendships outside of vet school. It's great to hang out with people that understand what you're going through, but after a while it becomes a bit too much. Talking to people who are not related to vet school at all are wonderful and help my sanity.
(I also drink a boatload of wine every week...but I don't really recommend that).
(I also drink a boatload of wine every week...but I don't really recommend that).
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Honestly it took me months to like exercise. I started running gradually until I didn't hate it, then made myself try to do it a few times a week until I liked it. Now I do other stuff that's more fun, but I still like running.
Have you thought about doing C25k? I and a lot of the other pre vets found it a great way to get into exercising more.
No advice for studying at home, though. Hahaha. I just hate being at school and like being alone, so it works somehow.
Tae kwon do keeps me (relatively) sane.
1. Get exercise
2. Meet interesting off-campus people
3. Hit them.
I suspect some of my fellow students have similar relationships with their hockey leagues.
1. Get exercise
2. Meet interesting off-campus people
3. Hit them.
I suspect some of my fellow students have similar relationships with their hockey leagues.
One of the most important things for me was making friends outside of vet school. Find a hobby you like and find a meet up group. Even if I can't do everything fun, I can go listen to a birder, or a through-hiker, or a weaver talk about their experiences and grab a cuppa with folks that have other things going on than vet school.
Exercise. it doesn't have to be 'intentional' but hiking, biking, walking, gardening, etc helps immensely (dopamine release). Mountain biking and commute biking are my current additctions. I have introduced 4 other folks to mountain biking, 2 vet students and 2 non vet students and we all love it. We also letterbox a lot and have made a lot of friends doing so!
Cooking. I don't do it often enough, but I have a few cool recipes that I perfected during vet school. all are fast, easy, flavorful, and pretty healthy, and doing them repeatedly has made them good enough for company
Work. I run a dog training business. I only deal with referrals from a few specific vets and I work on my schedule. My clients apply for my services, and I am very selective, which means most of my outcomes are very positive, and it keeps me networking with others.
Art. I don't pick any of it up enough, but I sketch and paint. Occasionally its the only thing that will let me express myself. I also write...even just to vent.
Exercise. it doesn't have to be 'intentional' but hiking, biking, walking, gardening, etc helps immensely (dopamine release). Mountain biking and commute biking are my current additctions. I have introduced 4 other folks to mountain biking, 2 vet students and 2 non vet students and we all love it. We also letterbox a lot and have made a lot of friends doing so!
Cooking. I don't do it often enough, but I have a few cool recipes that I perfected during vet school. all are fast, easy, flavorful, and pretty healthy, and doing them repeatedly has made them good enough for company
Work. I run a dog training business. I only deal with referrals from a few specific vets and I work on my schedule. My clients apply for my services, and I am very selective, which means most of my outcomes are very positive, and it keeps me networking with others.
Art. I don't pick any of it up enough, but I sketch and paint. Occasionally its the only thing that will let me express myself. I also write...even just to vent.
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I concur with friends/hobby outside of vet school and even vet med if you can. I play ice hockey, have a large and extensive network of people I can play with around here. Definitely helps to keep me even remotely sane. 🙂
I also referee for youth and adult league games, which helps to provide a little extra income.
I also referee for youth and adult league games, which helps to provide a little extra income.
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👍
I ref intramural sports. Income essentially amounts to beer money but the hours are really flexible, it gets you outta the house and moving around, and there's seriously nothing more confidence-boosting than carding some back-talking -sshat who actually doesn't know all the rules of basketball ever.
