Post Unifieds, Part 2

I guess I can say I survived unifieds, but not really. I didn't particularly do well on them, and being a deceling student I guess there is more expectation. Even though I have a smaller course load, the bulk of what takes the most time during first term is Anatomy & Biochemistry so it's essentially the same.

The exam went much better than last term, so that's at least a good thing. But the score isn't what I would have liked. I have two/three-ish weeks to bring up my grade - I hope I can do it. I like the material that is covered post-unifieds much more than pre-unifieds.

Good luck to us all!

Money on the Islands

One positive aspect about living on the island, is my cost of living. Yeah the food is a little pricier than the states, but not really THAT much more. For example, I get nachos from Mr. Chipotle - which is about 18EC converted to approximately $7.00. And it lasts me 2 days. I don't think I can get something that cheap in the states, even at fast food restaurants. I also really like the falafel sandwich at NYBagels, which is 10EC, converted to $4. Falafel sandwich for $4 - I'll take it!!

But the BIGGEST most cost saver for living on the island - no retail therapy! I'm generally a bargain shopper, but even the bargain deals add up. During college, I think I spent about $100 each semester in clothes. I don't know if that's expensive/cheap - but when I itemize my costs, I didn't splurge on anything. But yes, surprise surprise, I'm a girl and I enjoy the occasional shopping.

Okay back to studying.

Time for Round 2

All summer I wanted to come back to the island and get back into it. Now that I'm finally here and classes will be starting in full swing tomorrow, I'm nervous. I want a few more extra days off!! It's scary enough starting med school, but then to add in the factor of repeating a year - there's even more terrifying.

Oh well, here's to August 2012!

[SGU Classes] Histology

H i s t o l o g y

Histology is worth 4 credit-hours and is often times not given as much credit. Granted classes like Anatomy & Biochemistry do account for more credit hours and take a long time to grasp, so it's natural to let Histology slide to curb. However, Pathology which will appear during 4th term, uses a lot of it's knowledge from Histology. Knowing Histology really well, will make things easier in Path (or so I've heard)!

Class Structure: - (January 2012)

• The lectures are interspersed between Anatomy & Biochem classes
• You have weekly laboratory meetings
• About 2 weeks before Midterms & Finals - they will post slides for the practical portion of the exam. Know those slides well. Questions could be first, second, or third degree.

Textbook: - There are a couple textbooks for Histology that come with your first term textbooks, but I never used them. The textbook goes in far too much detail than is required for us

Laboratory: The labs were my favorite part, it really helps to keep up with the material. You are given the slides ahead of time as well as descriptions of what you are supposed to see. Every week during the lab, each person presents a certain number of slides. 

• During lectures, note how the professors identify structures and what they are - you will need it during lab
• Use your notes & the slides booklet to prepare for the slides
• If you come prepared, you will get the most out of lab and it will be a rewarding experience
• Clinical tutors are present at each lab and rotate.
• Clicker questions during the last 5-10 minutes of lab. It will give you an idea on what structures are important and could easily get confused with. 

Suggestions:

• Dr. Paparro told me, prepare for the midterm/final exams like you would for lab. And that's exactly what I did. Things that are brought up in lab are important, know it cold!
• When you receive the slides for the practical, get together with a couple friends and write 4-5 things about what you see on every slide. It will take time, but it's a great way to review for the exam & practical.
• I prepared for lab with a friend who had it during a different session. We would test each other and then report back what additional information our tutors told us. It was a great way to keep up with the information.
• Do NOT neglect this class, because cramming is difficult.

Checking In...

I've been doing many modifications to my blog lately. I'm making the transition from my apple email address to my gmail email address as well as redesigning the blog a bit, so I hope I haven't lost my (maybe 2, lol) followers! Whomsoever you are, thank you for following me - it makes me feel VERY special! :)

In other news, summer has been coming along. It can't believe I've been home for more than a month, and less than 2 months before I head back to Grenada! As much as I hate to admit it, my studying schedule is off the walls horrible! I haven't kept up with all the studying I should be doing and I'm getting a little stressed! Hopefully I can catch up with the remaining two months!

In the meantime, I've been enjoying the summer sun, catching up with friends & family, and spending time shopping! It's funny how much money I saved in Grenada since the "shopping" part wasn't factored into the budget!

Anyone care to share what they're doing this summer? I'd love to make new friends :)

My favorite Studying Spot

One thing that I've missed being on the island is studying in coffee shops. I cannot study in the library or anything super quiet like that -- for some reason it raises my anxiety level and makes me feel conscious of everything I do. Now that I'm back in the states, I'm finally reunited with Starbucks. There are 3 Starbucks within a 5-mile radius of my house. One of them in particular is the best! It's really spacious, has lots of tables, and many people come to study. So there's a nice studying atmosphere along with subtle chatter so I don't feel like I'm disrupting everyone when I have to unzip my backpack. 

[SGU Classes] Bioethics

B i o e t h i c s

Even though Bioethics is a 1-credit hour class, you should not disregard it. As future physicians, we will encounter many ethical dilemmas, in which we'll have to make life/death decisions involving ethics. Performing well in this class gives a good padding to your GPA, as well as a little bit of confidence, as it's your first class as a medical student! 

Class Structure: - (January 2012)

• The lectures are interspersed every now and then - at least 2 classes per week
• We had 4 small group discussions & 2 homework assignments

Textbook: - Course companion (manual) that Dr. Macpherson wrote; you will get this with your first term books

Suggestions:

• Know the companion inside and out - I read it 4 times!
• Know and understand the vocabulary and how certain words differ from others (ex: Moral VS Ethical - sounds easy, but can be confusing)
• During lectures, focus your attention to ethical situations and why/why not certain decisions are preferred over others
• Study with a group, it's easier to get through the companion a few times 
• Do NOT neglect reading the articles, they're very important

Mount Qua Qua

After finals, my friends and I really wanted to go on a hike of some sort. We really wanted to do 7 Sister's Waterfall, but it was really expensive and we couldn't find a way to set it up. Alas, we went on the Mount Qua Qua hike in Grand Etang National Park. The hike starts out the same way as the hike the school takes you on during orientation week, but it stops at the lookout which is only 20 minutes into the hike. Luckily though, it didn't rain - which made it so much easier. All in all, it was a great hike, and the perfect way to spend some post-finals down time!

About the hike:

• It took us about 90 minutes each way - so it's a 3-hour hike altogether
• Rain is sporadic, we were lucky and it didn't rain. Regardless, you will encounter have many muddy patches
• The hike is not easy, but it's not very difficult either. Gives you a good workout with all the ups, downs, and mud! 

Getting there:

• You can get there via public transportation. 
• First, take the #1 bus into St. Georges ($2.50EC)
• According to Katherine's blog, you then take the #6 bus. We couldn't find one, so our #1 bus driver drove us ($10-$15 EC per person)
• Either bus will drop you in front of "Grandetang House". There you can buy your entry ticket ($5EC), clean up, get refreshments, etc)

Additional Tips:

• You will get muddy, so try to wear older sneakers, old clothes, etc
• You will def need both hands while hiking - so bring something to hold your water bottle, camera, sun screen, etc. 

Over the first hill

I've recently had a splurge of traffic on my blog from Facebook. So, I'm thinking someone posted my link...? Not too sure - but thank you to all that have visited! I know I haven't updated in a while, but please look out for how I studied for my completed classes.

This past week (post-finals) has been absolutely wonderful! I think after mid-terms, I really started bonding more with my classmates since it felt like we went through something together, and then more-so after finals. I might have mentioned this already, but I feel so connected to my friends here that I've only known for 4 months, than some of my friends at home that I've known for many years. The difference here is we pretty much spend every waking minute with the same people day after day. To a point that they truly become like a family. I like it. It makes the whole process so much more exciting!

Right now I am at the airport waiting for my flight. I arrived 3 hours early, and I was completed with checking-in and all of that within 30-minutes. Definitely check-in online, the line for that was so much shorter for me. I'm excited to be going home, but I'm also looking forward to coming back and tackling the semester with a much better handle on how to study and manage my time! 

Histology...DONE!

After countless hours of just focusing on Histology, I'm glad to say it's OVER! Because I only had one subject to focus on, I really wanted an A. I don't think I got the A, but I definitely have a B in the class. It was definitely a fair exam, so that's good! Good luck to all who still have finals - the end is SO close!

I'm going to now spend my time enjoying the island a bit. But, at this time next week - I will be HOME! This is going to be one of the quickest weeks ever in medical school! 

5 | 12

5 days left until Finals are over
12 left until I'm HOME!
...and 7 days left until I finally get to see the inside of Bananas!

Bananas is one of the local bars/clubs that we hang out at. I say "we", but I really mean students, because I haven't seen the inside of Bananas yet! I can't wait until next week - I feel like it's been forever since I've been out clubbing.

Some more random news:
I did laundry tonight. They installed these motion detector lights in there, and I feel like I do a little dance every time I go inside to get the lights to turn on. It's actually kind of amusing! The number of ants in our bathroom room has increased. Don't even know where they came from. But it's those sugar ants - so they don't do anything. I still don't know my housing assignment for next semester. I know that's probably the least of my worries, but I'd really like to know before I leave.

A friend from home texted me:

Friend: what's up?
Me: studying - what's up with you?
Friend: Just watching a movie, studying on a Friday night
-some more small talk-
Friend: Sounds boring
Me: It's not so bad
Friend: Studying on a Friday night. Sorry. Major boredom. 

Yeah, I guess it kind of sucks to be studying on a Friday night, but honestly - I'm in medical school! That's pretty freaking awesome. Some days, yes, it sucks to be studying and I wish I was doing something else, but most days I'm really excited to be learning all of this. I've waited so long to get into medical school, and now that I'm finally here - I love it. It's sometimes just an awesome feeling. I need to remember that when I'm feeling unmotivated...

The Last Week

This blog post will be slightly boring. Nothing much has changed from my last post, except the number of days left! :) I've been studying a lot lately with my study buddy. I'm so lucky to have her, I don't think I would be as efficient or study as much as I do with her. When I look back to the beginning of the semester, a lot has definitely changed in just a few short months. I definitely value my time a lot more, and I've learned to study. It was a grueling process, but I'm glad (or at least I hope) I've finally got it down.

Final's Countdown: 8
Home Countdown: 15

15 | 22

15 days until I'm done with finals!
22 days until I'm back home!

I've already told my parents what they need to bring at the airport: Taco Bell! Continued with a week long of fast food pleasures! Although I am going to miss the luxury of converting down to dollars. Sometimes it's nice to be worried at how much I spend at IGA, but when I convert it to dollars, I don't feel as bad. For example, one meal generally costs me around 20 EC - which is only $8. But when I'm back in the states, $20 means $20.

In other news, I did contract housing for 1 year when I signed my housing for this term. That means, I will have guaranteed on-campus housing for my first year here. However, a few of my friends have looked for off-campus locations to live. I went with them to look at a few places - it was really nice! When I think about the cost factor, it does seem like you can live comfortably well and still save around $500-$1000 each term by living off campus. While it is a good amount of money being saved, when you add up how much tuition is, it's really not THAT much. The most expensive thing in medical school is time, and I'm not sure how much time gets eaten away with living off campus. Who knows, it might actually end up saving time since you can be more efficient while on campus. I don't know...but I am opening up to the idea of living off campus. But, let's see how next semester goes. It's just nice to have a place to call "home" instead of a dorm room.

The countdown starts...

As of yesterday at 6:15pm, I have only a month left before I back in my hometown! (not leaving Grenada, but physically landing in my hometown). It's crazy how fast the semester has flown by. In actuality, it was moving quite slow for my until March - and then everything after that just seems to fly by. Every time I think about packing, and worry how I am possibly going to get all of this stuff home. I'm mostly worried about my textbooks and notes. I'm still very fond of the hand-writing-notes tactic, so I'm not too sure how to transport all of this. Textbooks alone are a suitcase in itself! This will be interesting...

Sleeping Patterns

I came across an interesting article today. These articles talk about the importance of different aspects of sleep. I had always heard bits and pieces of this information throughout undergrad from my professors, but it was an interesting read to understand the science behind it. In my current situation, I've noticed how more efficient I've become with a more scheduled/routine sleeping pattern. In addition, I've haven't even touched coffee! Imagine that!! :)

In undergrad, I remember specifically one of my professors told me to sleep on a particular topic I was having trouble memorizing. He advised to think about it while I doze off into sleep, and I'd definitely remember it the next morning. I tried it, and much to my surprise it worked! With the shear amount of information we're required to know here, it's difficult to do that for everything, but it's worth a try for things here and there that just won't stick!

How to Study?

The DES office had a meeting with all of us who are deceling. They talked heavily about how psychologically we were feeling and how to get over the state of disappointment. Later they had a couple students who are currently in the program talk to us and their transitioning experience. We were also able to meet other students who are in similar positions. Overall it was a good session - I really was dreading to go, but I'm glad I went. (And, it was required - so I had to go.)

I think I've made my peace with the whole deceling - but what worries me more is making changes to my studying strategies. I wish I could find different options to try - because frankly, I don't know what's out there. Clearly, what I've been doing isn't working, but I don't know what options there are and have worked for others.

If you're reading this - can you please comment on your studying habit that's worked for you, or you can send me an email at: jennmed25 AT me.com. I'd really really appreciate it! 

New Look

I'm very OCD about aesthetics, mostly dealing with organization, design, etc. So, while I was in my low-mood this weekend, I had a tantrum about the way this blog looked. I know, stupid. But alas, I changed it up a bit. It's still not exactly how I want it to be, but good enough to deal with. I used a template I found online, and tried to edit as much as I could, but there are still many things I can't seem to fix. If you're good in coding, please let me know!

In the meantime, pardon my mess as I try to clean up as much as possible =]. Another thing, I lost all of the blog links I was following - crap! 

Update

Lots has happened this past week. But the most important of all, I decided to decel in Anatomy & Biochem. I know it was the best decision considering the circumstances (my current grades), but it's also a very "kick-in-the-crotch" feeling. The feeling you when you have to tell someone, yeah...I'm going to decel, and when you meet your lab members, and they inquire about why you weren't in lab. Pretty much sucks. But, the part that sucks even more, is your own feeling of failure. And no matter what anyone tells you, no matter how many success stories you hear about, this feeling will not go away until next term, you able to prove you can do it (Rocking the midterms).

In a medical school in the US, students repeat a year all the time; it doesn't literally happen all the time, but it's not uncommon. And those students will still be competitive enough to match, because they're at a US medical school. Being a Caribbean med student, it could basically go either way. However, doing amazing on the Step 1 exam is far more important.

I started to dwell on this whole process this past week. Not doing well the first term isn't exactly the confidence booster one would hope, and you really start doubting your ability. In addition, my really awesome, cool sleep schedule (sleep by 11:30/wake up by 6:30) was gone! And it wasn't the fact that I was sleepy/tired, I just couldn't get out of bed. I felt so unmotivated; no reason to get up anymore.

But after my somewhat unproductive week/end, I've decided:

I can keep questioning why this happened or didn't happen, but I don't know and I will never know - but I am going to choose to work very hard and believe and everything happens for a positive reason. 

Arghh

I was really hoping things post-midterm would slow down a bit, especially with all our random days off, and shortened lectured times. Boy, was I in for a complete surprise! The material we're covering is so much more difficult to grasp. I'm so glad we have the days off so I can catch up on all of this material. And Histology of all things...is it just me, or did Histology also get much more harder? 

New Schedule

I've recently found how important it is to have a schedule. Well, I knew this already; prior to entering medical school, I pretty much scheduled my entire day. That's the only way I was able to get anything done... However, being here - it's so easy to get off schedule. Instead, I made a to-do list with everything I hoped to accomplish that day and during the weekends. In essence, that was good - it was a little less stressful if things got off schedule, but it wasn't grounding.

While studying, I get really caught up on the details (that's the engineer side of me) instead of trying to encompass the full picture. With my old-time schedule, I was grounded to finish studying a particular lecture given the amount of time. It helped to "move along", and if I was really confused about a particular aspect, I can look it up later or ask the professor.

In addition, I've adjusted my sleep schedule to how I normally function. I'm a morning person - by the end of the day, my efficiency level starts dying. So, I'm doing the whole "early to bed, early to rise, makes man healthy, wealthy, and wise!" I've been sleeping at around 11/11:30 and waking up by 6:30. Knock on wood, it's been going great this year, so I hope I can continue it in the coming weeks. Although, I really wish classes started at 8, so we had more time to study...but whatever - I can't complain about everything! haha. 

Unsure

I haven't checked my midterm grades yet. I'm probably the only person that hasn't! I know I failed Anatomy & Biochem and I've already mentally prepared myself that I'm going to decel, and yet I still haven't checked. I don't know what's stopping me or holding me back. But one of these days, I'll actually work up the courage and check. 

Moving Forward

Let's just say last week did not go well.

Despite all the hours and importance I put into biochem, I walked out of the exam knowing I completely bombed the exam. As soon I as I got back to my room, I texted my mom letting her know how awful the exam went and emailed my adviser.

I then started cramming extremely hard for histology. BTW - to all the upper termers who have advised me (and sometimes endorse) not really studying for histology until after biochem need to be... I don't think the exam was particularly easy nor crammable in 1.5 days. It was a little more straightforward and do-able than the other two, but definitely not easy by all means. I will never advise that to anyone! DO NOT CRAM FOR HISTO!!!

Anatomy - despite how hard everyone thought it was, I thought it was a very fair exam. I did not do well in it by any means, but I thought it was a generally fair exam. There were a lot more CT scans, X-rays, etc that I thought, but overall it was a generally fair exam.

I haven't looked at any of my grades yet. I'm not ready yet. I've taken all of last week and even the weekend to think about my options because I know I have to decel. Taking the Caribbean Med school route, I definitely started questioning my reason to be here, and whether I'm going to make it. I've dreamed of being a physician ever since I can remember. And now that I'm here, it's a very bittersweet feeling; I'm disappointed that I didn't get accepted in US (despite knowing everything it takes for a long time) and I'm happy that I got accepted to and attending SGU verses other Caribbean med schools. Although it is a very discouraging feeling failing midterms during your first term in med school and being around so many people who make it look so easy!

After this past week and weekend of speaking with people, I've come to accept that everyone comes to medical school with different strengths, weaknesses, and backgrounds. I came from a background of engineering, where I'm trained to study in a COMPLETELY different manner than in med school. Realistically, until Unifieds, I wasn't really studying; I didn't know HOW to study. I learned to study after unifieds, so postunified material - I was good on. But, unfortunately I wasn't able to cover up the material that we had done pre-unifieds.

At this point in time, I'm going to do whatever it takes to keep my dream alive. At this point in time, I don't know if coming here was a mistake, or if failing midterms is a sign. But I choose to believe that everything happens for a reason, and in the end if I have to decel, it's for the overall good. 

Is there something wrong with me?

I made so many mistakes during my first couple of weeks of med school. And I mean, SOOOO many mistakes all in regards to my studying tactics and really trying to figure out what works. I got so behind on the material, that I've been playing catch-up ever since. I really wish I can just start over, without actually having to start over (decel). Needless to say, I'm just trying to pass midterms at this point. I've figured out a studying tactic/procedure and know I can do well on the finals which will even out my grades a bit. But it seems everyone around me is shooting for the A and is confident enough to get at least a B, but really studying their butt off for the A.

Am I the only one that got this behind?? Am I the only one who is just merely trying to pass??

Right now, the eve (or 2 nights) before my first midterm (biochem) I'm not confident that I'll pass. There is still so much I need to review and study. But, I'm going to stay confident and do the best I can at this point. There really isn't anything else I can do, and I have no time to waste on worrying.

Good luck to all for midterms!! Rock it!! 

Difference Between Males & Females, (Anatomically Speaking)

Is so much harder than I thought! I thought I could tell the difference quite easily before coming into med school...

Think, again!!

My new boyfriend: Cold Coffee

What medical school does to you...
Makes you into a coffee addict.

Prior to starting med school, I didn't drink coffee; I hate the taste. I had it a couple of times in college when I really needed to stay awake, but it was literally a couple of times at desperate moments. Needless to say, I was NOT a coffee drinker. I thought it was all psychological; if you really want to stay up and study, you can.

Oh boy, was I wrong!

Within the second week of med school - I was going by NY bagels at least 2 times a week to get coffee. And pretty soon, I was needing coffee at least 5 days a week, which brings us to where I'm at now. NY bagels was getting quite pricey, so I looked into buying a coffee maker. My roommate doesn't drink coffee, so it was pretty much an investment for me. I decided against it, and went the 'Instant Coffee' route.

I still don't really like the taste of coffee, I definitely have to put a lot of sugar, which makes me question if it's the caffeine or the sugar that's doing the trick...?

The little things...

I got my Netter's Atlas signed by Dr. Carmichael, one of the editors. He was such a great instructor in wetlab today! Loved it!!

Highlight. Of. My. Day.

One day at a time...

I'm meeting with one of the Biochem professors Thursday morning to go over my questions. Which essentially means, I need to be all caught up on the post-unified biochem material by that time. This past weekend, all I did was biochem. I don't think I got very "far", but I am absorbing information -- which I guess is good? Anyways, I've really neglected anatomy & histology. There so much I still need to go over in biochem and I'm having trouble understanding/learning anatomy.

I spoke with a few people in regards to how they were studying anatomy. They advised to first start at the aorta, know the branches, and then insert your organs. I'm going to try that method! I wish this material would sink in faster...I don't have many days left! =(

P.S. I know labs/small groups are supposed to help you understand the information, but at this point in time, I really wish I could get back those hours to do independent studying. Histology lab is the greatest thing in the world - I wish biochem & anatomy labs were organized so well!

It's almost 5am and I have anatomy lab bright and early at 7:45. I hope I can sleep tonight! 

Insomnia

Post unifieds, I've been suffering from Insomnia. Normally, I would welcome not being able to sleep, except...

• I'm mentally drained so I can't actually be productive while awake
• I'm awake all night trying to sleep, and then finally feel sleepy at 7am and sleep until about 2pm --> ruining my entire day!
• End up taking long duration of naps during the day when I should be studying!

It's getting REALLY annoying. I have less than a week (or EXACTLY) a week until my first midterm and I need all the hours studying I can get. I would like to sleep when I'm mentally drained, and be efficient during normal hours of the day instead of being tired. ARGH! Please send your well wishes for these next ~2 weeks. I will really them!

Officially less than two weeks...

It's officially less than two weeks until the slew of Midterms start. AKA Hell week #1 of many. Unifieds didn't go too well for me, or not at least as well as I wanted to (except for Anatomy - I did better than expected -- how did that happen?!). But the good/positive/optimistic news is that I've learned a lot about how to study.

For the first couple of weeks, I would attend lecture (4 hours long), and then watch all those lectures online again - which would take me a good 6 hours, with all the pausing and note taking. Obviously, I couldn't finish watching all the lectures that day, so it would pile up for the weekend. And by the time the weekend came around, all I would be doing is watching the lectures and playing catch-up. I then realized that I learn better on my own than going to class, so I started skipping a few classes here and there, and that caused me to get even more behind! By the time Unifieds came around, I was just trying to get caught up! I didn't have enough time to go over the material and actually study it.

Now I've been going to lecture, absorbing whatever I can in the 4 hours, and only watching the slides where I had absolutely no clue what was going on. I've learned that it's not important to write down every single thing the professor says, but rather understand the big picture; the other stuff will come with repetition.

I just want to get through midterms. I know how to study now, and I just want to start on a clean plate! These next two weeks are going to be CRAZYY - to say the least, but I'm optimistic that I'll survive. 

How to prepare for tomorrow...

The best preparation for tomorrow is using your time well today.

Post-unifieds, many start altering their studying habits. This included me. At the beginning of the term, many upper termers advised to preview for lecture. I tried that at the beginning, but it didn't help much. What I didn't know was HOW to preview for lecture..should I just skim the lecture? Should I actually try to learn this thing myself and fill in the gaps during lecture? Anyways, I found this website which outlines how to preview amazingly well!!

http://www.studygs.net/texred2.htm

I've started actively surveying the lectures and it's helped my time in lecture make much more sense and meaningful. Because trust me, there's no reason to sit in lecture for 4 hours if you're not going to get anything out of it. By doing this, I have more time to actually review the content material of that day, instead of spending most of time listening to lecture online again.

Hopefully this new method works better for me! 

Post Unifieds...

I just took my Unified quiz today...
Anatomy wasn't as bad/impossible as I thought it was going to be. Practicing through Gray's Review really helped prepare for the quiz - not because the questions are identical, but because it applies what you're learning to clinical scenarios.
Biochemistry and Histology were alright. Biochemistry was more detailed than I prepared for. I didn't do enough practice questions for both subjects, so that's what got me. For Histology - I need to do more clinical vignette type.

But now, I'm leaving for lunch and beach time! I can't believe I've been here more than a month, and it will be my FIRST time seeing the beach.

I know. Sad.