GI baby! That’s right, we’re in the gastrointestinal system right now and it’s so fascinating! Did you know there are more neurons in our GI tract than in our brains? For anyone out there that has ever had GI issues, IBS/IBD etc… you KNOW that when your belly decides to feel one way, it can disrupt everything! In particular, stress and nerves are MY IBS trigger. Literally the moment I feel the wave of stress or nerves overcome me before an exam/patient encounter/interview my intestines respond with a gut wrenching feeling of twisting and turning and generally results in a bathroom trip.
A lot has gone on in the past few months and life has certainly continued to surprise me. To summarize: finished the first semester of my 2nd yr of medical school without failing anything! We covered these systems: endocrine, cardiology, renal & respiratory! I visited family in MA, had Christmas at our place in Pomona, had a incredibly refreshing winter break and started the new school semester with my favorite topic (reproduction)! Completed a course on osteopathic medicine in the cranial field, and finally, I’ve begun my board studying process and am slowly descending into the dark space of studying and committing to passing and kicking butt on boards.
The other day I got some great news! I won a scholarship for a prep class (DIT) for board studying (900+ value) and don’t have to pay for it! I’m SO excited because I wasn’t planning on buying it because it turns out that we probably won’t be able to afford it. For those of you that don’t know the extent of money spent on tests: 300 QBank, 300 ComBank, 500 USMLE, 500 COMLEX, 900 PREP CLASS, 300+ BOOKS…so to save a good 900 dollars, I’m pretty stoked!
Currently I’m studying. GI midterm on Tuesday.
Learned how to suture this past Thursday…maybe surgery is in my future? Maybe not…the pig’s foot I worked on looked a little sad.