Back again!

Whow... I just checked my last posting date and it has been almost a year since I last posted. I guess once 2nd year got into full swing, I totally neglected this blog.

Well, 2nd year is done now and I'm enjoying my last bit of summer before starting my internship in September (T minus 3 weeks! eekkk!!). Starting off with psychiatry so that should be interesting. Can't wait to get my very own safety alarm in case I get attacked by some violent patient...yay.... (haha no, I totally kid, I'm super pumped actually. Can't wait to start "working" and not be ruled by the monotony of classes day in and day out).

My goal is to update the blog more regularly now as I will probably have far more interesting things to share and talk about than just classes, classes and MORE classes.

I also got a Twitter account so I can randomly share my thoughts (med school related or not). Check it out: www.twitter.com/cluelessmeddude

On a side note, saw a news report on lunch break today on teens turning to botox to "prevent" wringles. ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?!?! I think it's totally stupid. What are your thoughts? Please share in the comments section.

Be back soon!

Recipe for Disaster

So my friend asked me the other day: "What is it like working with other med students on group projects and what not? Everyone is so smart and capable, must make it really ez to get things done."

I looked at her and was thinking "wtf? where the hell did you get that idea from?"

let me tell you my friend, group projects with med students = DISASTER.

of course, there are the exceptions but it usually goes something like this:

0 mins into meeting to discuss project: everyone is happy and sits down (some group members thinking why they got grouped with the class-labelled slackers, thinking it was higher powers trying to screw with them)

5 mins in: everyone shares their opinion

10 mins in: hostility develops

15 mins in: outright trash-talking ensues among members

20 mins in: more trash-talking, I give up and just watch youtube videos. phrases like: "you are incompetent. an 8 year old can come up with a better idea. you are ignorant. how did you get into medical school?" start coming out.

30 mins in: realizing nothing got done in the past 30 mins, more trash-talking and why everyone else's idea is stupid. I continue catching up on youtube videos

60 mins in: people leave the meeting without getting anything constructive done and everyone's secret hatred towards one another develops a little more. Cycle repeats.

In med school, there are SO many type-A personalities in the class. Everyone used to be the top of their class and was seen as the smart and knowledgeable one. When you group these top students together in one class, someone is bound to be at the bottom and no one likes to be at the bottom. Everyone thinks they are the sh!t and their opinion or thoughts are the absolute truth with no room for other people's view. Thus group projects = disaster. But being a doctor is so much about team-work. So these are good learning experiences to be receptive to other people's views and learn to integrate different ideas and collaborate with others. We better get our sh!t together and learn how to function properly in a team before we get thrown into the deep end of the ocean (i.e. internship and residency).

This might seem like an over exaggeration of what really happens during group work and seems a bit gloomy and pessimistic but it's not without reason. Anyways, just another look into the fascinating world of medical school and the crap that I get to experience (and secretly enjoy, esp. people verbally abusing each other) from time to time.

Simpler Days

So I got the chance this past weekend to just sit around in my apartment and do nothing and stare out the balcony. It's times like these that you really learn to appreciate the small things in life.

Sitting there, it got me thinking back to my high school days and how much simpler it was back then compared to now or even during my undergrad. You show up to school, meet up with friends, joke around in class, play sports and hang out with the girlfriend after class. No need to worry about careers or futures or anything. It was just simple and fun.

Then university came along and the aspiration to get into medical school. You constantly worry about grades, having a presentable resume for application, extra-curricular activities, it became a giant game of how to best position yourself for maximizing your chances of getting into medical school. Don't get me wrong, I'm SO happy to be where I am right now because this what I really want to do and I wake up every morning being thankful that I'm in med school and look forward to the day. But then on the same token, looking back I also had to give up a lot to get to where I am now.

Aside from the initial rush of partying during first year, I rarely ever partied. I spent a lot of time studying or volunteering. I met a lot a lot of people during university but they were just that, not friends close enough that I would hang out with on a normal basis. You might just stop to chit chat if you happen to run into them while on campus. I'm off busy studying while my friends are over at someone else's playing xbox and what not on a Friday night.

I also find that it's hard to make true friends with people in the same program in university as many also had the hopes of getting into medical school. Getting into medical school is so competitive that sometimes it boils down to you getting a spot means that my spot is gone. It's a zero-sum game. I mean I've met my fair share of not-so-nice classmates or those who will outrightly backstab you just to get ahead on the road to medical school.

And I guess on the side of love and relationship, as we all grow older, dating and relationship aren't as simple as it was back in high school where it was "hey, I like you and you like me, let's date". So many factors are part of the equation now and I guess your earning potential and future plays a big part for better or for worse.

Gahh, ok I'm rambling on, I just miss the simple old days, that's all haha. As much as I like it right now, I do wish that maybe I can relive the older days once more and even do something that I wished I had done back then.

TWO weeks of school and dying ALREADY

Hey world!

So it has only been two weeks since 2nd year of medical school started and I'm DYING already. I need my 8 hours of beauty sleep a day and 5 definitely won't cut it. lol. What you get from 5 hours of sleep is a cranky, bitter, annoyed med student sitting in the middle of class and getting more annoyed cuz his classmate sitting to his left is telling him that he can bench press 300 lbs (guess what? I don't f-ing care, thank you very much) and the classmate to his right telling him about kanye's outburst on stage (for the 5000th time).

I seriously don't know how I'll survive clerkship when I do 28 hour shifts but oh well, taking it one step at a time right?

I'm actually sitting through class presentations right now and some group decided to re-enact the whole kanye dealio (again) as part of their presentation, ohhhh how i love my class.

ok, maybe i should actually pay more attention now. haha

First blog ever.

Hey world!

Blogging always seemed like a cool thing to do but I never really had the drive to start blogging. I figured it's a good time to start now with the start of a new school year. I've always wanted to share my thoughts on the ups and downs of medical school life while remaining anonymous.

I can't guarantee that this will be interesting at ALL but I'll try. lol.