NEW HAIR: BEFORE AND AFTER

Over Christmas, I decided to cut my hair. As always I immediately regretted the decision as soon as my long hair fell to the ground. However, I've grown to like it. It is a bit of a nightmare trying to tie it up for hospital though!

Before

After

EARLY MORNINGS AND CAFFEINE

It's been a month since I've lasted posted on my blog and that's pretty disgraceful. I know that you've all been dying to know what I've been getting up to but in all honesty, I just haven't been able to think of anything interesting to write about. 

I've recently started my GP placement and also changed my hospital rotation to a nearby town. Which means getting up at 6:00 in the morning, travelling for an hour and a half and then getting back home at 18:30 only to collapse onto my bed exhausted from a long day.

Every Tuesdays and Wednesdays, a bunch of medical students can be found scattered along different bus stops around the city. Waiting to be picked up by the coach that is like a second home to all of them. As each student boards the bus, they stumble along to a seat and with a yawn, they drift off into sleep; in the hope that it will re-energize them before they start their day. Strangely enough, by now everyone can sense the proximity of the hospital building because as soon as the coach pulls in, everyone wakes up in unison. Sounds of people stretching and yawning fills the air as everyone gathers their stethoscopes and bags together and makes their way towards the building. Once inside, it's a mad rush to put everything in our lockers and sign in; then to be hypnotized by the smell of coffee that drifts from the canteen. After stimulating the nervous system, it's time to find willing patients to clerk and hunt down junior and senior doctors to present cases to. 

I thought that getting into medical school would be the hardest part of my long career. But each day brings its own challenges. Then again, this keeps things interesting because you never know what you have to face when you wake up every morning.

MECHANICS IN MEDICINE

I had an orthopaedic filled day today! It involved watching a few surgeries and sitting in the fracture clinic with the trauma consultant.

I never really considered orthopaedics as a field that I could go into. Stereotypically, I wouldn't get very far because of my size. I mean, how will someone as small as me hammer and screw into the human skeleton...

It was fascinating looking at all of the equipment that was laid out on the table today. I have never seen so much metal work that were available for the surgeon to use to manipulate to his/her will. Watching the surgeon work was like watching an artist create a masterpiece. Hours of dedication and meticulous planning to produce the desired outcome in order for the patient to have a better quality of life.

Surgery has always been something that I've been seriously considering and after today, I am 97.5% sure that I still want to follow this path. That's not to say that in a few months time I'll change my mind and want to do something completely different... The beauty of medicine is that the options and oppurtunities are endless

A LIFE OF ASSESSMENT

It's nearly halfway through the first month of 2015 and the one thing that's already in the back of my mind are the exams that determine whether I progress into third year. Statistics show that the first and second years of medical school are the times when the majority of students that aren't cut out for medicine fail. If I go by this, then I have one more hurdle to face before I am filled with confidence that I can actually graduate after 3/4 years. 

Many people think that after getting into medical school, you have completed the greatest challenge. But it's only just beginning. Each year you are filled with self-doubt as you wonder whether you will be able to make it to the next stage of achieving your goal of becoming a doctor. It doesn't really get much better once you graduate either; as each year your competency is assessed thoroughly. 

For those considering medicine, I would strongly advise you to think about these things along with many other factors before you decide to pursue this path. For me, I don't mind having a life full of exams and stress. Because at the end of it all, I will be doing what I love the most and seeing change in the world around me. Being a part of that change is bound to give me the adrenaline rush that I long to have in my working life. 

After a fairly gloomy post, I thought I'd conclude with something that made me very happy. A few days ago I opened my jar of memories from last year and read the notes that I had put in there throughout 2014. Some made me chuckle whereas others made me relive moments that I would never forget. I've chucked all of them away (except for a few special ones!) and I have started a brand new one for this year; and I'm happy to say that I already have had two precious memories only 2 weeks into the year.

God bless

BALANCING LIFE AND MEDICINE

Eyes widen and heads shake in pity as I tell people I do medicine when they ask me about what course I'm studying at university. Medicine is NOT hard. The content is actually easy to grasp and you are walking into the exam with a cheat sheet, your own body.

Having said that, it can be difficult to manage both a life and medicine at the same time due to the sheer work load and the lack of time to do it all in. I'm not going to that I'm an expert in conquering this task as I'm still working on it. But here are a few tips for all those aspiring medical students out there that find it difficult to get the work-life balance right:

• Set aside some time for family and friends - When you get to medical school, it can be easy to get completely bogged down into your work. Which is understandable as we have worked very hard to get in so it would be a waste to not strive to be the best whilst you're at university. However, spending too much time doing work and not enough with a strong support network can affect you in both the short and long term. There are plenty of stressful times that can arise over the course of each year you spend learning medicine, so it's essential that you build up relationships that can help you ease you way out of these situations.
• Start a blog or journal - Every individual will have personal thoughts that they do not wish to share with another party. Instead of bottling these up, start a private/public blog where you can articulate your inner thoughts and express them to the outer world. If you're not into blogging, then create a journal and write in it regularly. Not only does it lift a burden off your shoulders, but you can also see how you grow as a person as you progress through the course.
• Get organised - One of the greatest mistakes a lot of people make is not getting organised early on in the year. There are plenty of utilities to help with this. I have a diary which I cannot live without, it contains a detailed account of what I need to do every day and it helps me to get all my work done in time. 

Also, I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! God bless.

CHARITIES OFFICERS

Earlier on in my blog, I mentioned that I got the opportunity to choreograph the dances in the MedSoc panto - Aladdin. Well the event was a huge success!

Source

In order to respect confidentiality, I have blurred everyone's faces. It's not because we're an ugly bunch...

I have even more good news! At the annual winter ball, myself and my friend (R) got elected to become the successive charities officers on the exec of the medical society. This means that we get to organise the panto next year (Lion King is on the cards!) and many other events in order to raise money for charity. We're both very excited for the year ahead of us!

THE END OF ANOTHER YEAR

2014 has flown by like a breeze. Now it's the last day of the year and I'm trying to think of what my resolutions will be for the following year. Here are a few things that you can all look forward to reading on my blog in 2015...yes I know you're all at the edge of your seats right now!

2015 is the year where I hit the age of 21. I have been on this planet for 21 years and I have so much more that I need to learn about myself and the world. Birthdays are starting to seem not as exciting as they used to be. Maybe I'm slowly having to face the reality of growing up and accepting the fact that I'm no longer the child that I feel I am deep down.

Around a year ago, I mentioned that I was one of the co-founders of SKIP Lancaster and I haven't really talked about it since. We have progressed a lot since then with our research and development and have chosen our country that we would like to base our project in - Nepal. This year we'll be going out to Nepal to conduct more research on potential projects so watch this space to find out more!

As the newly elected charities officers, myself and R are hoping to organise a few fundraisers in order to raise money for various organisations. I'll be sure to post what these are.

A medical student will always have exams in the back of their mind throughout their degree and this year is no different. In a couple of months time, I'll be taking my end of year exams and hopefully through God's blessings I'll pass and progress through to third year.

If God willing I pass, then you can all look forward to posts about the start of third year and what the work load is like.

So, I would like to wish you all a happy new year. May this year bring you all wonderful opportunities to better yourself and those around you. God bless!

AND BY THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT HE CAME DOWN FROM HEAVEN...

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." - John 3:16

Just a quick message wishing you all a merry Christmas and I hope that your day was filled with joy. Keep in mind the true meaning behind this wonderful day as we celebrate the birth of our Saviour.

God bless you all!

HELLO STRANGERS

Yes I know it's been nearly a month since I've posted anything on my blog. It's been a while since I've had the time and chance to sit down by myself to collect my thoughts together.

Anyway, I'm back home for Christmas for two weeks! One of the wonderful things about medicine is that as you progress through your degree, your holidays get shorter and you have less free time. All those aspiring to be a doctor have so much to look forward to...

This post is going to be very short as it's just a quick message to all those that read my blog that I haven't completely forgotten about it and hope to carry on at least until I graduate.

As I'm now sitting at home with nothing to do, I'm hoping I can provide everyone with a chronologically inaccurate account of all the things that have happened in the past few weeks in later posts.

EPIDEMIOLOGY AND THE TREATMENT OF TROPICAL MEDICINE

It's finally time for me to do my SSM (Student Selected Module). Possibly one of my favourite aspects of the course due to the fact that it involves 4 weeks of reading into a topic of interest and writing a dissertation. Which is a lot less chilled out than the rest of the year!

So this year I picked "Epidemiology and the treatment of tropical medicine". As an individual with a growing interest for global health, this topic is perfect for me to explore in more detail over the next 4 weeks.

The disease I've picked is Ebola. As a current and topical issue, I thought it would be perfect for me to find out more about this virus and how it affects the lives of those living in West Africa and the incredible health professionals that are out there doing their part to contain this deadly disease.

I'm specifically going to look into how and why the Ebola virus is causing such global concern by using epidemiology to back up my findings.