It’s been 13 days since the start of my medical career. I had been dreaming of this time for as long as I can remember, yearning to finally join the ranks of the coveted few in medicine. Excitement and anxiety were the two overriding emotions as I finally began my journey as a first year medical student. For those premedical students out there who are in the same position that I was in a year ago, in the middle of applications and interviews, this is my way of letting you in on the life of a medical student. I want to share some of the most notable pearls of insight on what it means to be a medical student and why it’s probably going to be the best time of your life. 1. Keep up! Yes, all those analogies that you have heard about medical school are true. It really is like drinking water from a giant firehose or eating an inordinate amount of food everyday for four years without break. However, as you probably know, a great majority of medical students have successfully passed the trials and gone on to become excellent physicians. So, I am here to tell you that it is doable. But without underscoring the difficulty, it is crucial that you keep up. While you may have passed through undergrad by procrastinating a few days before the exam, it unfortunately will not work in medical school. There is simply too much to learn. The only trick to success is consistent hard work. As long as you do that, medical school can be a breeze (plus, you’ll actually know something at the end of the day!) 2. Stay in touch with what you love Given the depth and breadth of material you will be expected to know, you can be sure to spend hours on end in the library. Amidst all the pressure, it is important to maintain your sanity. Remember, your eventual goal is to practice medicine for the rest of your life. If you lose it so soon in the game, burnout will hit you like a wall. Thus, my second piece of advice for you is to do what you love (and that means something other than medicine!) This could be playing a sport, spending time with your family, or even binging on some Netflix (guilty). Whatever gives you the relaxation you need in order to feel rejuvenated and take on yet another chunk of material, keep in touch with that. It will keep you going and bring you out the other end. 3. Focus on the patient Last but not the least, focus on the patient. Having gone through years of training, it is easy to become jaded and lose touch with why you chose medicine in the first place – to help people. Whenever you feel overwhelmed, take advantage of the privilege you have as a physician-in-training and go talk to a patient. Listen to them, empathize, and appreciate the role you will eventually play in changing their story. This is true for even those who wish to primarily focus on the academic and administrative aspects of medicine in the future. Everything we do as healthcare providers should always answer the one question: How will this help our patients? Source
