Day 14

Day 14
I did not think I would have time to write this, but I am taking a break from my studying and I figure, this is a good way to get my stress out anyway. I am preparing for my “block exams” on Monday and Tuesday. Block exams are sort of like mid-term examinations, except for the fact that they are pretty much every two weeks. They are non-cumulative until the final block where we have a cumulative lab exam, shelf examination in anatomy and histology final. If you don’t know (as I had no idea until just before arrived here), the shelf examinations are exams taken by American Medical students. They are essentially standardized tests in a particular subject (sort of like taking an old published MCAT test and they have already standardized the scores), and are picked off “the shelf”, in a box where they have quite a few, and they are chosen at random for students to complete at the end of term.
Monday I will be completing an anatomy lab practical examination and on Tuesday I will write two practical examinations in Histology and Anatomy. The histology professor expressed disappointment when he told us in our introductory class that we did not have the capability to do a histology laboratory due to the lack of equipment, but I cannot imagine having to do more than one practical examination. Every second semester student I speak to tells me we have not covered much material. But I think for less than two weeks we have learned so much. Summarily, we have learned introductory anatomical information, embryology (basic, not system-specific), nervous system organization, back (spinal cord, muscles, blood supply, venous drain, innervations), thorax, including lungs and the mediastinum (with all the above subcategories). On top of this I have barely touched Histology, you would understand why if you ever took it. It is like a slow biology course, except less exciting, and focuses on the analysis of slides of various cells from all over their body and their characteristics. Oh. And it is at 8am. A lot of people sleep through at least part of it. The professor is fantastic though, and is very knowledgeable and helpful.
Apparently the stress and work will simply increase. I am slowly adjusting to this. But I am learning so much. I have never felt so mentally alive really. I feel like I am learning so much. Who knew my brain could hold all this information? Yet, I can still seem to remember the words to songs that I should have long forgotten. I always vaguely (and with no real scientific backing) believed that there would be some displacement of information, as if your brain has a some sort of limit. I guess I likened it to filling a cup up with water, and you can only fill it up so high before it spills over the brim. But, I think it is more like large Brita filter. You can only put so much water in it at a time, you need to let it filter through before you can add more to the top part to be filtered. Right now I feel like I don’t have enough time to filter. Being a perfectionist and competitive about school does not help.
I went for my second run on the island today. It was incredible. The beauty of the island continues to stagger me. I think it is because I spend most of my time in the library, class or anatomy lab on campus! My injury is much better now as well! I injured my Sartorius muscle before I left Toronto, and just before the marathon I was not able to complete. But that is not related to this point. The point is that the runs here are beautiful, not only that, they are so hilly! Thanks to the hill training at the running room (Thanks Ben!) I am taking them in stride. Some of them are steeper than even the Donwoods hill, but I love the challenge, and the thumbs up from motorist passing by indicate they are even impressed at my stamina!
I just wanted to write a little note to express my excitement, in these wee hours of the morning, about what I continue to learn. I think holding a human heart is a pretty fantastic thing, something I was recently able to do in anatomy lab. I know it is cliché, but I remember an episode of Grey’s Anatomy, where a surgeon was explaining why she wanted to be a surgeon and couldn’t do anything else. Her reasons included the opportunity to hold a beating heart. But, I am just excited, to be able to name all of its structures, its blood supply, venous drain, action and then some clinical applications. Every experience I have here is pretty incredible, they all tend to get lost in the shuffle, but anatomy is one of the things here that does not cease to amaze me. I love the Latin that is used to name a large number of the body parts and I really wish I knew more of it! It would make my life so much easier in terms of memorizing things like coronary sulcus, which I believe means depression of the crown, crown (because it is the heart) and sulcus which means depression or groove. This is a groove in which the right coronary artery lies. What a beautiful language.
The extensive knowledge of all my TA’s knocks my socks off. I do not know what I would do without such great teachers! I was lucky enough to get couple of great ones, who take a large amount of time out of their day to help me learn. I can’t thank them enough. They give me confidence in the knowledge I have, and give me the information they think is important to help me succeed.
I don’t think anything exciting has happened in the past couple days other than my recent run with minimal leg pain! I have been studying like crazy and we even had classes today, on a Saturday, for histology, and two tutorials – one in anatomy and the other in histology. Tomorrow is really crunch time, and countdown to the exam. I will write all about it sometime afterwards. At least I have Nutella and bananas to get me through it.
:)