My Second Year of Medical School

I don’t even know how to start this post. It’s been a few months since I have written a blog. Sitting here in front of my computer my mind already feels tired. It’s hard to believe I am half way through my second year of medical school.

In short, the last few months have been crazy. From August to December I have studied cardiology, nephrology, pulmonology, gastroenterology, dermatology, and the musculoskeletal system. I have had the opportunity to interview patients and perform physical exams in the hospital. I’ve seen multiple C-sections and assisted with my first ever vaginal delivery. There were nights I was at the hospital helping to cast children with broken bones at 2am. I’ve talked to new parents and examined their new born child, and have also talked to patients who are nearing the end of their lives. I’m grateful for all the experiences I get to have in medical school. I truly believe there is nothing quit as special as this opportunity to become a doctor. It is equally grueling as it is enjoyable. I go to class, study hours at a time, go into the hospital, come home, go to sleep and do it all over again the next day. I have definitely experienced a new level of exhaustion this semester as a second year student. Some days are seemingly never ending, while other days it feels like years have passed by.

“The days are long, but the years are short.”

In the next few months I will transition from my pre-clinical years during which I have mostly been in a classroom setting, to my clinical years where I will be on rotations in the hospital for the remainder of medical school. To make this transition, I will need to pass my first medical licensing exam known as STEP1. I hope to take this exam in April. Therefore, today marks the 3 month countdown to STEP1. The time leading up to this exam will be full of studying – which isn’t necessarily different than what I have been doing for the last year and half. However, I feel much more weight looking ahead to April. The last few days my mind as been racing and overactive just thinking about the work I will put in to achieve my goals this upcoming year. I’m excited, but I’m also terrified. I have a certain level of sureness of myself as I know I can do it. I also have a certain degree of unsureness, as I can’t say for sure where these next couple of years will take me or where I will end up.

Every time I write and reflect on where I am in medical school, there are of course hardships and struggles to report. This path is not easy, and I never expected it to be. However, I love being a medical student and I am so excited for my future. I hope to continue working my hardest each day and appreciate each opportunity and every patient I cross paths with so I never forget the journey of becoming a physician.