The title of this post seems to be the best way to describe vet school at the moment. It's like you're on a treadmill that is gradually speeding up and you have to keep running faster so that you don't go flying off the back. But I still love it, so that's the good news!
I haven't updated this in a while so I will try to recall the highs and lows of the past few weeks. In the time since I wrote last my anatomy group and I got a new cadaver dog. That was an added source of stress because my lab partner and I had to start the whole dissection over. So I spent at least 7 hours dissecting the new dog, because he was so huge and obese. I had another physiological chemistry exam this week that went very well. I'm really starting to enjoy that class and seeing how everything connects. In clinical skills this week I taught about equine bandaging techniques. In the sheep section, we vaccinated, dewormed, and hoof trimmed about a dozen or so ewes. We did more physical examination techniques in the small animal section. We had a llama section this week in which we trimmed hooves, shaved teeth, and did basic handling techniques.
I've been very busy, but I feel like those are the only things worth mentioning at the moment. Time to study histology for my exam on Monday!
Friday, October 14, 2011
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Fatigue, brain fatigue, and compassion fatigue
The past couple weeks have been so crazy that I don't even know where to begin. I guess I'll begin with the exams. I had a developmental anatomy exam a week ago Friday and a Physiological Chemistry exam this past Tuesday. They both went extremely well. In clinical skills this past week we learned the basics of physical examination of sheep and small animals. We also learned how to cast cows and I taught my equine group the basics of hoof care and bandaging.
This weekend basically symbolizes the last stress free weekend of the semester...if you can even call it that. From here on out we have at least one exam a week. I'm not worried about most of the exams coming up, but I would be lying if I said the upcoming anatomy exam didn't scare me a little. That will be the first exam we have in anatomy, meaning we will be tested on over 2 months worth of material. I am certainly not looking forward to that 5 hour exam, but as long as I start some more intensive studying now I should be in good shape by then.
Last week we received a lecture on end of life issues in our ethics class. The woman who taught the section was fabulous and she was able to share some really wonderful personal stories which made the lecture even better. In that lecture I learned a lot of things I had already heard before, but I also took away one important message: all people grieve differently and every euthanasia experience will be unique. Learning how to approach each of these situations with compassion is going to be an ongoing process throughout my career. Which leads me to the next topic we learned about in that lecture: compassion fatigue. Compassion fatigue is experienced by a large percentage of veterinarians and is described as "the stress of dispensing compassion". Knowing about this problem is very important because chances are one of my colleagues or myself will suffer from it at some point throughout our careers.
I can honestly say after this past week I am mentally exhausted. I don't generally have time to notice it because I am either in class or studying, but it becomes very obvious when there are exams back to back. The amount I study for each of my exams here is about 5 times more than I would for let's say a cumulative final in undergrad, depending on the subject. When they put exams back to back like they did this past week, it is really tiring. All you want to do is have a little break and recover from all the studying you just did, but you have to dig down deep and keep going. I better get used to it now, because that is what the next 8 weeks or so are going to be like.
Let's see...My social life is non-existent, I'm mentally exhausted, I only have time to heat things up in the microwave for dinner (so I cook on Sunday and eat leftovers all week), I miss my family and friends a lot, and yet I don't think I've ever been happier. I feel like everything is finally falling into place and I'm right where I'm supposed to be. I've wanted to study veterinary medicine since elementary school and now I'm finally doing it. Sure there are days when I wish I could have a tiny break from studying, but generally I wake up eager to learn each and every day. I'm so glad I love it as much as I do...it will make the next half of the semester a little easier.
This weekend basically symbolizes the last stress free weekend of the semester...if you can even call it that. From here on out we have at least one exam a week. I'm not worried about most of the exams coming up, but I would be lying if I said the upcoming anatomy exam didn't scare me a little. That will be the first exam we have in anatomy, meaning we will be tested on over 2 months worth of material. I am certainly not looking forward to that 5 hour exam, but as long as I start some more intensive studying now I should be in good shape by then.
Last week we received a lecture on end of life issues in our ethics class. The woman who taught the section was fabulous and she was able to share some really wonderful personal stories which made the lecture even better. In that lecture I learned a lot of things I had already heard before, but I also took away one important message: all people grieve differently and every euthanasia experience will be unique. Learning how to approach each of these situations with compassion is going to be an ongoing process throughout my career. Which leads me to the next topic we learned about in that lecture: compassion fatigue. Compassion fatigue is experienced by a large percentage of veterinarians and is described as "the stress of dispensing compassion". Knowing about this problem is very important because chances are one of my colleagues or myself will suffer from it at some point throughout our careers.
I can honestly say after this past week I am mentally exhausted. I don't generally have time to notice it because I am either in class or studying, but it becomes very obvious when there are exams back to back. The amount I study for each of my exams here is about 5 times more than I would for let's say a cumulative final in undergrad, depending on the subject. When they put exams back to back like they did this past week, it is really tiring. All you want to do is have a little break and recover from all the studying you just did, but you have to dig down deep and keep going. I better get used to it now, because that is what the next 8 weeks or so are going to be like.
Let's see...My social life is non-existent, I'm mentally exhausted, I only have time to heat things up in the microwave for dinner (so I cook on Sunday and eat leftovers all week), I miss my family and friends a lot, and yet I don't think I've ever been happier. I feel like everything is finally falling into place and I'm right where I'm supposed to be. I've wanted to study veterinary medicine since elementary school and now I'm finally doing it. Sure there are days when I wish I could have a tiny break from studying, but generally I wake up eager to learn each and every day. I'm so glad I love it as much as I do...it will make the next half of the semester a little easier.
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