Hey everyone!!
I know it’s been awhile…whew!! What can I say about 2nd year other than it goes by so fast.
So far I have studied Hem/Onc, Cardiology, Respiratory, GI, Urinary, and I am just about to finish Neuro/Psych. Each block has pathology, and pharmacology integrated into the block. The next block is nutrition/endocrine, then Genetics/Reproduction and finally Derm/musculoskeletal.
This semester is kicking my butt!!! I have 2 new classes in addition to the Intro to clinical Medicine course. One of them is called “Design of Disease” (with 2 large writing assignments)and we meet once a week to discuss readings on how a disease came to be what it is. The other, Clinical Epidemiology, meets Tuesdays and Thursdays (with very mathematical homework assignments) and we cover topics like evidence based medicine, pre and post test probability, blah, blah, blah. One of the requirements of this course is to observe an autopsy, look at microscopic specimens, read the history and develop a differential diagnosis.
Once a month we have a seminar in ICM on special topics, like the female pelvic exam, breast exam and the next one is the digital rectal and male pelvic exam. Plus we visit the wards with our tutor, see a patient and then do a very detailed write up on their condition going through a comprehensive differential diagnosis.
My research abstract was accepted for presentation at the Society of Gynecological Investigators in Toronto in March. I am also presenting a poster for the project at Student Research day, the Triangle Consortium for Reproductive Biology and Women’s Health Research Day.
I am scheduled to take Step I on Saturday June 17th. This will give me 1 week to chill after the last final, 4-5 weeks to study and then 2 weeks for a vacation before clinical rotations start. I don’t know how anyone has time to study for the boards until school is over, but they tell me most people do fine just cramming for a month!
I got my third year schedule a few weeks ago too and I am REALLY happy with it:
2 months Internal Medicine
2 months Pediatrics
2 months Pyschiatry and Neurology
Christmas Break
2 months Surgery
1 week of Fundamentals of acute care + 3weeks off
1 month of Family Medicine
1 month off (in April, yea!!!)
1 month of OB/GYN
So you may ask, how in the world are you keeping it together? Sometimes I ask myself the same question. I feel incredibily stretched and sometimes to the point of tears. I have incredible anxiety about the months to come: the boards, starting rotations, finishing second year without going absolutely nuts. Sometimes I will find myself not breathing and then sometimes breathing too much. I have very little tolerance with my time when I feel like I need to be doing something else. On top of that, the topics of Anxiety and Mood disorders in our psych/neuro block have got me thinking that I AM going nuts. However, I have probably had at least one condition from each block so it’s no surprise that this block should be any different. I can’t wait to get diabetes during the endocrine block 
Anyhow, there’s my life right now in a “nut” shell (haha). I took time to write something because in a “manic” episode I caught up in reading, got ahead for tomorrow and I have a relative lull in extra writing assignments. My plan is to play some video games and watch movies tonight.
Talk to you again soon!!
Insanely yours,
Danielle Inman
MS-2, UNC-SOM