I have been outside rotations now for about 3 weeks. THREE WHOLE WEEKS without waking up ridiculously early, without worrying about how smart I appear to residents and attendings, and without spending too many hours on uptodate.com. What can I say, life is good. Real good.
It did not dawn on me how my life has changed until I ran into my classmate Sampeter while studying at Starbucks the other day. He looked at me and said, "You look so happy. Is this your year off?" And it is true. Since the removal of the stress and pressure of being a medical student in the wards, I have come to find joy in everything. Whether it be sitting in a cafe all day studying for my boards, setting up meetings for my upcoming trip, or running errands...I am happier. Aka even the small mundane things are exciting and enjoyable now.
This fact gave me pause to wonder...why has my mental well-being changed so dramatically in the last few weeks? Makes you wonder what the purpose of the medical education culture serves. Do we become stronger people and physicians when we are sleep deprived and pressured into acting like we are already experts in health conditions we have never seen before? Are these expectations something that makes our patients respect us more? Anyway, despite this I wouldn't trade my times on the wards last year for anything. Well...maybe my Fresno rotation...
