DOCTOR WANNABE

"Hindi lahat ng nandito ngayon magiging doctor, yung iba mawawala yan along the way." One of my biochem profs (well, my favorite biochem prof) said this during her lecture about macronutrients. Yes, I do believe her. Being a medical student requires a lot of sacrifice, efforts, money (for gloves, mask, books, tranx, past-e, coffee, ipad? and the usual post-evals celebration which will require a big tub of ice cream, an 18-inch pizza or buckets of ice-cold beer). 

As a nursing pre-med student (I graduated April 2012, took the board exam June 2012 and entered med school July 2012-the day after the board exam), I thought that studying medicine is a lot like nursing, studying about the human body, the parts, physiology. But during my first week, I proved myself wrong. This blog post is for you, for us, aspiring doctors. This might inspire you to take the challenge and wear that precious white coat someday or discourage you from taking the wild ride. 

Here are some tips on how to survive your first year in hell aka med school:

1. Write a life plan, I wrote mine last December 2012. Write all the things that you want to achieve, the things that you want to have. This might be cheesy and too futuristic for some, but it'll keep you motivated. Here's an example, an actual entry on my life plan:

 "MD by 2016, board passer by 2017."

2. Know your study habit. Reading is the main core of medicine, you have to read, highlight, read, underline, read, write and read again. 100+ pages within two days? Trust me, it is possible. You just have to be focused and stay "in the zone". My tip on reading books/notes/tranx is never read inside your dorm, on your bed, on your favorite couch, on your girlfriend's dorm/bed because trust me, these are your worst distractions. Your bed or someone else's will try to pull you towards it and release tons of sleeping hormones which will keep you distracted from reading. So, find your study spot, a place where you can study peacefully. My study spots include the hospital canteen and the milk tea place near my dorm. (Starbucks is the worst study place ever, trust me.)

3. Use the microscope, dissect. As a proud lazy student, I would rather sleep and spend the rest of the day at my dorm, eating chocolate chip cookies than attend my anatomy lab sessions. Yes, it is the most boring part of the school year (yet the most important). As much as possible, actively participate on every lab session and this will lessen your burden on studying for the practical exams. Invest on a decent camera or use your cellphones to take pictures for reference.

The pelvic bone.

Here's a photo of the pancreas, my favorite slide.

3. NEVER SLEEP IN CLASS. I am guilty as a criminal, sleeping in class while the doctor's having his/her lecture, with awkward sleeping positions, mouth open (sometimes a trail of saliva flowing from my mouth) and one time, a loud snore. Please try to stay awake, let your seatmate slap you, tickle your n*pple/ears/kili-kili or play candy crush/fruit match/4pics1word on your handy tablet to keep you awake or else you'll be listening to a seven-hour recording on the night before your exam. 

Huli ka.

4. Lastly, don't forget to smile, have fun! Spend your weekends wisely! Study, watch a movie, drink a bottle of beer, light a stick, play fruit match (this is my favorite past time), go to a concert/theme park, or even just spending a night with your friends or family in a coffee shop talking about things non-school related. 

My version of fun.

Med school is both hard and at the same time, fulfilling. You'll be spending a whole day reading ten chapters from the most boring books in the whole world, you'll be taking the exam with your hair still messy because you woke up late and wasn't able to take a shower, you'll be spending a lot of time away from your family and non-med school friends because you chose to stay at your dorm to study for the next week's line up of exams, you'll be failing tests, you'll be seeing your name on the list of the top ten students, you'll be mad because of frustration, at some point, you'll be thinking about giving up. But then, go back to your life plan, look for that entry which you wrote because it is your dream, because you want to it and you're willing to sacrifice everything just to get those last two letters after your name. 

Good luck to you, to us future doctors! The world's waiting. 

Summer Bucketlist.

Burn. Summer’s here and i’m really excited on spending a lot of time away from my books, notes and tranx (since med school has been really cruel for the past months).

(Summer 2012)

Since summer is every girl and guy’s favorite time of the year when they can wear little pieces of clothes and just spend hours on the beach (well I know how hard it is walking along the shore seeing people showing off their beach bodies while you’re wearing two layers of clothes- the usual polo on top of a plain shirt because you’re trying to hide your abs, layers of fat), i’ll be trying to make this first post as summer-ly as I can.

For you guys out there who are planning to spend this year’s summer vacation at home, on your favorite couch, eating potato chips and ditching the beach/clubs, i’ll be sharing with you my “SUMMER BUCKETLIST.” A list of the things that I will be trying to accomplish within my almost-two-month-break from hell aka med school:

• Re-read the PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER. (Yes, I am an “i feel infinite” kind of guy.)
• Re-read the PERCY JACKSON SERIES, any Demigods out there?
• Buy the camo wrist watch from Timex.
• Clean my room.
• Lose weight. (Gained a lot of pounds since July 2012)
• Bake cupcakes.
• Star Wars marathon.

As of now, these are things on my “summer-to-do-list.” Let me know your plans for this season, follow me on twitter @jptooorres and let’s be infinite! Here’s to a cool, fun and wild summer for everyone!

PS As of 11:42PM, I am currently on the 25th page of Perks.