DON'T PANIC

This last week I've had two reoccurring thoughts that suddenly awaken my calm mind like warning sirens. 


Firstly I see Holly from Red Dwarf saying: "Emergency. Emergency. There's an emergency going on. It's still going on. It's still an emergency. This is an emergency announcement."

Secondly I have 'DON'T PANIC'(from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) blazed into my mind. 

I know many second years are feeling similar- though perhaps without the nerdy TV shows invading their minds!

Last year I got myself in a beautiful study rhythm. I was expecting that this rhythm would serve me well in second year. It has not. Last year was like studying a rocket- nice and concrete. This year is like studying the fireworks from a lit rocket. Information is flying everywhere with no obvious structure. No matter how much I study information seems to slip from my mind and somehow I keep forgetting to cover key points. This is so frustrating! Perhaps providing myself with a structure (skeleton) on which to hang all the weekly information (muscles etc) will make study this year more logical. 

Here's my current plan (I'm sure it'll be adjusted regularly)

1. Revise key anatomy/physiology from last year (using Martini)

2. Go over pathology relevant to the current week (using Robins/ Porth/Kumar &Clark)

3. Know symptoms, signs & investigations which lead to the diagnosis (using Kumar &Clark)

4. Understand treatment (using Kumar & Clark, Rang &Dale)

5. Review lectures and other electronic resources

6. Practice clinical skills with reasoning (Using Talley and O'Conner)

7. Review drugs on the train (I hate pharmacology) 

8. Review ECGs, X-rays, Spirometry etc before bed using videos so that I can knit too. 

9. Do 1-5 by Tues night and revise content of current week and past weeks on Wed-Thurs.

Far out- so much work!!!! Hopefully though this stops Holly and HGTTG from trying to turn me into a stress machine (and helps me to pass this year). 

In 2009 I did my final OT placement. My most memorable patient was a lovely old lady, who I had to take a history from. Her family said that she had  a life time habit of stressing. It was like seeing myself in 60 years time. I decided then and there that being stressed should NEVER become a habit with me. This was all well and good as an OT, but then I started the most stressful degree on earth (in my opinion). Nonetheless just as a toddler learns to walk and then grows into an adult who can climb mountains (hopefully) surely I can learn to be peaceful even in a harder environment! It'll just take a bit of practise. We all have stress relievers. Mine are: praying, cooking, knitting, coffee, walking somewhere pretty, and laughing with friends. What are yours? 

Ah- I feel better already! 

On a positive note my parents visited last weekend. It was so much fun showing off Perth to them. Despite missing Adelaide and my easier old life I do love Perth. It's just such a beautiful place to live. I love it how Dad went cycling with a couple of my med friends' cycling crew! Being taken out for so many lovely meals was awesome, as was chatting and laughing with my parents.

Last week we had a tute on ECG's, which ended with our first med joke. The tutor put an ECG of ventricular fibrillation (rapid, irregular, ineffective pumping of blood to the rest of the body) on the screen. He said 'what does this mean?'. We all responded 'it's the end (as it can be fatal)'. He said 'that's right class over'. Hahahahha.

The end. 

ps. if anyone has a better study plan- please let me know!!!!!:)