90 Days, 10 Lessons: What Med School Taught Me Beyond Textbooks

Several weeks ago, I was arranging my school documents and preparing for my physical exam. The results of the accepted applicants have just been released. Familiar and not-so-familiar names surrounded mine. A pit forms in my stomach. Doubt slowly clutched my fingertips all the way to my head. Cold sweat started beading at my temples.

Suddenly, the words, “Can I really do this?” leapt from my heart. “Do I really belong here?” Nobody answered. It seems I have to be the one to answer those questions. When a dream so big finally translates into a huge responsibility, you begin to understand what the first cervical vertebra goes through everyday. Nothing ever truly prepares you for the knowledge, techniques and years of studying you have to take.

It always feels like I’m a betta fish in a vast ocean filled to the brim with predators — also known as my medical school subjects. When it gets too overwhelming and I feel like I’m getting washed ashore, my first instinct would be to dive right back in. But, instead, I find myself at the bay. There, I’ve realized that it’s not just chapters from Snell’s, Harper’s or Junquiera’s I’ve been learning, but also lessons beyond these textbooks.

Article by: Krishyra So

Pubmat by: Andrea Belicena