Monday, June 15, 2009

Two sides of burnout

So along with most of my classmates I am officially burned out. I can and will keep going but I am over this didactic year. I have 7 weeks to go and I can hardly wait to go out on clinicals. The downside is that I have little or no energy to read the hundreds of pages that are assigned each week. The 3 hour classes this semester are simply excruciating for the mind, soul and ass. The upside is that I finally got in the study groove and am pretty proficient. I can pass my tests with a modest effort and can get As if I work hard. I am learning along the way which helps but I can't remember all I was taught - to both my horror and bitter acceptance I understand that "getting it and keeping it" will come with practice, use and seeing "it" over and over and over again. I learn best by doing, rather than reading or seeing - so doing this stuff will really help me retain and synthesize better.

Seven weeks is so long and yet really just such a short period of time to get my shit together. Will 7 weeks make a difference in how I will approach a patient? I hope so because even though I really look forward to getting out there on clinicals, I am pretty nervous too. Shhhhhh. Don't tell anyone though, OK?

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