Surviving your first year in Medical School

          First of all, congrats!! You made it to the med school. I am writing this post thinking that you must be a newly joined med student or at any phase of your first year. Those who are in the middle of first year and came by with this  post or any other similar posts, don't bother, you are not late. Sooner or later med students like us are confused at some part of the year where we feel that something needs to be changed and most students seek guidance from the seniors or any other medical faculties. That is one of the great things to do. Still there are some things which your seniors or teachers are never gonna tell you which you need to find on your own. 

Well, I survived my first year at medical school. In this post I am not going to share things out of the blue but I can assure you that the experiences that I will be sharing might help you at some point. I understand the value of time for a medical student, that is why I have tried my level best in order to make this short as possible. I have divided the post by providing a topic to each for your convenience.

BOOKS AND RESOURCES

When I joined med school, i was too eager to buy any book that I saw my other friends were having and let me tell you, that was a huge misunderstanding about books I had. You never need to go for buying more than 2 or 3 books for each subject. What I later realized and did was, I bought one major book which was suggested by my teachers and those which I found were good after giving them a look. For references you always have the library. So never go for buying every bulky books which you know that will only give depressions when you see them. Stick to a major book and for deeper understanding you can refer to other books, videos or websites. I have written about these in the later paragraphs. Books are your sole companion. Making a habit of reading books rather than going for short cuts(which are not few in market) has always helped me for productive learning. The review books which you can find for each and every subject is perfect for the last moment preparation and revision before your exams. But for better learning you must have first gone through a standard textbook before seeking help from review books. 

There are times when you can not understand solely from reading only books. This is when my personal favorite comes in action- Lecture videos. There are a lot of lecture video series regarding med school but there are certain useful ones or at least I find them useful. These include Kaplan lecture series, Dr. Najeeb video tutorials, Acland's Anatomy,  Pathoma and many other which you might be familiar of. The point is that, these videos  are not your primary resource but actually these are the references for better understanding and preparing yourself for competitive exams in the future which many of you might be planning for. The advance in technology today has made it easier to gain access to these. You may also find these from your seniors or friends. 

DISCUSSION IN GROUPS 

This is quite difficult to master but if you have a study group that fits you well, this is going to be one of the best methods for learning and clearing your doubts. Group discussions are not always effective. There are some times when you have discussions totally out of the topic( this happened a lot of time with me😀). But with a group that you are good to fit in is beneficial most of the times. I had group discussions particularly when the topics were hard to get into the cerebrum and not for all the topics. This way I was able to clear my doubts and also have a better understanding of the topics along with those which are important for exams. But here I have not focused in exams. Learning is better when you don't do it for the sake of passing the exams. Final message of this section is that better make groups for studying rather than staying confused all the time for the same topic.

TEACHERS AND SENIORS

I included both under the same section because there are a very few things that I need to mention here. It is always easier to say that teachers are gonna help you with any confusions you have. But, the truth is not the same. The teachers are not available all the times but still when they are available, they can be your greatest helper. So never feel hesitated to go to the teacher and ask for the certain topics you are confused. Now, to talk about the seniors, well they are the saviors( at least what I have heard around from many of my friends). But if you truly wanna learn you have to see many topics beyond from what seniors tell you. Take a time to think, you are learning the topics that your seniors finished a year ago. So, there must be something different that you still need to find out from self-learning. Never ever depend solely on your seniors.

EXAMS AND STRESS

These two words might go together for many of the med students. But trust me, once you are in, you are never gonna fear exams. since, I studied from the books during the topics discussed, it helped me a lot to better understand the concepts. The concepts are the major things for bringing out the most in your exams. I never went for bulky books few days before exams because I usually had them covered during the class days( not always though). This made a lot easier for me to  cover things up within a short period of time. Stress is never invited when you have a good base. Little stress is normal and useful as well. So, don't worry. 

PARTYING AND CHILLING OUT WITH FRIENDS

This might be some of ours favorite section. It is always necessary to chill out and give yourself some time to relax. I am definitely not encouraging you guys to just let go of your studies and enjoy. This is necessary after a stressful week of exams. This helps you to get re-energized for the future and to get a lot more enthusiastic than ever before. So, don't ever avoid such opportunities if you have. For those who live in hostel, they can't get more lucky than this. Enjoy when you need it.

SPORTS AND RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES

All medical colleges have some programs of these types. This is a great way to make you feel energized and improve your mental health as well. Participate if you think that it is necessary for you at that moment.

STAY SELF MOTIVATED

There are moments in med school when you feel demotivated when the things don't be as you want them to be. But you need to know, it happens with all of us. Either it be because of lot of text you need to get done before your class or because you have a stack full of things left to revise before the exams, you should try not to get demotivated and not give up. My favorite way of staying self-motivated was and still is, to take a moment alone to plan and figure things out. Watching motivational videos online or listening to some strong motivational speeches might help you for short term but in the long run self-realization is necessary.  You need to rethink why you started this. Don't ever expect that you will always succeed, learn from your mistakes you made in the past and keep moving.

HOW EXACTLY TO STUDY

Well, this is one of the most overrated question that most people ask to the teachers or search for in the internet. I was one of them. But what I realized is that, it depends individually. Many students find it easier to study by making notes of each topic for each different subject. Whereas some people underline and use highlighters. It is totally up to you for choosing the right thing for you. I experimented a lot and suggest you all to do the same with each of the methods you find out there. Choose the one which you think is more productive for you. Personally, I use the later method most of the time for those information which are already there in the text. And if I find something new I add them in a separate note which I later tag them with the text. I write when it is some flowchart or some mechanisms, so that I can understand them. Writing the same thing in the same way as written in the text is not so productive when you are making notes. When I make them, I try to get them as easier as possible. Remember, these are just ways I found myself helpful of. You have to find your ways by experimenting.

First year is more of the year for experimenting on the best ways you can find to make your learning as productive as possible. Give your time for it. Don't settle until you find the best way for yourself. I might have left many other topics that needs to be talked about. You can help me by commenting about what you want to know more about first year at med school. If you have any ideas to share or suggestions that can help me improve this blog, go ahead and email me or comment here. I have decided to upload a post at weekends. So, stay tuned.
Stay creative!!
Thanks for being here.😃😃