Hiya Sciducks,
It may be that you, like Kevin, don’t quite believe in medicine as much as you believe in The Impending Zombie Apocalypse. You aren’t worried that one day you will be on medications for heart failure, type II diabetes, hypertension, and probably a couple of other things for self-diagnosed sleep problems plus or minus a mood disorder or two. That’s for people who get old waiting for the Zombie Apocalypse.
In the event that the known world becomes a hunting ground for the Undead, I will agree with you that medical knowledge is probably about as useful as you are after twenty White Walkers have descended to feast on your flesh (Sorry, am I mixing fandoms? Winter is coming!). But for the moment, let us attempt a thought experiment and say: One, that medicine might be relevant to our lives, and two, that it might be interesting.
I mean, if you like zombies – you like gory, gross, weird, infectious stuff; you’re on the cusp of liking medicine. When the interviewers asked me why I wanted to go to medical school, I was tempted to tell them the actual truth, which was that I read The Hot Zone in 6th grade and never got over it – and by it I mean, that feeling where you can’t look away from something, even when you know it’s gone horribly wrong. (On that subject, some Google-image searches that I don’t recommend include: harlequin’s ichythiosis & Stevens-Johnson Syndrome. Yes. You are welcome.)
But we are getting ahead of ourselves.
Hi. I’m Sienna, a second year med student. I attend one of the schools on the Continental United States (which, as it happens, was my articulated goal in undergrad. I know. Ambitious). Second year med school means that instead of cramming for the exam two days before, you start a full week ahead. A full week might not sound like cramming to you, but that’s what we med students are: rule-breakers. We chip away at the boundaries of truth, we blur the line between over-preparation and last-minute cramming. We are so cool.
Being a second year also means that I am a complete idiot, with some medical knowledge. Say you told me you feel tired and had a nosebleed yesterday. Diagnosis? Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Left hand feeling a little numb? Transient Ischemic Attack! Or maybe it’s tertiary syphilis (had sex with anyone weird like…25 years ago?). Headache? It’s probably a subarachnoid hemorrhage. Or maybe it’s diabetes. So this is the only serious thing I probably will ever say: I advise strongly against seeking medical advice from yours truly.
Not that I will offer you any. Besides, the Zombies will probably get to you first.
So I’ve basically said next to nothing, except “hi” in the most roundabout and digressive way imaginable. When I do, eventually, get to some real content, I will probably report back about weird things I learn in and out of school. At the moment we are covering -
Drum roll please -
Psych problems. Let’s start by talking about melancholia, internet.
Cheers.
S