This whole year has been incredibly stressful not only because I've been worried about my future, but also because I've put an incredible amount of pressure on myself.
I've felt the need to be perfect in order to impress people at this program so they could advocate for me during the match. Every time I messed up that perfection (usually, only in my eyes), I would beat myself up about it mercilessly thinking I had blown my chance and the world was coming to an end.
Now that I haven't matched and I know I'm not staying here after the year is done, I've let all of that pressure go. It's been so freeing to not worry so much about the little things that really don't matter in the end.
For example, for the first time in my entire professional life, I overslept work. I woke up 10 minutes before our entire team (upper level, fellow, and attending) was supposed to start rounding. Obviously, I was going to be late, but I didn't rush in getting ready, I didn't speed, and I didn't jog from my parking space to rounds. I figured there wasn't much difference between being 10 minutes late as compared to 20. So, I took the usual amount of time and strolled in as we were talking about our 3rd ICU patient. With the exception of the PGY3 who had to hold the pager for those extra 20 minutes and unluckily got a consult in that time, no one seemed to notice. And I only apologized once, let it go, and went about my day as if nothing had happened
I'm not saying I didn't feel bad about being late, because I did and obviously wish I hadn't slept through the 4 alarms I set every morning*. But it was freeing to not feel guilty, angry, and awful about myself all day. When I'm at work, I kick ass and I think that speaks more to my character and work ethic than the one morning I overslept. It took me a while to realize that and it's been awesome.
This more Zen-like approach to my year has been so refreshing and I'm so happy I've finally reached this point. It makes my life less stressful and less angry at myself, which I sorely need right now.
I guess when you have bigger things to worry about, such as what I'm doing "next year" when really it's next month, the little things really don't matter.
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* I stagger my alarms for situations like this. They go in the following order:
Alarm #1 - It would be really nice to get up right now
Alarm #2 - I should get up if I don't want to rush
Alarm #3 - I really need to get up if I want enough time to grab things
Alarm #4 - OH SHIT, I'm going to late!
Showing posts with label Prelim. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Prelim. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 7, 2019
Friday, December 21, 2018
Hope
I got an interview invitation! Holy crap, I didn't think this was actually going to happen but here we are.
There are many reasons to be excited about this, but mostly it means that my general surgery program director didn't completely screw me over with his letter of recommendation. I had been worried about what it would say because the month I rotated on his service, everything went to hell.
There was one particularly bad week where on Wednesday, the home ortho program told me flat out they wouldn't match me, on Friday my dad called to say his cancer had reappeared, and the following Wednesday I got into a car accident and couldn't get my car fixed because I was on day 3 of working 12 days straight. So I was way off my game.
To top it all off, my chief (my PD's pet) and I got in a tiff that unnecessarily spiraled out of control.* To say I didn't make a good impression on my PD during that month is an incredible understatement. As such, I'm pleasantly surprised that the letter didn't turn out to be ruinous, and in fact, got me an interview.
I'm also very relieved to get the invitation from this particular program. I had become convinced that I had forgotten to apply there because it's listed under a different name on ERAS. I was beating myself up about overlooking them because they have a baller research opportunity for people who don't match, and I figured it'd be hard to explain that I wanted to do research with them when I didn't apply to their program in the first place. Luckily, that is not the case and not only did I apply there, but now I'm even interviewing for a PGY1 spot!
All in all, I'm incredibly happy that one program is willing to take a chance on me. My program is also being really good about giving me time off to travel, so not only do I get to go to the pre-interview dinner, but afterwards, I get to hang out with friends I have in the area. It'll be really nice to see old friends and get some time off from this general surgery nonsense, and hopefully recharge.
And I'm super excited that all my eggs aren't in one basket. I kinda sorta maybe have options. There's hope!
---
* It started as me asking him to stop being an ass to me, but more importantly, to tell me when people were being admitted from the OR and to communicate their post-op plans. He really didn't appreciate me "telling him how to do his job" and was very vocal about it. Our conversation turned into a yelling match (mostly him yelling at me) and ended with me crying in my program director's office explaining everything that was going wrong in my life that week (as mentioned above).
The whole situation was no bueno and the timing couldn't have been any worse as I had just asked my program director to write me a letter of recommendation.
There are many reasons to be excited about this, but mostly it means that my general surgery program director didn't completely screw me over with his letter of recommendation. I had been worried about what it would say because the month I rotated on his service, everything went to hell.
There was one particularly bad week where on Wednesday, the home ortho program told me flat out they wouldn't match me, on Friday my dad called to say his cancer had reappeared, and the following Wednesday I got into a car accident and couldn't get my car fixed because I was on day 3 of working 12 days straight. So I was way off my game.
To top it all off, my chief (my PD's pet) and I got in a tiff that unnecessarily spiraled out of control.* To say I didn't make a good impression on my PD during that month is an incredible understatement. As such, I'm pleasantly surprised that the letter didn't turn out to be ruinous, and in fact, got me an interview.
I'm also very relieved to get the invitation from this particular program. I had become convinced that I had forgotten to apply there because it's listed under a different name on ERAS. I was beating myself up about overlooking them because they have a baller research opportunity for people who don't match, and I figured it'd be hard to explain that I wanted to do research with them when I didn't apply to their program in the first place. Luckily, that is not the case and not only did I apply there, but now I'm even interviewing for a PGY1 spot!
All in all, I'm incredibly happy that one program is willing to take a chance on me. My program is also being really good about giving me time off to travel, so not only do I get to go to the pre-interview dinner, but afterwards, I get to hang out with friends I have in the area. It'll be really nice to see old friends and get some time off from this general surgery nonsense, and hopefully recharge.
And I'm super excited that all my eggs aren't in one basket. I kinda sorta maybe have options. There's hope!
---
* It started as me asking him to stop being an ass to me, but more importantly, to tell me when people were being admitted from the OR and to communicate their post-op plans. He really didn't appreciate me "telling him how to do his job" and was very vocal about it. Our conversation turned into a yelling match (mostly him yelling at me) and ended with me crying in my program director's office explaining everything that was going wrong in my life that week (as mentioned above).
The whole situation was no bueno and the timing couldn't have been any worse as I had just asked my program director to write me a letter of recommendation.
Thursday, November 29, 2018
Feeling the need to be perfect
I realized that I've been so stressed for the past couple of years (ever since I started 3rd year in May 2016) because I've always felt I had to be at 100% every minute of every day. It's led to me beating myself up every time I get a pimp question wrong, worrying about making awesome plans for all 20+ of my patients, and just generally thinking I suck at life and my job. It's exhausting and completely unsustainable.
I've developed this weird mindset that I have only one chance to make a good first impression and there's no coming back from it. Therefore if I screw up on the first day or don't do things to my very high satisfaction, I assume that all is lost and there's nothing I can do to change it.
It started with 3rd year when I changed services nearly every week and every day was the first day of work. It continued through away rotations during fourth year for that very same reason yet even higher stakes. Because of my scores, I knew I needed to be the best med student / rotator they had ever met and it all began with that dreaded first impression that I thought I couldn't change.
Surprisingly, this same feeling has continued during my prelim year. I had hoped that by being in one place for a whole year, that pressure would disappear because I had a whole year to make good impressions and I could allow myself one "bad" day once in a while. But for some reason, it's persisted.
Part of it is the shortened time frame for everything...one month on ortho in July, needing a letter of recommendation from my PD by August, and switching services and chiefs every month. I've felt the pressure to be perfect at every turn because it's a new group of people and again, the stakes are super high (probably the highest they've ever been). Everyone has to love me on the first day, otherwise I have failed. It's a warped way to think of things and obviously has to change, because it's done a number on my mental health.
The problem with this way of thinking is that I can never be good enough in my own eyes and therefore I'm destined to "fail" (by my standards). I'm at a strong general surgery program, so all the interns have their shit together, which makes it hard to stand out among the super stars. In the back of my mind, I always knew I couldn't be top dog of the 15 or so interns in my class, but that doesn't mean I didn't put the pressure on myself to try to be the best. Of course, I had to be awesome on Day 1 and whenever I slipped up (as in intern inevitably does), I would get very upset and mad at myself, and would just spiral into self-deprecation, which would make me even more upset and the cycle would persist.
I realize I can't continue this way for the rest of the year because I have been absolutely miserable and it has affected every part of my life. I have to accept that I will make mistakes and that it's okay to be wrong. I don't have to be perfect because that ship sailed long ago and my fate is probably sealed at this program already.
What I can do is continue to improve throughout the year. I can go back to the basics of checking all my boxes, following up on labs and consults, and being agreeable and affable. I can give myself a break whenever I mess up or don't do something perfectly. I can accept the fact that I am not perfect and should not expect to be the best intern this department has ever had, because that's simply not possible.
My new goal should be to impress my bosses with my improvement and growth throughout the year. I won't strive for perfection, but I will strive for being solid and strong, and on an upward trajectory. Although rank lists are due in only a couple of months, I still have 6.5 more months with this program and I'm sure if I do all those things, I can get a solid letter at the end of the year for the next application cycle.
I keep wanting to throw in the towel because the first impressions have already been made and I've had a rough couple of months. But another way to get good evaluations is to show how much I've improved and that I can turn things around, and that should be what I strive to do with all the time I still have left here.
I've developed this weird mindset that I have only one chance to make a good first impression and there's no coming back from it. Therefore if I screw up on the first day or don't do things to my very high satisfaction, I assume that all is lost and there's nothing I can do to change it.
It started with 3rd year when I changed services nearly every week and every day was the first day of work. It continued through away rotations during fourth year for that very same reason yet even higher stakes. Because of my scores, I knew I needed to be the best med student / rotator they had ever met and it all began with that dreaded first impression that I thought I couldn't change.
Surprisingly, this same feeling has continued during my prelim year. I had hoped that by being in one place for a whole year, that pressure would disappear because I had a whole year to make good impressions and I could allow myself one "bad" day once in a while. But for some reason, it's persisted.
Part of it is the shortened time frame for everything...one month on ortho in July, needing a letter of recommendation from my PD by August, and switching services and chiefs every month. I've felt the pressure to be perfect at every turn because it's a new group of people and again, the stakes are super high (probably the highest they've ever been). Everyone has to love me on the first day, otherwise I have failed. It's a warped way to think of things and obviously has to change, because it's done a number on my mental health.
The problem with this way of thinking is that I can never be good enough in my own eyes and therefore I'm destined to "fail" (by my standards). I'm at a strong general surgery program, so all the interns have their shit together, which makes it hard to stand out among the super stars. In the back of my mind, I always knew I couldn't be top dog of the 15 or so interns in my class, but that doesn't mean I didn't put the pressure on myself to try to be the best. Of course, I had to be awesome on Day 1 and whenever I slipped up (as in intern inevitably does), I would get very upset and mad at myself, and would just spiral into self-deprecation, which would make me even more upset and the cycle would persist.
I realize I can't continue this way for the rest of the year because I have been absolutely miserable and it has affected every part of my life. I have to accept that I will make mistakes and that it's okay to be wrong. I don't have to be perfect because that ship sailed long ago and my fate is probably sealed at this program already.
What I can do is continue to improve throughout the year. I can go back to the basics of checking all my boxes, following up on labs and consults, and being agreeable and affable. I can give myself a break whenever I mess up or don't do something perfectly. I can accept the fact that I am not perfect and should not expect to be the best intern this department has ever had, because that's simply not possible.
My new goal should be to impress my bosses with my improvement and growth throughout the year. I won't strive for perfection, but I will strive for being solid and strong, and on an upward trajectory. Although rank lists are due in only a couple of months, I still have 6.5 more months with this program and I'm sure if I do all those things, I can get a solid letter at the end of the year for the next application cycle.
I keep wanting to throw in the towel because the first impressions have already been made and I've had a rough couple of months. But another way to get good evaluations is to show how much I've improved and that I can turn things around, and that should be what I strive to do with all the time I still have left here.
Saturday, November 10, 2018
Funk again
I feel like I start all posts the same way by saying things have been rough. I'm in the midst of orthopaedics interview invitations going out, and as expected, I'm coming up empty. I suspected this was going to be the case, but it's still very hard to see that I was right in my pessimism.
One of the programs that "ranked me very highly" last year and where I did an away last fall, sent out their invitations last week and I didn't get one. I wasn't very surprised because if they didn't want me last year, they probably weren't going to want me this year. But it was also my only other "real" shot at getting an interview this season and it's rough to know that now my options are even slimmer at matching ortho this year.
Additionally, my prelim home ortho program told me that it is "very unlikely" that I'll match with them, mostly because of my Step 1 score. I was hoping the programs that got to know me, either from aways or from this prelim, would be able to overlook my Step 1 and see that I'm a hard-working resident that gets along with everyone, because I knew my application would be screened out due to my scores. But it doesn't look to be the case and I'm really worried that I'll go unmatched again this year.
Somewhat understandably, I'm in an incredibly deep funk that I can't seem to get out of. I'm back to crying in inappropriate situations, such as at work, and shutting down to the point that I don't have the mental energy to do basic things such as clean, cook, or do laundry. I'm fully functional at the hospital and am surprisingly still kicking butt at my job (with a few teary exceptions), but that's about where my mental strength ends. Everyone keeps telling me to stay positive and keep my chin up, but it's really hard to be optimistic when I literally have ZERO interviews and thus no hope of doing what I'm passionate about.
What keeps me going is the fact that I'll be with my family in 8 days for vacation and it couldn't come at a more perfect time. I need the break from work, but more importantly, I need a hug. No matter what age I am, a hug from Mom makes everything better, even if only temporarily.
One of the programs that "ranked me very highly" last year and where I did an away last fall, sent out their invitations last week and I didn't get one. I wasn't very surprised because if they didn't want me last year, they probably weren't going to want me this year. But it was also my only other "real" shot at getting an interview this season and it's rough to know that now my options are even slimmer at matching ortho this year.
Additionally, my prelim home ortho program told me that it is "very unlikely" that I'll match with them, mostly because of my Step 1 score. I was hoping the programs that got to know me, either from aways or from this prelim, would be able to overlook my Step 1 and see that I'm a hard-working resident that gets along with everyone, because I knew my application would be screened out due to my scores. But it doesn't look to be the case and I'm really worried that I'll go unmatched again this year.
Somewhat understandably, I'm in an incredibly deep funk that I can't seem to get out of. I'm back to crying in inappropriate situations, such as at work, and shutting down to the point that I don't have the mental energy to do basic things such as clean, cook, or do laundry. I'm fully functional at the hospital and am surprisingly still kicking butt at my job (with a few teary exceptions), but that's about where my mental strength ends. Everyone keeps telling me to stay positive and keep my chin up, but it's really hard to be optimistic when I literally have ZERO interviews and thus no hope of doing what I'm passionate about.
What keeps me going is the fact that I'll be with my family in 8 days for vacation and it couldn't come at a more perfect time. I need the break from work, but more importantly, I need a hug. No matter what age I am, a hug from Mom makes everything better, even if only temporarily.
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