The weeks are now tumbling by the wayside, shooting past at a speed that shows absolutely no regard for our need to settle down in our own time. No excuses though, it was always going to be like this.
The debate in the Med School this week concerns the sheer magnitude of our workload, or absence of it, as some of the seemingly less anxious are contesting. I’ve begun to notice how stressful medicine can be, but specifically how stressful a medical student can make it seem for themselves, and in turn, others too.
With an upcoming end of term assessment (a 3 hour ‘Knowledge Test’ covering everything since the ring of fire was first broken in freshers week) looming menacingly on the horizon, a furlong ahead of a cosy looking Christmas holiday, one begins to notice tension in the air.
But it seems that the stress is perpetuated in the style of a self-fulfilling prophecy, that is; if we are told that we should be stressed, are we inclined to feel it more, despite not having felt so initially? I must admit, despite an awareness of this situation, it’s ruffled my feathers somewhat.
Relativity is a strange phenomenon, but it was neatly placed in context by a candid 4th year, who told us he could repeat his fresher year ‘with a blindfold on’.
Despite being initially met with a wave of scepticism, we grasped the message. There wasn’t a trace of bravado in his sentiment.
It’s what we’ll say to the fretful looking freshers in three years time. Until then however, there’s no choice but to knuckle down. This is what we signed up for.
Léon Sharman
