The Nerves Are Kicking In

After being accepted to SGU, the time leading up to the actual start date is all dedicated to the art of administrative savvy. There are the obvious things of having to send in health forms, housing forms, flight itineraries, declaring insurance, and getting your loans all squared away. But that doesn't account for all the little things and all the pieces of knowledge that every other student holds. Am I covering all my bases, thinking of all the things I need to take care of before I go down to Grenada? Did I send in all the right paperwork? Am I doing what I need to set myself up to be as competitive as every other student? 

My heart is racing. I am short of breath. My stomach is cramping up in knots. I think I am making my first self diagnosis. I have Anxiety. And WebMD says so too! :)

WebMD - Anxiety Disorders

Of course I probably don't have any diagnosable anxiety, but I am feeling the nerves kick in and am sure that most other students are feeling these same pressures. My dad told me once in fact that medical school does take about 5 years off your life. After I mentioned that to one of my colleagues who was inquiring about his curiosities of my pursuit to medical school, he quickly said, "You know what though, that is 5 years you are giving to others!" I would like to think of it from that perspective, the dedication of my life to someone else's. But damn that anxiety - I think it will kill me before I even get to that point.

Some things that I have learned from the other really smart people that I didn't originally consider. Taking note….

• Setting up the ability to check my SGU email from my smart phone or turning on the forwarding feature to read all email from my Gmail account
• Becoming a member of the American Medical Student Association 
• Looking into SGU Selectives
• Accessing electronic-based versions of supplemental medical books
• Booking my flight home on the right day! (yes, I booked my flight home for after the makeup test week before being advised that you don't need to stay through that extra week)