Sorry, We've Moved

I thought I had done this a while back, but apparently I was wrong.

I decided to move my blog to wordpress, because it seemed a little more interactive. Not sure if it was a good decision, but it's done.

Anyway, the new link is http://theallinonedoctor.wordpress.com/

Thanks for reading!

Radiology: It's Not All Just Black and White

So, I have started up again with Instructional Period 8. This block contains Radiology, Clinical Pathology, Laboratory Animal Medicine, and Pharmacology II.

One of my favorite classes this block is Lab Animal. So far in Lab Animal we have discussed chinchillas, guinea pigs (my favorite!!), and ferrets. I am really thinking that pocket pet medicine might be where I want to head. I love working with the tiny critters, and I just don't feel like they get their fair share of attention at normal small animal clinics. It makes sense, of course, because it's not these vets area of expertise, but I want to be able to offer that option to my clients. Mizzou is hosting the Exotics Symposium this weekend, so hopefully I will make some nice connections and figure out a little better if this is something I'd be interested in long term.

On the other hand, I seriously love radiology. It's only week two, so please prepare to hear me change my tune. This is a high likelihood, because rumor is the second half of the class is just pure ridiculousness. BUT, for right now I LOVE it. The urogenital system has been my favorite. I did lose a bet (of a cup of free coffee) about whether something may or may not have been a kidney, but I have learned and nailed the diagnosis the next time I saw it. I was even able to explain why it didn't follow the normal diagnostic details we typically see with perirenal pseudocysts. I also rocked a diagnosis for prostate cancer. I cannot get enough of my radiology lab; it's just like playing clue! We get a little background history, pop the radiographs up and point out the things we see and what the diagnosis may be. Then we reach into our bag for what I have termed our "clue card" to determine if we are right. And, there's a coffee break! Why can't all my labs be fun games that come with snacks?

So: exotics/lab animal or radiology? Maybe both? Neither? Only time will tell.

My only other question right now is, Where can I find a purple laser pointer? I "need" it for radio lab :)

Finding Something to be Thankful For

Well, my two-week update plan was a disaster, wasn't it? It always amazes me just how much vet school sucks me in every block. I suppose this shouldn't be shocking; I mean, I moved over 900 miles and changed pretty much my entire life just to attend school.

Anyway, I feel like I should update here, but I don't know that I have much of anything to talk about.
Second year is not what I thought it would be, in a very nice way. Classes are more interesting and I actually feel like I'm learning "doctor" stuff. I'm currently taking public health, pharmacology, veterinary business, and my second course of special pathology. Nothing is easy, but for the most part it is all interesting.

I did have a mini-breakdown a month or so ago. I just started feeling really out of touch with the whole vet school experience and the veterinary field. All of a sudden people are stressing over internships, jobs, resumes, research, and conferences. We still have two and a half years left!! I felt really left behind the rest of the class. It didn't help that my test performances weren't where I wanted them to be. I finally met with our associate dean of students, who was not surprised to see me. Apparently, his office becomes flooded with VM2s every year who are starting to question where they fit in and whether they should even be doing this at all.

After about an hour of talking, it was decided that I was pretty much like every other student there, except that I was additionally worrying about things other people probably weren't. A simple "Don't worry about that right now. Start worrying about it at some given future date" was all I ended up really needing. Well, after midterm week, a good cry was also in order. Your body can only survive on a few hours sleep and coffee for so long until something has to break. Mom definitely got worried during Thanksgiving when I started to sob because she offered me a granola bar.

After the turmoil of "Do I fit in? Am I good enough for this? Will I end of flipping burgers with hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt because I have made a terrible decision?" I started to kind of get over it. I know I'm in the right place, well, at least for right now. No matter how long I spend in Missouri, it just does not feel Right. I've just gotten used to the idea that sometimes we live in places and go through things not because they are fun, but because they are what will allow us to live the lives we want in the future. And that's okay.

So, in the end, I am thankful for where I am right now and the family and friends I have been blessed with who keep reminding me of the future to which I have to look forward.

"Thank God every day when you get up that you have something to do that day which must be done whether you like it or not. Being forced to work and forced to do your best will breed in you temperance and self-control, diligence and strength of will, cheerfulness and content, and a hundred virtues which the idle will never know."~ Basil Carpenter

"We can always find something to be thankful for, no matter what may be the burden of our wants, or the special subject of our petitions."~ Albert Barnes

Back to the Busyness

We are back at it again! Classes and, more importantly, exams have begun: Duh Duh Duhhh!

This block I am enrolled in Virology, Parasitology, Bacteriology II, and Special Pathology. Classes are actually pretty interesting, though some are a little dry (I'm looking at you, Path). I adore Parasitology! It's the one class I wanted to take in undergrad that just never meshed with my schedule. The teacher is fantastic, and the labs are interactive and informative. I think it has definitely sealed the nail in my nerd coffin: just yesterday a group of us were standing around debating whether I had been attacked by biting midges or small mosquitoes….yeah, so that's what vet school is like.

I am much more involved with the vet school community this year. I always seem to do better with my studies when I am actively involved; maybe it's time management or maybe I'm just happier, either way it works for me. For a not so short rundown, I am involved with: Shelter Club, Behavior Club, SCAAHA, SCAVMA, Wellness Committee, ZEW CLUB, Exotics Symposium PR Committee, South Africa Summer Program, and Student Ambassadors.

This year I am most excited about the SCAVMA Wellness Committee and South Africa Summer Program. The Wellness Committee is a new group that is planning fun events open to all Mizzou vet students and their significant others. I'm not sure if this is true for all vet schools, but our classes are super cliquey. Everyone sits in the same seats in class, eats in the same place with the same people for lunch, and never make time to get to know anyone else. Wellness Committee is made up of the people who couldn't take it anymore; we're really trying to break down these barriers within and between classes.

South Africa Summer Program is a totally different area; a group of VM-2s are traveling to South Africa next summer to study on different animal reserves for a few weeks. Thanks to super supportive parents and some loan money, I get to go!! We are planning and hosting fundraisers to raise support for our group. I am so excited, I can barely stand it. A few of us are planning on staying longer to explore different areas of Africa. My #1 goal is to go to the coast and see the flying great white sharks. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, I invite you to feast your eyes on this awesomeness:

You want to go to South Africa, now, don't you?

As you can see, my schedule is crazzzzy this block (my own fault), so I can't promise to update frequently, but I will promise to do my best. My goal at this point is to post at least every two weeks. Posts might just be updates on how fun some activity was or some cool new thing I learned, so be prepared for randomness. Please leave comments if you like hearing about certain topics or if you want to know about something specific.

To end, I will leave you with my favorite teacher comment so far:
"Fires: good for getting rid of the plague, NOT good for churches."

Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

I have finally finished a continuous year of veterinary school at the University of Missouri. Whoo-hoo! Since we have two years of clinical work, instead of just one like many of the other vet schools, our classes are in session until the end of June. That means that at this point I have finished one block as a second year vet student (VM-2). This also means that I am now on summer break!

My parents came from SC to visit for the 4th of July, and they helped move me into my aunt and uncle's house in Kansas City. I'll be staying with them for the summer, so I don't have to commute from Columbia. I've been to KC a few times before, but it is a HUGE city and I have no clue about getting around on my own. It doesn't help that most of the highways are under construction and parts of them are blocked off. Thank goodness for Tommy, my TomTom.

I have also started my new job for the summer. I am working four days a week at a veterinary hospital/clinic. So far I have spent most of my time doing online training; it's been really informative, but it takes forever to get through. I have done some hands-on training, but there is much more of that to come. The staff is very nice and really makes an effort to help me learn. My mentor is super friendly, and we both seem to want the same things for this experience, so hopefully things continue smoothly. It's been an interesting experience already. I did a good amount of shadowing before I entered vet school, but those were all different situations. I was usually paired with the doctor, rather than being matched with a group of people. Being connected with the hospital staff as a whole has really allowed me to learn much more from the team, because they all know I am there to learn, and I am interested in just about everything. Another difference is that most of those vets I have previously shadowed owned their clinics, so they were generally the final say and chose how things were set up and run. This hospital is corporately owned, which creates a whole new dynamic.

What I really like about the job is the opportunity to connect the things I have learned in the classroom with their real world practices and uses. It's also helping me to connect themes and ideas from different classes. Already, I have identified bacteria and recognized antimicrobials that I learned about in bacteriology. I've also heard some of the same terminology thrown around that I learned in my clinical pathology course. My favorite experience so far has been correctly diagnosing a sick guinea pig with bacterial pneumonia (First Diagnosis = Success!). Once I have my license to practice, I really think I'd like to deal with small animals and pocket pets*.

Well, those are the big changes that have happened so far. For the small stuff: I went to my first rugby tournament on Saturday (as a spectator of course). Rugby is actually kind of awesome; though this was a 7S tournament and not a 15S, so the guys were complaining that it's not "real" rugby. Whatever, boys; I liked it. Maybe there will be more of these games in my future.

That's life for me now. The changes have been good as of yet, and I hope they stay that way. Hopefully, the universe has positive things planned for me, and I look forward to seeing what those things are.

*Pocket pets: small mammals that are commonly used as pets. They include hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, and sugar gliders, as well as many other species.

Let's Start at the End

Where I am now:
After a harrowing 11 months, I am almost done with my first year of school. Well, I was technically done being a first year at the end of May; classes continue on until the end of June, so I am officially a VM-2!

This experience was nothing like I thought it would be. NOTHING! This has been the hardest, craziest, most ridiculous year of my life. Classes and my personal life always seemed to be constant challenges. When one thing would go right, another would implode, while two others slowly started to disintegrate. One of the best quotes I have heard so far goes something like this:

"You can't remember if you came to vet school because you love animals and want to help people or because you hate yourself."

I never imagined the extent to which I would be sucked into school. At one point I literally forgot what "outside" meant. My friends, family, and home in South Carolina merely became thoughts and ideas instead of entities with an actual existence. It was at that point that I decided whatever was meant to happen was going to happen, and I could not let myself be brought down to that level again. My friends and family are amazingly supportive, and every time I hit a rough patch I get a flood of encouraging cards and letters from my home church.

Don't get me wrong, though; I have enjoyed myself. I am grateful everyday for the opportunity to be where I am and get to do the things that I have done. My second week working with cattle allowed me the opportunity to help deliver twin calves. I have had my hand inside a live cow's stomach, feeling the contractions of the rumen.


Even when I'm not physically making this face, I'm generally making it in my head.

I was nailed in the head with alpaca spit and stepped on by a giant of a horse. I even dissected a pony, a freaking PONY! I'm sure some of the things that I have done are considered mediocre, awkward, or even awful to others, but to me they are awesome. Each experience is another chance for me to learn and grow.


Where I am going:
I have two days of final exams approaching, then I will be officially done with a year of veterinary school. At that point I will be moving from Columbia to Kansas City to work in a veterinary hospital for the summer. Once again, I will be experiencing a new city and new occurrences. I am looking forward to the unknown and hope to keep my head up during the challenges. Hopefully, the fall will bring a much better school year full of new and exciting adventures.
I'll end with a paraphrased quote by one of my fellow vet students:

"The first year is like trying to drink from a fire hydrant; the second year is like being hit by a train."

Well, at least there's a light at the end of a tunnel, even if it is just another oncoming collision.

The Start of...Something

My initial plan for this blog was to keep everyone updated on my experiences in veterinary school. Also, if some student out there is interested in vet school, hopefully they could find something worthwhile in my ramblings. Well, would you believe that vet school is crazily busy? They should probably tell you that before you get here. Dealing with the constant ups and downs left me with no time to write, though I still did and do have the desire.

So, what to do now? Honestly, I think this blog will probably become a melting pot of whatever I want it to be at any given moment. But, I'm warning you to start with, so that seems fair to me. I will also warn you that I am not perfect and neither is my spelling or grammar (I really like commas). And, since I am involved in a medical program and field, some of the things I discuss might be a bit adult themed; I'll try to keep those references limited for people with weak stomachs.

With all of that out of the way, if you are interested in hearing about the experiences, interests, and loves of a 23 years-old veterinary student in Missouri...stick around!