The light at the end of the tunnel

Well, as you can tell by my lack of posting, things have been pretty crazy around here! The last month or so was spent attending a wedding of a college friend in TX, traveling back and forth between MD finishing up my last "core" rotation, applying for jobs, readying for our move and trying to stay sane through it all.

I have now finished my inpatient rotation, taken my test and completed my required 8 standardized patient encounters. All that stands between me and graduation is my final clinical preceptorship and a massive final exam! Setting up this rotation has been quite a stressor lately, but I'm trusting that everything will work out for the best because that's all I can do at this point.

This time next week we will be somewhere between VA and TX hauling all our belongings in a moving truck. Although I've been trying to pack a little here and there, we have so much stuff still left to pack. It's amazing all the things we have accumulated in our 2 bedroom apartment - good thing we'll have a 2 bedroom again or we'd have no room for all this! I'm looking forward to being back in TX near family and friends and finally living under the same roof as my husband!

This week marks one year since I started my clinical rotations. I've been trying to think of what I've learned over the last 12 months so I could share some of it with you. Then I realized that I've learned so much more than I realized. Of course I learned a lot of really cool medicine from neurosurgery to OB/Gyn to cardiology. I've run the gamut of the major medical specialties and primary care. I've participated in births and experienced death. I've wanted to yell, cry, laugh and get more sleep. I've been totally lost/confused then felt like I might actually get this whole medicine thing. I think the most important lesson I've learned is never stop trying and caring. As long as I continue to develop and improve my clinical knowledge and skills and never forget that I'm in this field for the patients, I'll do just fine in clinical practice.