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Category: Opinion

Balancing health with a busy schedule

When it comes to a course as busy and hectic as veterinary medicine, it can be easy to let certain things slide – especially around exam time.

There’s the occasional group event, the odd party and, of course, the big one – a healthy lifestyle.

I know from experience that when the grind really sets in, it’s all too easy to let these things go. However, I also know from experience that this can actually be counterproductive.

Hand in hand

When exams are always looming on the horizon, the choice between body or mind can seem like an all too easy one – since they aren’t going to be grading you on the number of vegetables you’ve consumed, or the hours of exercise you’ve done this week, it doesn’t always seem like a choice at all.

That’s why I wanted to give a little reminder that the two do, in fact, go hand in hand, and it is actually achievable to pass your exams and make it through your university years while subsisting on anything other than takeaway meals and four hours of sleep a night.

Working on your problem areas is the first step. If you struggle getting eight hours a night because you always know in the back of your mind there’s still work to be done, set yourself a schedule. During exam season, for example, I don’t let myself work past 8pm and the rest of the evening is for me.

Little and often

Staying on top of your workload on the lead-up to exams also does wonders, and doing “little and often” means you don’t find yourself with a mountain of work that keeps you up late into the night. If you absolutely have to get on top of the work and can’t find the time, try going to bed a little earlier and getting up a little earlier. You might just find you work better after a full night of sleep than blearily rubbing your eyes at gone midnight.

If you struggle to find time to socialise and exercise and when things get busy, one has to go – try joining a sports team or society and combining the two.

If you’re the person who finds it easier to skip meals to get a little extra studying in, just try to take note from what you’re actually studying. If you’re in a medical degree, whatever stage you’re at, you are blessed with the gift (or maybe the curse) of knowledge.

We’re all taught the dangers of under-eating or overeating, how blood sugar affects cognitive function and sleep quality… blah blah blah. These are things we all know like the back of our hand.

So, what’s the point of cramming our brains with all of this content if we don’t act on any of it or use it to our advantage?

“Try going to bed a little earlier and getting up a little earlier. You might just find you work better after a full night of sleep than blearily rubbing your eyes at gone midnight,” says Eleanor.

Consider the future

Now, if this article has struck a chord with you, and you need any more motivation, just think to the future.

I know right now stress is a key driver for skipping meals, exercise and getting a few hours’ sleep, and you might fully intend to break these habits once you’ve graduated and reached the greener grasses on the other side, but the thing to keep in mind is, even if you end up in the veterinary job of your dreams, it won’t be without stress or deadlines, or work always in the back of your mind. All the reasons to skip meals and sleep will still be there.

But if you can get a handle on it now and learn to look after yourself in these early days, it will follow you into the rest of your career.

And, quite frankly, even the most competent vet is going to struggle to command respect if they’re falling asleep at the consult table or giving advice to owners of how to take care of their pets when they’re still struggling to take care of themselves.

Not selfish

I think a lot of vets need to hear this – both students and fresh graduates especially. Your first patient, every day, has to be you.

Remember, you are important, your health is important, and it matters just as much as any of your patients. If you’re not healthy, how can you do what you do to the best of your ability?

By looking after yourself, you are looking after each of the animals you treat. It’s not selfish to look after your body just as much as your mind – it is essential.

December 11, 2019
Why you can – and should – be a mentor

The benefits of having a mentor – someone who has walked the path you are travelling and is happy to share with you what they have learned to make your journey a little easier – are invaluable and indisputable. But they don’t simply appear out of thin air.

Someone has to step up and take on the challenge of sharing what they know.

Maybe that someone should be you?

Gift of giving

“But what do I know? Who am I to teach? I’ll definitely mentor someone one day when I have something to say, but right now I still have too much to learn.” Right?

I don’t see myself as wealthy. When I walk along the beachfront in the fancy neighbourhoods, I look at the mansions that overlook the ocean and wonder what it must be like to have that much money.

If you asked me for £20, however, I could happily give it. I wouldn’t even miss it – I have money to spend. I just don’t always appreciate what I’ve accumulated over the years – especially when I compare myself to people who have so much more.

But if you were starving and broke, that £20 would be a tremendous amount of money – it could be life-changing.

Theoretically, no limit exists to how much money you can accumulate. At which point do you have enough that you feel you can start spending or giving? Do you need to be a millionaire before you can spare £5? Of course not.

Disseminate

Experience is the same. You know stuff, have lived a few years, been through school and university, and worked a few days, months or years. Maybe you’re still studying – but you’ve passed a few exams.

Of course, some people know way more than you – you have a lot more to learn. We all do. But I can guarantee you know something someone else doesn’t – and nothing helps you learn faster than teaching.

Some people want to know things you take for granted as given knowledge.

Don’t be a miser. Find people to spend your wealth of knowledge on. They’re all around you in your workplaces, universities and online communities – and they’re starving for what you know.

December 4, 2019
Technology: tool or distraction?

Earlier this year, I went to Indonesia with my family. On arrival in the airport on Lombok, I turned my mobile phone on and received the reassuring message from my provider to tell me I could use it as usual for an extra A$5 (£2.66) per day.

Then, as our taxi drove out of the airport gates, my phone inexplicably lost signal and did not reconnect until we arrived back at the airport two weeks later.

For a few days, I traipsed up any elevated place I could find – arm outstretched, offering my phone up to the heavens – but to no avail.

I eventually gave up and resigned myself to a state of disconnection. Urgent business was attended to via telephone calls from borrowed phones and during frustratingly slow WiFi sessions in cafes, or relegated to non-urgent.

Unplugged

Hubert spent two weeks trying to find a phone signal, but to no avail. Image © Syda Productions / Adobe Stock

This is where I tell you how gloriously refreshing it was to be forced to disconnect for two weeks, and how you should all shun your phones, right?

Wrong. It was highly frustrating. I had stuff to organise and plans to make, and a functional phone would have been very useful.

However, despite my frustration, I found my anxiety levels were noticeably lower. That gnawing feeling I should be productive – and quickly check everything was okay – dissipated.

I couldn’t upload photos on social media, so didn’t. Many moments were experienced, but not documented. I had time. Time to play with my children, for naps, to read (yes, on my iPad), and not be distracted.

No surprises there.

Compulsive

Two weeks after getting home and I’m fully hooked up, mainlining the world though the multiple devices more or less implanted in my brain.

I’m anxious and irritable, which makes me pick up my phone looking for some relaxation and distraction. Like a Staffordshire bull terrier chasing its tail – not because it needs the tail for anything, but simply for the little dopamine hits that provide momentary relief from its “staffie-ness”.

Striking balance

This experience has confirmed to me what I already suspected and has made me take a long, hard look my relationship with technology. As a member of that weird in-between generation that grew up blissfully tech-free for the first half of our childhoods, only to fall deeply in love with technology as it blasted us with its fire hose of innovation in our adolescent years, I am ambivalent.

I am no Luddite. I appreciate the extreme usefulness and fun to be had through a nifty combination of zeros and ones, and screens; but I also remember the joy of a day spent in reality.

So where is the balance?

Amplifying brainpower

Steve Jobs famously described technology as “a bicycle for our minds”. It was not meant to be the mind, but, rather, a means to make use of our minds more efficiently. Like how a bicycle allows your body to propel itself at speeds far beyond those you could achieve using just the tools that evolution had provided for us.

I love this idea, and I’m trying to figure out how to use technology to allow me to fly down the road of life with the wind in my face, rather than sweating pointlessly on a stationary bicycle at the gym.

To help with this, I ask myself two simple questions every time I’m tempted to reach for a screen:

Am I about to use this as a tool or as a distraction?

In other words, is my phone aiding me in achieving something, or is it getting in the way of achieving something?

Let’s be clear – using technology for entertainment or leisure has its place, but using it for this purpose has to lead to the next question:

Is the thing I am doing with my tech for leisure helping me to relax, or adding to my anxiety?

Is scrolling through Instagram proving me with inspiration and ideas, or is it making me feel jealous and frustrated?

Are there better things on my phone that I can use to relax – like a book or some music? Or should I put the screen down and go for a walk or talk to someone?

Being sensible about technology is something our generation – and a few after us – will take a while to figure out. A good place to start may be by simply being intentional about how we use it.

November 25, 2019
Hitting pause

I’ve known for a long time I wanted to be a vet. This has meant that, since a very early age, a lot of my big decisions were pre-decided; GCSE and A-level options, university course, etc.

My choice in universities was narrowed down to a one-digit figure before I’d gone to my first open day – and even then I could only apply to four of them, while all my non-medical friends applied to five.

Even in the vet school itself, there’s very little wiggle room or chance to apply individuality to the curriculum. I don’t see this as a negative, as I understand why that is: when professionals graduate, an assumed blanket level of knowledge for everyone, the same playing field, same skills and knowledge base so that we can all perform equally in a career that requires us to do so.

That being said, it’s the ability to self-direct my learning in a way I’ve never had a chance to before that’s made me jump at the prospect of intercalation.

A year out

Intercalation, for vets at Bristol, involves taking a year away from their studies between years three and four to pursue something related to their course and/or future careers, but that they wouldn’t have had the opportunity to learn otherwise. You can choose to do these at your current university, or somewhere new, and there are a variety of different intercalation courses you are briefed on in years two and three.

It essentially allows students to broaden the depth of their knowledge in a specific area, either one they’re particularly interested in or that they feel will benefit their chosen career paths.

For me, it’s a bit of both. I don’t see it as a distraction from the veterinary course and what I’ve learned, but as a way for me to figure out how I best want to utilise it.

How long is too long?

I know for a lot of people, especially non-vets, taking an intercalation year in the middle of a five-year-long degree might seem a little unnecessary – do you really want to double the length of the average degree? And is it really worth it?

Looking back, though, the idea of a five-year course never fazed me; it was just another decision I took for granted as not really being a decision at all, and to be honest I wanted to be a vet so badly the course could have been a decade long and I’d probably have been just as keen.

Worth it

In terms of worth, I think it all boils down to what you want to get out of your degree, and indeed your career. It’s also worth thinking about money, as well as time management – although, of course, it’s never too late to keep learning. If you wanted to return for another course at university after graduation this would take you longer than a year, and currently postgraduate student loan funding isn’t as easy to navigate as the undergrad scheme.

I know it’s not for everyone, but I personally find the idea of intercalating and looking beyond what I need to know and a little more into what I want to know so, so, so exciting. And if it helps to give me the time and self-insight to figure out exactly what type of vet I want to be when I graduate, then I feel like that’s going to make me a better vet all around.

November 22, 2019
Mid-sessionals – the dos and don’ts

Right now, a lot of vet students are heading towards their first mid-sessional exams – the first university level exams the majority of them will ever have experienced.

The rest of us have mid-sessionals, too, off course, and while we no longer have the luxury of ignorance and the bliss it comes with, these are no longer uncharted waters and we do have some advice.

Don’t

Panic

While, unlike other courses, the first year of veterinary medicine does technically “count”, you won’t be graded in the way the majority of students are. It’s a nice and clear-cut pass or fail system. Also, if you have the worst time with your mid-sessionals and don’t even reach that passing grade, there’s plenty of time for you to make that up with coursework and the summer exams, which will carry a lot more weight. Both the university and your faculty members understand the transition to university is a whirlwind, and these first exams while you’re still finding your feet might not reflect your best work; therefore, your mid-sessional results do not have to reflect the rest of your year.

Just talk – listen!

Nobody is going to send you into those exams blind! The uni will give you all of the information you need to know – it might be online, or in a lecture you didn’t go to because it didn’t look particularly important. A lot of the answers to your questions can be found just by paying attention.

Burn yourself out

I have been guilty of this. I can sometimes get so caught up in maximising my revision that I run out of steam with maybe a week or two still to go before the exams and realise, suddenly, I could have given myself a bit more slack. Be smart, kids; don’t be me.

Just revise the interesting stuff

It can be tempting to ignore revising the content that bores you or you can’t see the relevance of learning. Trust me when I say if you are being taught it, it is important and even if It seems like common sense, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t even give it a glance when you come to revision.

Make study groups and draw from each other’s strengths, says Eleanor Goad. Image © Rawpixel.com / Adobe Stock

Do

Talk to people

Right now, everyone around you is in the exact same boat, without a clue what’s going on. How much content in each lecture do we need to know? How are questions worded? How many questions are in a paper? What’s 2 + 2, again? Talk to each other, work with each other, make study groups and draw from each other’s strengths. Talk to your lecturers; you are allowed to ask them what kind of stuff they expect you to take away from their lectures. Talk to your personal tutors and staff members; they might be able to direct you towards some sample questions.

Start revising early on – and stay organised!

Know which notes are for which topic, and, maybe, even make a handy list of all of your most hated topics/lectures so you can maximise your study time.

Your best

I know it sounds super corny, but at the end of the day it’s all that you can do. You’ve made it into vet school so trust in yourself and your abilities. You can do this.

November 7, 2019
Don’t bite off more than you can chew

All students dream of having it all – straight As, buzzing social life and maybe a small part-time job to help you afford the latter…

There’s no doubt that whatever year you’re in, whatever course you’re on, you’ve probably got a lot going on.

The important thing I’ve found, however (easier said than done, mind you), is not to overload yourself in an effort to try it all right off the bat – I’m looking at you freshers.

One step at a time

When I first came to uni, I began juggling a lot: three jobs (yes, I appreciate the hypocrisy, but hear me out), making new friends, keeping in contact with friends and family at home, moving into a new city, joining societies – and occasionally sleeping, but who has the time?

And then, of course, there’s the course itself – the very reason I was there in the first place – and yet it was just one of the armada of things I had to think about.

I understand when you rock up to university as a first-year, everything around you looks equally shiny and new, and so exciting. It’s bursting with new opportunities, restaurants you never had in your corner of the country, clubs you’ve always wanted to join, sports you’ve never even heard of… it can be so easy to just run to fresher’s fair and sign yourself up for everything with the full intention of going to it all – and you may try. But, take it from me, if you actually want to enjoy each new experience, take it a step at a time.

Find your passion

Try joining a society or two in your first few weeks, and if you discover they’re not really you, there’s no harm with trying something else… and so on, and so on until you find something that sticks – something you have a real passion for.

There’s no use spending significant amounts on new trainers, gym gear and a tennis racket before you realise you’ve zero hand-eye coordination, but have a real penchant for amateur dramatics.

The average student is at uni for three years. That’s plenty of time to try everything you wanted to and more, and if you’re a medicine student – really, what’s the hurry?

Get a handle on those early starts before signing up to various clubs and activities, suggests Eleanor Goad.

Slow and steady

I would also recommend learning to adjust to your routine before adding new commitments (I’m sure you’ve heard the saying “don’t run before you can walk”).

Lectures can be daunting enough on their own, so get a handle on those 9am starts first before signing yourself up for an away match the other side of the country that gets you up at 6am!

Stress is a big problem for students, and not just for vets. It’s obviously important to extend your interests outside your course and do things that excite and drive you but, at the same time, be sensible and know that if you want to have it all, it might require a little bit of trial and error – and a lot of patience.

October 23, 2019
What to do when you’re stumped by a case

Critical patients can be overwhelming – concurrent diseases, numerous medications, non-responsive to things you have tried…

The best thing to do is start from the beginning and ask yourself different questions to reopen your mind to the case.

What was the full details of the history?

Run through the history, but in an unbiased manner. The important point to remember here is to retell it as it was told – not what information you think is relevant to your current thought process or theory.

What are the findings on the physical examination?

Repeat a full physical examination, go slower and be more thorough – as you may have missed something.

It is not uncommon for findings to change – the patient may have developed more obvious clinical abnormalities, or a key finding may have been missed.

What is the problem list?

Identifying this again can help you determine whether you are heading down the wrong path, or if a problem is present that is more easily worked up.

What have I missed or am I missing?

When you ask this question, you may not think of anything; however, it prompts you to consider that you don’t have all the information you need and that you need to find it.

What more information do I need?

This is a good follow-on question, as it gets you thinking about whether you need to read up and get some facts to develop a plan moving forward.

Don’t rely on your memory, and assume that what you know is correct and everything you need to know.

What is my next step?

Whether it is to run a test, do a procedure or continue on the existing plan, you have to decide your next step.

If the decision has high risk or serious implications then run it by a senior clinician, mentor or colleague. However, don’t present the information in a way that supports your decision, otherwise you are not getting the best value out of their input.

Present the information in an unbiased manner and be open to a different opinion.

Inform the owners

When you are stuck, it is best to inform the owners of the challenges you are facing – including your findings, thoughts and concerns – and involve them in the decision-making process.

Keeping them involved in the progress of their pets condition is the best way of maintaining trust.

October 7, 2019
A different kind of exam

A veterinary career and examinations go hand in hand. I can’t count the number of papers I’ve sat over the last quarter of my life that have opened the doors to where I am now.

If you manage to make it even half way through the vet course it can be assumed you have mastered the art of taking tests.

But third year, I’m coming to realise, is a game changer.

The same, but different

I don’t think it properly dawned on me until our first day back during an afternoon practical. We were going over a routine canine examination, mimicking the role of any vet when a fresh patient comes through their doors; travelling from nose to tail, searching for abnormalities, checking mucous membranes, smelling inside the ears – the works.

We also covered various injection sites along with their pros and cons, how and where to auscultate the lungs, and even how to wash our hands – which, it turns out, is far more complex than life up until now had led us to believe.

Now don’t get me wrong, they hadn’t waited until third year to teach us all of this (a lot of it was basic stuff; the habits general practice workers could do in their sleep). No, the difference was that, in these practicals, we actually had real dogs.

New experiences

It sounds childish given our future line of work, but as any vet student will confirm, when we see an animal, any animal, but especially dogs, we get very excited. It’s not just the fact it’s a cute dog (although, I won’t lie to you, that’s also a big part of it, too), but getting to practice something you’ve spent hours, if not days, learning about in the classroom on an actual patient – even a volunteer one who’s really just there for the treats and attention is such a breath of fresh air and an experience to be jumped on.

Palpating lymph nodes that aren’t sewn into stuffed animals, palpating an abdomen that isn’t lying on your dissection table – all these things are akin to luxury for new third years.

But, with this rush of this new kind of learning, came to realisation of what they were preparing us for: the dreaded OSCEs – a whole new kind of exam.

“Before long, we won’t be able to pass every test they throw at us by last-minute reading and flash cards” – Eleanor Goad. Image © stokkete/ Adobe Stock

Growing up

It’s always difficult having to start over or break out of an old routine into a new one, but when you go from pre-clinical to clinical you pretty much have to do just that. As you and your cohorts shuffle ever closer to becoming real full-fledged vets, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that you get treated more and more like one, and are expected to act a little more like one.

Before long, we won’t be able to pass every test they throw at us by last-minute reading and flash cards. Attention to detail, compassion, patience and professionalism will begin to carry the same weight as memorising words from a page.

In my mind, this can only be a good thing; a little scary, perhaps, but it’s also a nice reminder of where we’re headed. Working with real animals, working on problem solving – it all helps to make the future a little more tangible and less of an abstract concept.

I don’t know how I’m going to shape up with this new style of assessment coming my way, but I’ll certainly give it my best.

October 7, 2019
Tips for vet school: the first few days

The first few weeks of university life can be a little scary, and it’s understandable you might just want to hang back to try and digest it all.

Trying to be outgoing, charming and outlandishly sociable when you’ve just been thrust into a new city, a new environment, and left to fend for yourself can feel like a daunting task. But I really can’t encourage you enough to get out there as soon as possible…

Get to know as many people as possible in your first few days

By now, you’ve probably heard something along the lines of “the first person you sit next to in uni becomes your new best friend”, but try not to get so comfortable that you completely stop socialising after the first day.

While there is some truth to this rumour (I can personally relate), university is a massive new chance to meet people from all walks of life. You might find yourself immediately gravitating towards those who are familiar – maybe from the same region of the country – but it’s important to fight this instinct and expand your friend group to those with different ideas, concepts, etc.

Trust me, it will come in handy during those group revision sessions in the future.

Know you won’t always be top of the class

I’m sorry if reading this makes you upset or mildly infuriating, but that may mean you are the kind of person who needs to hear this the most. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, for those new to the game: you do not have to know everything; you will not be able to know everything; you will get things wrong – and every one of these things is okay.

What’s more, everyone in your whole year (indeed, your whole course) is just as fallible as you are. You are not competing against them any more, they are your allies, your sounding boards, your tutors and tutees.

Also, don’t expect 90-100% on your first test… or the second.. My point is you shouldn’t be upset with yourself when you’re not perfect, because nobody is – and that’s okay too.

If you like taking hand-written notes, Eleanor suggests you bring lots of pens and a bottle of electrolytes for the resultant hand cramp. Alternatively, invest in a laptop or some type of tablet. Image © WavebreakmediaMicro / Adobe Stock

Stay organised

If I could time travel, this is one of the main things I really wish I could tell myself. If you were perfectly organised for your A-levels, then that is excellent – but now forget everything you know.

Revision

Of course, you may be the exception that proves the rule, but for nine out of 10 people, the best revision methods you employed for your GCSEs and A-levels will not be the best method for your university examinations. In fact, it may take you a while to find out which method works best for you (flash cards, quizzes, etc).

Note-taking

Finding the fastest and most efficient way of taking notes is also paramount, ideally (though not essentially) before stepping into the classroom.

If you like taking hand-written notes and find you produce more in this way, then be sure to bring lots of pens and a bottle of electrolytes for that hand cramp. If you’re a little slow at writing or find you lose paper notes easily – *cough* guilty *cough* – then I would suggest using a laptop or some type of tablet – something light and portable that you’re comfortable with.

Once you’ve found which type of note-taking works for you, and what revision type works for you – stay organised.

Everything in order

If you find yourself having trouble understanding certain lectures, read ahead on these topics so you know which questions to ask the lecturer. Also, understand there are a number of different broad topics to veterinary medicine, and then try filing your notes in these groups – take my word for it, it makes everything so much easier when you take your end of year exams, which are often divided into units.

And, most importantly of all, have fun. Get the most out of it, grab it by the horns, carpe diem and all of that.

I hope you enjoy the next big chapter of your life.

September 23, 2019
A little impatient

Over the summer I found myself with itchy feet. It’s probably down to the demanding workload, busy schedule and general fast-paced nature of the veterinary course that when everything grinds to a halt at the end of exam season for several long months, I find myself at a loss for what to do.

I might be exaggerating here, in truth I’ve managed to keep myself pretty busy in the hiatus between terms – jobs, work experience, friends and family – all pretty normal when it comes to summer holidays. But I think it’s the lack of a real challenge I’m missing more and more each day.

Missing the madness

I don’t know if it’s just me, but the things I miss most in my time off are those things I find a little stressful and that really test me…

No, I’m not crazy. I don’t crave total anarchy in my life at all times – and, yes, it is nice to switch off and unwind from time to time – but I’ve been challenging myself mentally ever since my GCSE years when I looked down at my chemistry mock to see a “D” staring back at me and thought: “Hmmm, just a little way to go then…”

Knowing there’s so much still to cover and in such a short space of time doesn’t help either. It sort of makes me want to get ahead of the game – and I know as soon as the term starts, everything begins to speed up again and I find myself constantly on my toes, I’ll look back and regret wishing away the time I had with my feet planted firmly on the ground.

“I have to keep checking myself with self-reminders to appreciate the pauses life is offering me” – Eleanor Goad.

Time to relax

I like keeping busy, being occupied – and although I think this is probably a good thing in respect of the line of work I’m heading into – I have to keep checking myself with self-reminders to appreciate the pauses life is offering me RIGHT NOW and enjoy them as much as I can.

I know it’s not healthy to always be operating at 110%, and it’s a slow lesson I’m learning, but I’m really trying to enjoy this down-time without feeling guilty, like I should be doing something, or that I need to be studying something.

I’ve had friends that struggled with this feeling in the summer between A-levels and friends who, like me, are struggling with it now. When your course is so demanding, when there will always be something more to know, it can be difficult to get the idea into your head that you’re allowed a break. But take it from me – you are.

Stop and smell the roses

I don’t think I’m ever going to be able to shake my itchy feet entirely – I like to be going somewhere, and I’ve never one for sitting still – but I’m doing my best to take advantage of every day before I go back to university.

It’s important to check in with yourself from time to time and to be kind to yourself. We deserve breaks and lazy days, and to forget what day of the week it is in that disconcerting-but-oddly-freeing way the summer seems to induce.

There will always be time to work, but do try to stop and smell the roses.

September 11, 2019