I am done with my first year of medical school and about to start my second year. Where has the time and the summer gone! I wanted to share some school favorites that helped me through because starting a health professional school is daunting. Please reach out if you are starting med school, PA school, dental school, NP school, etc. if you have any questions!
There is a handful of things that pulled me through the first year. Medical school is hard and finding things to support you and your day to day schedule is so crucial. At least, for me, it has been. Being in med school is a full time job but one where you work 12+ hours a day. These are things that I use every day that have made my life easier or less arduous. I am including a mix of my favorite products and study resources, so here are my tried and true things that have gotten me through year one (if you are just here for the organization and fave products, just ignore the study resources 😋).
*one last thing before we dig into the favorites: I am now a CODENXT Scrubs ambassador! These are very chic, quality, affordable designed by a medical student. It is also a female owned business which we love! Shop these amazing scrubs here :) (you will get 5% off with my link!)
AirPods - It would not be a med school favorites post if I didn't talk about AirPods. I seriously love these things so much. I know all of the studies suggest that listening to music while studying does not produce good outcomes, but I simply need some soft background music to help every part of my brain be focused. I love the pro's because of the noise cancelling feature so you can really plug in and tune out if you need to.
HydroFlask - It is so easy to sit at your desk for hours and not think about drinking water. Get a big water bottle and keep it with you at all times. Get in the habit of sipping water throughout the day. I love my big HydroFlask, and it literally goes everywhere with me: lecture, coffee shops, errands, and my desk. I can tell a difference in my focus depending on if I am hydrated or not. Trust me, hydrate!!
Nespresso - I'm pretty sure I use this almost everyday to make an afternoon latte or iced coffee. I always find myself needing a little afternoon pick me up in the form of an afternoon coffee. Even if you are a caffeine/coffee once a day person now, starting any kind of health professions degree may change that. Having a Nespresso machine is so convenient, I can't recommend it enough if you are a coffee person!
Nécessaire Body Wash - This seems like an odd addition to this favorites list, but just hear me out. Your days can start to feel monotonous. I like a routine but I definitely get bored and need to change things up or create everyday experiences that excite me. Enter this body wash: it was seriously one of favorite purchases last year as it makes my shower feel like a spa. It really makes me feel like I am pampering myself and upgrading a very mundane daily activity. Necessaire, if you see this and want to work with me ;) I also love their body serum and body lotion!
Peloton - The convenience of having this in my apartment has really been unmatched in terms of exercise and moving my body. This is an investment, but it is an investment in physical, mental and emotional health. Getting in exercise is so important while we sit for hours and hours on end and having something in my own apartment that I do not have to think about has been so amazing. The Peloton app also has so many other classes too like barre, pilates, yoga, boot camp and walking. I love alternating between spinning and barre/pilates workouts!
Planner - Call me old fashioned but I love a paper planner. Hand writing vs typing things out that I need to get done engrains it into my brain more. It is also very satisfying to cross something off your to-do list. I love this one because each page has a day and it comes as two books so its not one giant, heavy planner to lug around. It has a spot for you hourly schedule, which is great to write out your class/lab/extracurriculars down for every day. Keeps me organized and I know where I need to be during the day!
Study Resources
If you will be starting your first year (med school, PA school, dental school, ect.), you will probably feel overwhelmed with the vast amount of outside study resources you'll hear about. I know I was! It can be hard to find resources that you like and that work for you, and it is tedious and time consuming to try a lot of them. I am going to share my favorites but here's my advice: do not overload yourself with extra resources, stick to a few, and the one's I share may not be for you!
Anki - If you do not know what this is, it is basically flashcards on steroids for medical students. It works by using spaced repetition where each card you do will show up a day or two later and the interval increases as you master the cards. Some people hate Anki and some people love it, so I say try it out if you are on the fence or even against it. This really helps with small random recall details that usually become exam questions. Definitely download the AnKing deck, and you can probably find lecture specific decks for you school. My big tip for using Anki is do not overwhelm yourself by unsuspending too many cards- doing hundreds+ cards a day is great, but I personally think you need to make time for some other learning strategies and hundreds of cards per day takes up a lot of time.
Boards and Beyond - This is a great resource that has short videos that are very digestible and plainly explain physiology concepts. I started using this when we started systems blocks. I would usually find the videos that corresponded to lectures/concepts I did not understand. I do know quite a few people who don't watch lecture, but just look at the topics for the day, and just watch the B+B videos and do the corresponding Anki....but I really recommend trying to watch your lectures first before going to B+B.
Boards Vitals + TrueLearn - These are two practice question banks that my school gives us full access to. They are boards style questions, so even though I did not have boards style question exams in my first year, it is good to start becoming familiar with them. It is a great study tool because if you can do well on these questions, then you are probably pretty prepared for your exams (at least that is how I felt for my schools exams). One disclaimer, is that no matter how hard you try to filter questions based on topics you have covered so far, you will get questions asking things you don't know..don't panic, just guess and read the full explanation when you review your questions and you might learn something new! (I will be buying UWorld for boards prep.)
Robbins Pathology Practice Questions - I am not sure where I found this, but these are amazing questions for studying and reviewing pathology. I think most med students come to hate pathology during their first year, but I actually really love it. These questions are really good- they are definitely boards style and pretty difficult, but if you can get a good percentage of these right, then you will do well in your school's patho questions on your exams. (I have a PDF of these so try googling this and hopefully you can find it!)
Sketchy - I kind of have a hot take on Sketchy: I really don't love it, BUT sometimes it does come in handy/can be helpful. If you do not know what Sketchy is, it is videos that connect a bug or drug or path to a bizarre story where everything stands for something about the topic it is on to help you remember all the little details by connecting it to the story in your mind. There is Sketchy Micro, Pharm and Path. This is why I don't love it: too many random details to remember, where most of the time it is easier for me to just know that staph aureus is gram +, coagulase + and beta hemolytic. But so many people love it, so definitely try it! I will watch some videos if I need clarification or a lecture did not make sense to me, especially some of the pharm lectures because drugs get complicated. There is also corresponding Sketchy Anki decks, so you can watch the videos then do the cards.
Books I found helpful - First Aid, Pathoma, Netter's Anatomy (I would definitely buy First Aid and then hold off on getting anything else until you know what your school will have for you for free. My school gave us all copies of Pathoma + a subscription to the Pathoma website which has videos.)
Again, if you are staring school and have any questions, please reach out!
As always,
#dontforgetyourpearls
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