Internship/residency were HARD. There were some REALLY low moments and some really tough scenarios that you face for the first time as a doctor-in-training. The hours are long and the work is tough. So... when I got an email that asked me to record a video about how I survived residency, it took me a little bit to reflect upon the experience and come up with 4 concrete things:
1. Mindset: I went into training with the mindset that internship/residency are TEMPORARY/finite and that the purpose was to advance to my goal of being the best possible physician I could be.
2. A strong support system: Both at work [to be able to vent, process new experiences/challenges, not feel alone] and outside of work [great to take your mind off of medicine].
3. Living close to the hospital/work: Not everyone is going to have this luxury. Some people will need to go to multiple sites for training. I go over in the video that during internship I had to drive 30-40 minutes each way and after a 36 hour shift... I don't even remember driving home. That was scary. When I moved to Boston, I abandoned my car and made it essential that work was in walking distance. Also, my residency offered an Uber/Lyft reimbursement for post-call... I definitely used that.
4. Enjoying time outside of the hospital to the fullest: Even though the hours are long and the vacation is limited, there are weekends that exist and every once in a while you get out early [depending on the rotation]. I definitely took advantage of this time when I could and saw friends, celebrated milestones, went on weekend trips... I basically lived life to the fullest outside of the hospital. It gave me energy to go back in for the long, tiring days. And seeing what we see in residency makes you appreciate the little things.
What do you think of this advice? What helped you survive residency?
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