First Exam!

Just wanted to give everyone the heads up that I have my first medical school exam today! We have our Anatomy exam both lecture and lab portions today. I'm pretty calm at the moment but it may be because I literally have no energy left to do anything but be calm. All weekend was spent studying, a total of 24 hours logged at the library between Saturday and Sunday. I should be a genius after all that time, pretty sure that isn't the case. Wish me luck!

Picture of the cockroach I found on my floor when I woke up in the morning. Thought it was dead but it was very much alive. Left it laying there on its back for 12 hours while I was at the library. Came home and it was still alive! Leisa and I attempted to drown the poor little guy with All Purpose Cleaner. Amidst our screams and squeals, much to the dismay of our neighbors who were probably trying to sleep (it was one am), la cucharacha finally kicked the bucket. He's still laying on my floor in the same spot, I just keep walking around him.

You know what they say about cockroaches, you see one and it gives you good luck on anatomy exams....?

Happy Independence Day!

How many people can take a study break in a place like this?!

This weekend is St. Kitts Independence celebration. And what that means for students is that we get a three day weekend! With my first Anatomy exam looming a week away (yikes!) I've been hitting the books really hard. It was a long weekend of studying so today Leisa and I took a well deserved break.

We went to the beach right across the street from where we live and soaked up some Vitamin D. The water is so blue and so clear here, you can see straight down to the bottom. Our break was only about an hour long but it felt great to get out of my room and clear my mind for a bit. You would not believe how warm the water is here. I'm used to swimming in the cold lakes of WI so here the ocean feels like bath water!

Finally to top it off we got pictures with monkeys. The monkeys are so cute and they crawl right into your lap. What a great study break, now time to get back to the books!

love and miss!!

Good Morning!

First time morning post! Usually I'm not pleasant enough to subject my readers to a morning post but today I'm feeling good. I stayed in the anatomy lab yesterday until 5:30, I came home and finally got to go for a run! It is rarely below 90 degrees here during the day and I'm too cheap to pay for a gym membership so I try to run in the early evening. The window to work out is very short. It starts at six pm when the sun starts to set and is totally dark by 6:45. I won't run after it gets dark because the roads here aren't very good and the drivers are crazy!

After my very very sweaty run I came home, showered, ate dinner and crawled into bed to read. After a quick skype session with my family and Tom my eyes were burning. I was so exhausted I couldn't even read the words on the page. So I allowed myself to indulge in a guilty pleasure and go to sleep at 9:15!!!! Man did I feel guilty but now today I feel rejuvenated so I'll have to study extra hard to make up for the lost time.

Just wanted to say good morning and I hope that everyone has a great day!

Love and miss!!!

p.s. thanks to all the encouraging words from family and friends after my melancholy post a couple days ago :)

It is through sleepy, squinty eyes that I write this entry tonight. The high I have been on the last week thanks to my anatomy lab is still there but a more dim. Maybe it's the sleep deprivation talking or maybe it's all the textbooks I'm buried under, not sure.

Tomorrow I get to do an upper chest and arm dissection. Maybe that'll re-energize me. I'm trying to get my body into a routine but these late nights and early mornings catch up quickly and take their toll. Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays are always long days because we begin at seven and end at 5:30. Usually I get home around 6:15 and by this time all I want to do is collapse into bed! But we must press on and this is what I do. Study for a couple more hours and do my best to be in bed before midnight.

I try to retain as much information as possible but it feels like trying to catch a waterfall in a shot glass. I'm doing my best but everyday they throw so much information at us! All the other students are great. Everyone is very supportive and friendly and we do our best to work together.

I'm going to sleep and I know I'll be out as soon as my head hits the pillow!

love and miss!

I'm a medical student!

My latest blog entry and the one I have been most excited to write.

Let me start with yesterday. We had our first dissection anatomy lab. We received our cadavers, met our dissection groups, and got to work. We began by turning the cadaver onto its stomach and doing a dissection of the back. We removed the skin from the back in rectangular sections then removed the superficial adipose tissue to expose the muscles underneath. This was amazing!!!!! I have always been in awe of the human body but this experience made me appreciate life on a complete different platform. In the middle of the lab I took a step back to take in what was going on. For the first time I felt like a true medical student. Here I was scalpel in hand doing the thing I have dreamed of doing for the last four years. Standing in lab surrounded by my peers who are all working towards the same goal made it feel real. I was momentarily overcome by the true depth of the journey I have undertaken. I have worked so hard for the past four years to reach this place in my education, so hard that I forgot to enjoy some steps along the way. I plan to enjoy all of the steps to come.

Today we had our white coat ceremony. The ceremony is done to welcome incoming medical students and prepare us for a career in medicine. The school did a great job with it giving us words of wisdom, encouragement, and promising to be with us every step of the way. The professors present us with our white coats, embroidered with our names and the school logo. We then sign the register and take a medical student pledge. It was an experience I wish I could have shared with my family and friends. I am so proud to be a part of this school and career choice.

After dissection lab, the white coat ceremony, and being completely exhausted I finally feel like a medical student! Wanted to share my exciting last couple of days with you!

love and miss!!

Settling in

I am back again! I'm starting to get settled in here and bit by bit I am learning the island better. It actually feels much larger than I had expected! The island is about 27 miles long but it takes quite a while to get places because the roads aren't that great and the terrain is very mountainous.

You can see I put up a picture of my most delicious meal yet, a chicken sandwich. Boring you say?? Not for me! I'm eating so healthy its disgusting. Not by choice, simply because I have nothing but healthy stuff to eat...boring!

I posted a picture of the view from my balcony along with my beautiful new conch shell. I also posted pictures of my room. In one photo you can see my tv room/office area and the other you can see my bedroom/kitchen. Pretty spacious.

Almost finished with the first week of classes. As my Mom said, one week of medical school down! (many many many more to go) My professors all seem good and haven't hesitated to start throwing the material at us. I have cellular and molecular biology, histology, and gross anatomy this semester and already have run through over 200 slides (3 full topics) in my cell bio class. The material has been mostly review thus far so I'm brushing up on things I once knew. I'm doing my best to stay on top of the material because I know the second I allow myself to get behind I will become overwhelmed with the sheer amount of information.

We get into the dissection lab tomorrow with our first dissection being the back. We got to meet our cadavers yesterday as well as the groups we will be working with. The lab is state of the art and beautifully done with a high tech air filtration system. They have done a great job with the campus! That's all I have in me for tonight, I'm exhausted and still trying to get used to the early mornings and LONG days.

love and miss!!

More Pictures!

Here are some more pictures! I officially have all my luggage and have settled into my room.

The pictures are from this weekend. The school threw a welcome party for all new students on Saturday. The party was on the other side of the island so it was my first chance to see more of my new home!

The pictures of the water and the beach restaurant are where the party was held. The beach was located in this beautiful cove surrounded by mountains, the water was crystal clear and it is still hard to believe that this is my new home. I feel like I'm on a vacation but I know that will change when we begin class on Monday.

My favorite picture is the one where I am looking down on mountains and the ocean. This is during our drive to the other side of the island. I love it because on the left you see the Atlantic Ocean and on the right is the Caribbean Sea. So beautiful!

The people here are all very friendly and it has been fun meeting new people from all over the United States and Canada. In the last picture you see me and Leisa. Her and I have become really good friends and do just about everything together. She was a real life saver while I was here without any luggage. She made me dinner, let me borrow her clothes, and gave me whatever else I didn't have.

I went grocery shopping for the first time also. This was an experience! You can use US dollars at many places on the island but most places use EC's which is the East Caribbean dollar. 2.7 EC is equivalent to $1 US. I figured out that I spent $53 US and I feel like I did not buy very much at all! Looks like I'll be snacking on granola bars!

This is all for now. I'm probably leaving things out so if you have any questions you want me to answer then you can post them in the comment box below and I will do my best! I begin class on Monday so it's time to focus!

I love and miss everybody back home but thanks to skype I've been able to see my parents and Tom everyday and have talked to many friends back home. I am using magic jack which is an internet phone that allows me to call the United States and allows people in the US to call me just as if I were in the states!! As long as it is plugged into my computer anyone can call. If you want to call just let me know and I can get you my number!

Love and miss!!!!

Some pictures

As promised here are some of the pictures that I have taken of the school. I'll do another post after this one because it will only allow me to post 5 at a time.

The first two pictures with the mountains are taken standing on the campus with my back to the ocean looking up. Gorgeous huh?

The rest of the photos are of part of the campus. The one with all the picnic tables is an outdoor area for us to eat. It usually has a canopy over the top of it but they have had to keep it off lately due to the hurricanes.

Safe and Sound

This is going to be a quick post because I am beyond exhausted but just wanted to let everyone know I arrived this evening in St. Kitts safely with only two luggage bags missing (the only two I brought!) I knew that my travel day was going too good to be true so when I got to St. Kitts and was told my luggage was still in St. Maartin I wasn't too surprised.

Once I got to the Royal St. Kitts where I will be living (around 10:45 pm) they said my room wasn't ready so they put me up in a different room for the night. To be honest I just wanted a bed to sleep in because I have been up since 3 am and traveling all day really took it out of me. I am excited and relieved to be here but feeling a bit alone. I was able to skype my parents and Tom tonight which is a big comfort but just not the same as having them in real life!

I don't get any break though, have to be up at 7 am for school orientation and need to get on the horn with the airlines and track down my luggage. With the way I'm sweating in this humidity one t-shirt sure isn't going to last me long...too much information??

Love and miss, another entry to come soon once I get a chance to check out the campus!

Those of you who know my good friend Marie say a prayer for her safety as well. She is on her way to London to study abroad this semester. Go get 'em girl!