Relax :-)

Hello my fellow readers ,

Break is lovely so far. Its something about waking up at noon without any worries of studying or wondering did I forget to turn in an assignment or attend a meeting. Its the simple things in life that make me smile like SLEEP :-)....Im happy to report that I did pass the semester with All A's and 1 B (in statistics)....See you all it can be done :-).... My happiest grade is my A in anatomy because I worked extra hard to get that A :-)

One funny thing that keeps happening to me is I'm having countless "real" 1st years ask me should I be studying for anatomy, should I start Clin Med over break what about Neuroanatomy is it hard. I just tell them relax take this time off and actually take A BREAK. I suppose I can't blame them for being eager and ready to learn cause I imagine I was the same as they were when I went through the program for the 1st time. However, this time for some reason I'm just relaxed and ready for the next step. I'm certainly not even considering looking over any material at least for the first 2.5 weeks of my vacation thats a promise lol....Im going to take my little brother's advice and BELAX yes I spelled that just like he told me, " Sister just Belax" lol haha..Kids are so cute I tell ya!

On a different note I really do enjoy my new class. I was on the phone with a Physician Assistant AKA a recent graduate (2009) of Shenandoah and she asked me how I liked my new class. So I sat and thought about it and just begin realizing just how much I truly enjoy them. Rachel, Licia and I instilled in them early on that PA school is about coming together as a family and just being there for each other and doing this together. We all have the same goals and we all want to get to the same place in life. After we had a few talks like that with our class, they quickly took to it and it has been smooth sailing ever since. We all hang out together, we have study groups/cooking times together, we are there for each other, we laugh with each other & we just pick each other up by the boot straps if one is falling down. Its such a beautiful thing to witness all over again. I belong here with this class :-)

So those are some random thoughts for the day, Ill be back in a few weeks to talk a little more about school. By that time I will be getting prepared to return for the Spring semester so I wont be in such a happy cheerful mood :-)...

Thanks for reading,

The PA student that could :-)

Taneisha!

Back Home and it feels so good :-)

(T) Studying everything for finals!!!

(B) Drawing the blood supply and innervations

Hello readers,

This blog is going to be a real quick one. Well class of 2011 has finished their first rounds of finals for the year HOORAY...We are all SUPER excited and happy that it is finally over and we can return home to our families.

Im currently back at home with my family and it is just what the doctor ordered :-).....So although you fall in love with all your classmates its always good to come home to your family and realize what you're working so hard for :-)....Ill be back to write some more later..

P.S. Congrats class of 2009..YOU GUYS ARE OFFICIALLY PAs as of Friday December 18th. I may not be there with you walking across the stage, but I will be there in the crowd cheering each of you on. I love you all TREMENDOUSLY!!!!!

Toodles

Signed,

The student who is so happy to be finished with the first re-semester...Ugh :-) :-)

Just keep swimming, Just keep swimming...

Who would have thought that a little fish in a Disney movie could be so inspiring, right? "Just keep swimming" is probably a major theme in the hearts and minds of many of my classmates; it certainly is for me. We are nearing the end of our didactic year, and we are exactly one month away from clinical rotations. Tomorrow is our last final, and I just need a break from studying, so here I am.

The last few weeks have been rather exciting. As Taneisha mentioned, the class of 2010 (my class) just recently finished the Physician Assistant Clinical Knowledge Rating and Assessment Tool (PACKRAT), and pending a few more final grades and a couple clinical skills practicals, we will be set free from the confines of the classroom, and we will venture into the clinical world. For the past semester, we have periodically attended pre-clinical meetings, bought our PDAs to track our patients, and now all we have to do is wash our white coats. :-)

You may be thinking - that's a lot of talk about exams and practicals... Do you ever have fun? Well, the best part of passing any portion of the didactic year is the celebration that ensues afterward. Every major milestone in the PA program becomes a cohort birthday party. For our celebration, we, of course, had to start appropriately with food at a local restaurant. Then, we went to one of Winchester's finest new attractions: The Alamo Drafthouse. It's a movie theater and restaurant all in one, and we basically had an entire section of the theater taken up by a majority of our class. It was a great time. After the movie, we headed to the walking mall to dance and have drinks. We met up with even more members from our class and even some fellow physical therapy and pharmacy students. Never fear, where's there's an exam... there's a celebration for passing that exam.

Also, you may be relieved to know that the fall semester isn't all studying and clinical medicine. As you probably know, Shenandoah's program is a Master's degree program, and part of our curriculum includes a Humanities course where we talk about bioethics, debate hot topics and discuss alternative therapy as they relate to life, the PA profession, and clinical practice. The final project in the course is "Exploring Medicine through the Arts," where you are given the chance to display your artistic talent and explain how your creation, whatever it may be, will influence you as a physician assistant. A lot of times people stress about the project because everyone is afraid that they will be judged for their lack of artistic talent. Trust me when I tell you that I have absolutely zero talent when it comes to drawing, painting, or sculpture, but art has a very broad definition and many interpretations. One girl from our class actually sang while playing the guitar - very impressive. There were a number of very interesting projects and all of the interpretations were pertinent, and the project turned out to be very fun and in some cases, therapeutic. Just a little reminder for those of you who may be worried that everything in PA school is all business.

Well, pharmacology/therapeutics is calling my name, so I should get back to that. Next post, I will talk a little more about what kind of breaks you get in PA school, some general advice for success in the didactic year, and hopefully some pictures!

Almost time for the holidays!