A Day in the Life of a PA Student

This would be a typical day for me. It varies—sometimes I wake up earlier than this, sometimes I have class earlier, and sometimes I study more if it's the night before an exam or I take more time in the evening to spend with Jeff if he’s available. I don’t love the schedule, but it’s the only way for me to keep on top of my classes!

5:00 am Wake up, check email and blogs (Yes, blogs are one of those things I won’t give up no matter how much time I don’t have)

5:30 Running (outside) or Lift Weights at the Student Life Center (which is only a block away, so it’s pretty convenient)

6:00 Scriptures/Journaling

6:30 Shower, get ready for the day

7:00 Study

9:00 Class (all morning)

Noon Lunch (and sometimes some studying, but it’s nice to have a break)

1:00 Anatomy + Lab

5:00 Stay after in lab to finish the dissection or study

6:00 Go home for dinner (this has been really nice to just walk home and be able to bring people with me who live further away from campus)

7:00 Back to the Lab or the Sorrell building for studying

9:00 Done with Studying! Go home and spend time with Jeff before bed

10:30 Bedtime

Total Time in class: 7 hours
Total Time Studying: 5 hours

>
This is really what the brain looks like

Anatomy update: We took out the brains this past week and for those who haven’t seen one, it is about the size of a cantaloupe and weighs around 3 lbs (thankfully you have Cerebral Spinal Fluid and Sinuses—those ones that can get infected—to lighten it). Our lady died of breast cancer that metastasized to her brain, so you can see the area of the brain affected and multiple mini-tumors all over. It appears that they attempted surgery to remove the portion of the affected brain, but probably found once they opened the skull that it had spread beyond their expectations. [If anyone would like to see the brains, you’ve got to come visit the lab this week because they’ll store them for Neuroanatomy later this year.]

We also dissected the eye from both the top and the front. I used to think that if I were going to medical school, I would become an ophthalmologist, but I’ve decided that though I love eyes I definitely have a hard time seeing scary eyes. So seeing people all day with pathologic (meaning diseased) eyes wouldn’t work for me (if Songster can do it, all the power to him!).

Jeff is working like a dog. He’s calculated that he works 77 hours a week. He now works 12 hour days and on the weekends at Children’s Hospital. This next week is going to be a challenge—he’s got the night shift from 4 pm to 4 am every day. His circadian rhythm (the sleep-wake cycle) is going to go crazy trying to figure out when to be sleeping and awake. Oh, the things they put you through to earn that M.D. This further convinces me that going to PA School was the right choice for me, even though I grew up wanting to go to med school. I love this guy and am grateful that he’s stuck with all of the demands of school.