Really? Is that true? I know there is a correlation between test anxiety and overall anxiety. With regard to surgeons, 1/4 surgical residents placed in the 90th percentile or greater (compared to general population) when surveyed for psychological distress following a switch to an 80 hour work week (was nearly 2/5 before the 80 hour limit) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16153421 so it seems counter intuitive that there would be no correlation between test anxiety and surgical performance anxiety.
I’m sure you could learn to overcome your test anxiety. I would definitely do that ASAP too.
Advise me please. How? It actually may not be anxiety as much as not beint able to be confident in my answer. I always get the answer right first and then second guess myself.
Surgeons don’t have the luxury of second guessing themselves, esp. neurosurgeons. Among the chief personality traits of surgeons are confidence and decisiveness. (Or as D1’s surgical mentor told her: You can’t hesitate. You have to decide instantly–even if it’s wrong. And you can’t be wrong.)
The stereotype of the arrogant, authoritarian, take charge, I’m-smarter-than-you surgeon has its roots in reality.
Wanna hear some surgeon jokes?
What’s the best way to kill a surgeon?
Make him climb to the top of his ego and jump.
What’s the difference between god and a surgeon?
God doesn’t think he’s a surgeon.
There are 3 doctors in a malfunctioning elevator, a psychiatrist, a radiologist and a surgeon….
The is a saying to not put the cart before the horse…
Anyways, rather than worrying about med school and being a surgeon now, why don’t you find a good, affordable school that has a supportive environment and where you can major in neuroscience and take all premed requirements and see how you like it? You might change your career path, who knows?
^This is the right answer. Especially on this very rough path with many obstacles to overcome, one has to focus on today. As a mother of the 4th year Med. Student, I have to tell you, we focus on 2 days and not much more ahead. You will make yourself sick, depressed, you will ruin your life if you think more ahead than these 2 days. Actually, we focus on the next 30 min right now as D’s flight was delayed. Fun residency interview times…
In case you were asking how to overcome your anxiety
The answer is therapy. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)–either alone or in combination with anti-anxiety medication-- is very effective in treating both social anxiety and generalized anxiety disorders.
…another way - DO NOT THINK TOO MUCH AHEAD. It is depressing for anybody, deal with everything based on priority one thing at a time. Do not think that you can pile up layers of things in your hyead and be successful at each, not likely…
And actually in regards to test anxiety, it’s a different class of drugs usually than what you’d use for the more general anxiety disorders. e.g. propranolol you just take an hour before an exam vs. something you take every day. In fact speaking of surgeons…http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1298399/
P.S. fun fact, propranolol and alcohol are banned substances for biathletes/shooters and basically no other sport because of how good they are at reducing nervous jitters
The elevators doors open but slam shut too fast to exit, crushing anything that happens to be in-between. The doctors watch the cycle a few times. The psychiatrist finally says " What the hell. I never actually touch my patients," and he sticks both of his hands into the malfunctioning door, losing both his hands but allowing him to exit the elevator. The radiologist sees this, looks at his hands, then has an idea: “I sit all day in a dark room. I don’t need to stand.” So he jams both his feet into the door, amputating both his feet, but escaping the elevator. This just leaves the surgeon. The surgeon looks at his hands, then he looks at his feet----and shoves his head between the doors.
Well, Operating Room is like this: you either fit in there with all your heart and soul or you simply do not belong there, complete clash of everything in your existance with the environment in the OR. The later situation was accurately predicted by my D. way back in HS and proven to be absolutely true for her during her surgery rotation. She does NOT have enxiety, she can stand on her feet physically, emotionally, intellectually. However, she is very sensitive to social interactions in any situation and realized that she does not belong in OR. That is exactly what she heard from the surgeons, one needs to love the surgery with all his heart or he is out. D. was out before she even tried and her OR rotation has proven that to be correct.
So, there is no reason to form cut in stone opinion before having this experience, unless you have wild imagination that has proven to be correct over and over. It is not your intelligence, it is not your physical condition, both of which are extremely important and could not be dimissed, but there is no much difference in this aspects form one med. student to another. It is your personality, and you simply may not belong in the OR. By the same token, as I pointed out before, you may simply not belong in the same room with the mentally ill, you may not have what it takes to deal with these type of deseases.
Again, focus on the aspects of your life that you need to deal with in the next 2 days and forget the rest. That will help you to perform your best, no matter what is the end goal. Just like a swimmer before a 30 sec. race, focusing on performing the best in the next 30 seconds. Keeping too much of long term prospective will bring enxiety, too much worry and simply will be an obstacle, not helpful at all.
I don’t know which med it was, but when my sister had to sit for her licensing exam to become a LCSW, she was so nervous that her dr prescribed ONE pill…lol…for that day…and she said that she was so calm it was unbelievable. This was 25 years ago. this was a one-off situation. She doesn’t have an anxiety disorder.
What are some meds for more serious chronic anxiety disorders?
I doubt it was a benzo for an exam situation. Those often make people kind of woozy - I think it’s much more likely that it was a beta blocker.
Thats why the BBs are “PEDs” for shooting events. They can basically block the physiological stress response, and certainly could be used in that one off type scenario (so could a benzo, but I would think of that for something more like dealing with a fear of flying or something - something where you don’t need to be 100% with it)
Some time ago I was talking with my cardiologist about S. He knew about S being in med school at the time. Somehow conversation drifted to when cardiologist was fellow and he talked about flying with his mentor (an MD himself) to conference where mentor was to give a presentation to large group. While walking to auditorium cardiologist (who dreaded public speaking) asked mentor what was his secret for staying calm and giving speech. Answer: atenolol.
