Wk1, Day 462 - Friday

I gave my first school sports physical yesterday! He was a really good kid and his mother was quite grateful which was pretty darned nice. It was a big learning experience. I noticed any apprehension which was present before giving the exam was immediately replaced with caring once I met my new patient. Given the young age I tried to be as positive and emotionally supportive as I could with the young man.

Heck - gotta leave for Sat clinic shift!

Tri-8, Wk1 Thursday, Day 461

Just a single hour of PT III this morning. A much abbreviated schedule due to the Tri-7 comp boards going on today and tomorrow. I stuck around and got in an hour of my radiology conference requirement (1 of 10) and downloaded and printed out a bunch of material for most of my classes.

Tri-8, Wk1 Wednesday, Day 460!

pardon the brevity of these post -

yesterday was 13 hours long

today was 14 hours long

i don't know what tomorrow holds but

Friday is already scheduled to be 17 hours long

i work clinic on Saturday

and have some extra shift at some Drug rehab center in St. louis on Monday

need to beef up the dr bag to be able to handle some basic emergency type stuff, things like dealing with a pneumothorax (where to cut) and a cricoidectomy ...That was from Dr. Lanny

Then our Dx Imag teacher was mentioning needing to learn about different surgeries. who knows but, i do recall that our pharmacology class helped me the most in learning about why and how chiropractic is effective.

tough, tough schedule - really having my doubts

Tri-8, Wk1 Tuesday, Day 459!

1. Physiology
2. Chemistry
3. Clinical Sciences
4. Microbiology
5. Pathology // General Diagnosis
6. General Anatomy
7. Principles of Chiropractic
8. Spinal Anatomy
9. Neuromuscular Diagnosis.
10. Diagnostic Imaging
11. Chiropractic Practices

Rad Pos

[Holding at Day 458]

One final cup of coffee before I head off to school to jump through another hoop via Radiological Positioning and take a few x-rays of some phantoms. I'm looking forward to re-establishing my habit of stopping off at the gym on the way home from school. I have to think of exercise as another necessary class I need to attend in order to make it through these last three semesters. That attitude seemed to work well for me this past semester, in Tri-7.

The actual Tri-8 semester starts tomorrow - got plenty to do to finish getting ready.

Best Day of the Week, A Day Off, Friday Clinic

[Holding at Day 458]

[4 a.m.] I actually have a day off today!

[7 a.m.] (insert BIG time gap here) OK, I've actually just wasted 3 hours on the Internet! Oh, well, it's been a while since I've been able to do that and I have been enjoying some coffee and the light sound of rain outside my window (which sounds much better then outside my slightly opened garage door)

I did muster the courage this morning to look for a grade in the Gonstead class I just got done taking over my break (break?! what break???) At the very least, I do hope I passed the class but, passing grades alone aren't going to do much for my GPA. I at least want to finish the DC program above a 2.5 which, I'm already above but, can't afford crappy grades and still hope to maintain that GPA. I lose the opportunity to take Master's classes w/o a high enough GPA.

anyway - Thursday would have been the best day of the week because I got to have lunch with my Dad and really enjoyed the time with him.

Yesterday at the clinic was pretty fun also. So far, I tend to be happy there and the only drawback is that god awful drive. We're supposed to meet 5 people from St. Peters by our next meeting. I'm not sure how much time I can dally around in St. Peters to meet people but, I guess I'll have to make the time since I need to find 10 new patients before I graduate.

I've got an enormous amount of stuff to take care of, better get to it! :)

I was looking for a pic of just me and my Dad but today's pic will have to do. It's me, my Dad and my Grandma! :) Taken just ..geez, just 6 days ago up in Minnesota :)

Gonstead, Board Reviews, 4th Wedding Reception

[Holding at Day 458]

We had our Gonstead final this morning. 10 pages written. It was my choice to go to Minnesota this past weekend but, it was not a choice without consequences.

Prior to leaving for Minnesota, I had an 83% average during our first four days of class. In the four days after getting back from Minnesota my average was 48%. So, I went from a very respectable B (just shy of a B+) to nearly 20 points below an F.

That sucks

Makes me feel pretty crappy about myself.

Mondays test was one of the hardest, emotionally, and I just felt like a worthless piece of sh*t while taking that exam.

Today, I just wanted to crumple up my exam like that guy did on Shawshank Redemption when he threw it in the trash and said, "There's your two points!"

Then I thought (again) of Chevy Chase's Las Vegas Vacation when the blackjack dealer recommended "buying a bullet and renting a gun"

So, my thoughts are kinda in the crapper. I've wondered, from an academic perspective why all my anger and violent type thoughts are directed towards my head. From the beginning of Tri-7 the thoughts have oscillated between

1. wanting to flush my head down the toilet
2. shooting myself in the head
3. chopping off my head
4. stabbing myself in the temple with my pen (that was a new thought formed today while taking the Gonstead final)

I do recall various personality disorders and remember a distinction between those wackos who might hurt other people and those wackos that would only hurt themselves. I guess I would fall into the latter category.

As far as benefits of heading to MN, I know my Dad was happy and I got to take some pictures of my Mom with her brother so, in that regard, I'd probably do it again.

I still may have passed the Gonstead class but, given the diminished self perception over the preceding trimester, I really could have used something positive with regards to school.

oh well. .....

let's see, i've already driven about 84 miles today so I guess I'll start my next 50 miles to work ....then 50 miles home ....184 miles today alright - ....yeah ....this is going to work out well. ..... :(

Some Tri-8 Hoops

[Holding at Day 458]

just want to get this list down somewhere which was provided by an upper tri on facebook - these are a few of the things we need to do in addition to our 35 hours of class and 3 to 4 clinic days each week and god knows what else...

• 35 pt credits,
• 10hrs of xray interpretation (which apparently you cant start getting credit for til may 10th),
• 10 lab interpretations (they won't be posted until a few weeks into the tri. They put all of them up at once on selfserve so i would suggest doing all them at once... then u just have to submit one a week),
• 5 hrs of marketing and
• a marketing paper,
• 30 xray reports (15 new and 15 corrections posted every monday in the little room across from Erica's office in radiology,
• 2 phantoms and
• 2 patient series (doesn't have to b your own patient)
• 2 case reports written (listen to 20 from others) and last but certainly not least,
• PRO D - you have to attend a boot camp and then do a post grad seminar (u need 12 hrs - 1 weekend - and they have some that are free if u aren't already enrolled in one. They will send u an attendance verification and u just turn it into dr. goodman.) sounds like a lot but if you do as much as u can at the beginning its not that bad...