Paging Dr. Brogo

[Stronkey Kong]

 

Last challenge, over in warriorland, I implemented my 23andMe results into a diet and exercise plan. I wound up floundering around quite a bit. Weight went up for a while, now it's back down. I realized that weightlifting during weight loss is not a winning strategy for me, even tho I want it to be. So, I'm back.

 

One thing I did realize is that I really like thinking about biological problems, which is probably why I went after a PhD in genetics a while back. (settled for the M.S. after 6 years and being burned out). I looked at my results, and figured out a dietary program which mostly works so far. I went with a gluten free, lactose free, pescatarian diet and lasted a month before I kinda derailed for a couple days for cheeseburgers and pizza. If I could had a taste of one or the other it would have been worth it, but now I know that both was overkill. Now I alternate fish and poultry every day, so I'm feeling a little more balanced and able to hold off on meats. Anywho, point is I used science to solve a health-related thing and it was fun. I kinda thought about getting back into some research or being a doctor, and somehow took a practice/sample MCAT exam. I did terrible, but it was mostly from forgetting simple facts I learned in undergrad/gradschool. Somehow the idea wormed its way into my brain and now I can't think of anything else but to at least try.

 

So this will be my last big attempt at being like OMG, he's a doctor successful. Bear in mind. I'm not doing this because I hate being a machinist. That is a good steady job and I sense some opportunities on the horizon in my current company (QA manager is kind of an idiot bro and I know I could do a better job managing his department) but I'd still need at least a year at the company to move up, and probably some experience in that department would help.

 

But before I"m a year in at the machine shop, I'm going to take the MCAT before I choose to settle in. I haven't scheduled it yet, but I'm hoping to schedule it in Jan.

 

If I do well I'll start moving in that direction and apply. Go back to school and take a couple pre-reqs, work in some bio labs.

 

If I do it I'm going for neurosurgery. Why aim any lower? (also, google avg. neurosurgeon salary and try to to squeal and go "I want, gimme!")

 

Edit: And now we're naming goals after brain partz!

 

Goals:

 

Goal 1, Hippocampus!

 

The hippocampus is the part of the brain involved in memory formation.

 

 

This goal is about studying/cramming for the MCAT.

 

I've got four years of undergrad science classes worth of material to review in less than six months. I bought a boxed set of study guides for the test (seriously, material is almost identical to my B.S. Biology with a minor in chem and psych), and it comes with three online practice tests. The plan is to work through those guides, and take a practice test each month before January (three tests in this set, plus the three available on the AAMC website).

 

I want to finish reading the books, then take the first practice exam at the end of this challenge. (3288 pp. and I'm already about 700 down in the first week).

 

Goal 2,Spinal Cord!
 

Even when complex movements are worked out somewhere else in the brain, our balancing abilities, reflexes, and the final motor output are controlled by the spinal cord.

 

This is my yoga goal.

 

Mindful, stretching, and balancing is the way to go if you're gonna be a neurosurgeon. Got work on balance, muscle control and endurance in all those posture muscles to work so I can keep my balance.

 

Yoga, 3x per week.

 

Goal 3, Anterior Cingulate Cortex!

 

 

This part of the brain is believed to have roles in processing self-awareness, consciousness, empathy, morality, emotion, and bunch of similar stuff that Buddhists and people into mindfulness talk about.

 

This is my meditation goal.

 

I'm back on doing Soto Zen Zazen in the morning after a quick stretch sesh. It's a good way to start the day.

 

Do morning meditation daily (>= 10 min).

 

Goal 4, Cerebellum!

 

The cerebellum (or little cerebrum) coordinates complex motor movements. The commands for movement usually initiate from the motor cortex along with the help of a few other places. The problem is that the signals are not refined. The cerebellum fine tunes those signals so that muscle contractions are coordinated and balanced.

 

This is my coordination goal.

 

Use my time at work to develop the connection between my eyes, hands, and brain. Not to mention my art and guitar playing. I've already got a lot of acumen when it comes to the eye-hand-brain thing. I just need to do some thing daily to steadily improve.

 

Practice a fine motor skill involving the hand and eye every day. This could be painting/drawing, playing an instrument, or tinkering/fixing something. But! I have to challenge myself and put forth maximum effort so that I improve.

 

Goal 5, Pineal Gland.

 

 

The pineal gland regulates sleep/wakefulness. It secretes melatonin which regulates your circadian clock (daily metabolic cycle) and dimethyltryptamine (DMT) which is the most powerful hallucinogen known to man.Its the chemical that knocks you out. It's also called the spirit molecule. Hippies think the pineal gland is the "third eye" and a window into the spiritual realm.

 

This is my sleep goal.

 

My aim is to habituate myself to functioning on less sleep. Right now I'm shooting for 6 hours per night as opposed to the 8-9 I usually get. This seems counterintuitive to health, but the fact is if I want to/can become a doctor, I have to figure out how to function on less sleep and do complex things while I'm a little groggy. I'm just going to see what happens if I stick to just 6 hours a night M-F for now. I'm in my second week of this and it's actually going well. I actually sleep much better, and deeply, I'm less groggy in the morning, and I have more energy. Of course, partly this is linked with an improved diet.

 

Goal 6, Pre-frontal cortex.

 

The pre-frontal cortex is the big area behind your forehead (it includes the anterior cingulate cortex) that is involved with logic/reason, planning, and moderating social behavior... adulting.

 

This is my adulting/stoic goal.

 

Clean kitchen and bathroom weekly.

Tidy up daily for like 10 min.

Schedule a trip to the doctor.

Schedule a trip to the dentist.

Finish reading Marcus Aurelius' Meditations.

 

Back on that too.One of the facts of being a doctor/surgeon is that you can't fix or control everything or everybody. You lose patients. You can make mistakes and ruin lives. Even with the utmost of effort and skill, it will happen and you have to strengthen yourself to accept and cope with those facts.

 

Not wanting that level of responsibility, not wanting to bear such a burden is probably what kept me away from medicine in the first place. Every bio student has to consider it. First, I chose research but wound up in a field that just burned me out. But part of research in speciation is that human lives do not hang in the balance of every decision. So it was cozy for a while. Now I want to do something with some real weight to it and hopefully do some good. I actually thought about it pretty deeply last week. The time it takes to become a neurosurgeon is another 11 years (4 in med school, 7 in residency). Yes the paycheck is dangling there, but on the way are the lives of so many people that I might be able to help. Neurosurgeons save people from brain tumors, aneurysms, paralysis, and pain. If I can help even one person, change or save even one life, all that effort will have been worth it. Plus, brains are super neat.

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

Following along again.

[Sloth the Enduring]

Following.

[Stronkey Kong]

Did yoga today: NF Yoga Water B.

 

Time to shower, then read about physics, chemistry, then some bio and biochem.

[raptron]

Hiya.

[Stronkey Kong]

Updated goals. To entice the zombies, I added pictures of brains.

[Stonie]

Following for brains. I'm not a zombie, promise.

 

For real though I really like your goals. And learning random info about brains. 

[WolfDreamer]

As a closet neuroscience nerd, I'm digging this challenge. Following!

[Stronkey Kong]

On 8/8/2018 at 7:21 PM, RollingStoney said:

Following for brains. I'm not a zombie, promise.

 

For real though I really like your goals. And learning random info about brains. 

 

No problem if you are...

 

 

On 8/9/2018 at 12:09 PM, Wolfen said:

As a closet neuroscience nerd, I'm digging this challenge. Following!

 

Come on out then. Some people like brains, others don't. No shame...

 

 

====================================================

 

I was gonna start some weekend kitchen/bathroom cleaning, but then I realized it's Day -1, so fuck that.

 

I might do some yoga tho.

 

Hippocampus: After two weeks of studying, I'm already halfway through my study guides. That's about 1500 or so pages through... though right now I'm just reading and skipping the practice problems. I'll probably finish out the reading in the first two weeks. Then I'll go back and start doing practice problems, taking notes, and committing things like equations and chemical structures and the glossaries to memory by writing everything out over and over. Good hippocampal workouts.

 

Spinal cord: I'll do some NF yin yoga today since I have time for a longer session. Then I'm gonna shoot for Water A & B on Tues. and Thurs.

 

Anterior Cingulate Cortex: I always slack off on morning zazen on the weekends. I'll be sure to be up bright and early tomorrow morning. 4 am.

 

Cerebellum: Later today on study breaks, I'll play around with my guitar and pick a new piece to learn and master and get at it for a few minutes every day.

 

Pineal gland: I'll be sticking with 6 hours of sleep for this week. In bed about 10 pm, alarm at 4 am. I downloaded the Zelda alarm app on my phone. I set up a weekday alarm to play the Rain theme at the beginning of A Link to the Past, fast paced, tense string music in a minor key indicates a sense of urgency. The opening scene in the game is totally appropriate, Link wakes up in the early, early morning before dawn and follows his uncle to the castle where he begins his adventure. The wake message I typed for myself... "You're needed in surgery!" For the weekend alarm I set it to 7 am (might dial it back to 6 tho), with the Triforce chamber theme from the end of the same game. Peaceful and uplifting music. The wake up message... "Don't overdo it." Referring to sleeping in too late.

 

Prefrontal cortex: Ugh. I'm going to have to at least clean up the kitchen tonight. I'll just wipe down the counters and do the floor after I do the dishes after dinner. It'll take me ten freakin' minutes and its worth cuz its August and I get bugs if I don't clean and take out the garbage regularly. I'm cooking some fish for dinner, and there's a couple things I need to clean out of the fridge so for the sake of smells I'll have plenty of motivation to get the garbage out and clean up.

 

During the week I'll be attacking the dining room table for clean up. It is by far the messiest thing in the apartment. Junk mail, books, both my laptops, 10 different bottles of hot sauce, art supplies, electronics and their cords.

 

I'm already almost done with Meditations. After reassessing my study progress yesterday, I decided I had spare time to read more last night. I might finish it tonight. Then tomorrow I've got two more books coming in the mail. "Do No Harm" by Dr. Henry Marsh and "Complications" by Atul Gawande -- stories about the realities of surgical practice and how to prevent mishaps, and cope with the outcomes. I might also start reading Epictetus next.

 

In other news, exploring this MD front, I need two or three letters of recommendation to get in. My grad school advisor is out. Which is unfortunate. I think he'd try to help me if I asked, but I don't think he'd produce better than a luke warm letter... which regarding admissions to any school is just a bad letter whle saying good things. My old boss from my pre-grad-school lab technician days would help, be we haven't seen each other face to face in 9 years. I would need at least on letter that is current. This means I'm going to have to a) go back to school for a class or two and really engage with my classwork and convince a prof to help me out. b) Volunteer in lab and/or c) volunteer at a hospital or clinic. Doing A would require accumulating more debt. I could do B and C, while working. If I get to the point that I can get up early, and get into work by 5 am, and be done at 1, I could spend a few late afternoon early evening hours working in a lab. Then maybe do a few hours each weekend volunteering at a clinic. But, I'm not doing any of that until I have a good MCAT score or feel really good about the score I'd likely get later on in the studying process.

 

On the whole, I feel like I'm really on to something again. That I'm back in my element. Eating well, exercising lightly, doing precision work with my hands by day and burying my nose in a book at night.

[WolfDreamer]

16 minutes ago, Brogo said:

On the whole, I feel like I'm really on to something again. That I'm back in my element

 

That's awesome. I look forward to seeing more of the awesome! <--- I just realized how lame that sounds, but I'm sticking with it!

[Jett]

Following to see your success

[Stronkey Kong]

Maybe it'll be Physician's Assistant Brogo instead... doesn't sound as cool, but:

 

An MPA is two years (sometimes a little more), instead of four for an MD.

No residency requirements! I can begin practicing nearly right out of the program making a higher starting salary. As opposed to 3-8 years in a residency making half as much while sitting on top of 2-3 times the debt.

PAs can do almost every clinical task that doctors do... they have their own patients, they write prescriptions, order labs etc., the only catch is they have to have a MD supervise their practice, and they can't lead in surgery without an MD present.

PAs don't have to deal with as much administrative work or politics. At least, it's not an essential part of their job.

They only make a bit less than half of doctors for the same amount of clinic practice, but they aren't held to the same risks, responsibilities, and liabilities.

The work is just as valued and rewarding.

 

So I've got some (more) thinking to do.

 

Yesterday at work, the company bought us a pizza lunch. After much internal conflict I decided to partake. It was deliciously greasy pizza. I had 3 slices of square/party cut pizza so they weren't huge. Honestly, I'm not sure it was worth it. About an hour later I could feel some pains (discomfort really) in my gut, and tonight still I'm a tad gassy. I also did not sleep very well and had some trouble getting up this morning. I believe it's the gluten. I've done cheese and red meat and felt fine. But it seems every time I add a glutinous grain back in I have GI issues. I should get an official Celiac test done to see if I really have the full deal.

 

I got home tonight and decided to devote the evening to self healing, rather than read. I've been doing 3+ chapters a day on six hours of sleep for over two weeks now. I decided I'd start reading Epictetus, but was feeling foggy headed and distracted while reading the first section of his Discourses. Tonight is a much needed respite. On a Stoic note, I now know I can kick things up a notch to function on a mild sleep deprivation schedule for a couple weeks at a time. But eventually, I need these little days off. MPA or MD, knowing that will be crucial.

 

I did do a little light yoga along with some zazen this evening. Morning zazen has been coming along. My morning routine has been solid these last two weeks.

 

Right now. I'm sitting in general silence, listening to the falling of summer evening rain. It is nice.

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

I generally prefer PA's or Nurse Practitioners to MDs. I currently have a doctor I like but if I have something that isn't serious, like a bronchitis flareup, or some sort of abcess I'll go to a walk in. Residency is a game for the young, I've commented before that if POWs were treated like medical residents it would be a violation of the Geneva Convention.

[Sloth the Enduring]

I love my family’s PA (not like that). I can’t say I’ve ever felt that way about a doctor. It seems like the sweet spot of the medical fields.

[raptron]

One of my friends just finished up her PA program and is loving the work.

[Bullroarer Took]

I just came back this challenge and didn't know you were still around just not hanging in Swolehalla. 

[WolfDreamer]

On 8/15/2018 at 8:38 PM, Brogo said:

So I've got some (more) thinking to do.

 

You'll make the right choice because it will be your choice.

[Stronkey Kong]

So that challenge just came and went with no input or effort on my part.

 

I'm still on the fence, but mostly leaning toward the PA degree, then trying to get into Neurosurgery PA position. I haven't been studying much.

 

Oddly enough, I feel more comfortable than ever as a machinist too. I feel like I'm settling into my role there. During my "challenge" I completed my 90 day probationary period, so now I'm official, and have full benefits.

 

Not much yoga, but I have been working out the last couple of weeks. I at least pick up my barbell and do some squats and presses along with some dips or chinup practice. More importantly I'm getting my diet dialed in. I bought a veggie spiralizer and a juicer and I'm swapping out carbs for veggies and guzzling fruit/veggie juice. I'm back down to 254 which was lower than when I started my latest diet trend. I'm eating more chicken now tho.

 

I'm not doing another challenge next time. It seems like every time I write out some goals, I immediately turn on myself and stop doing them, even if they were things I had started getting into the habit of prior to the challenge. I've thought about doing a reverse psychology challenge, but... why?

 

Anyway, I won't be posting on a challenge thread next time. I may or may not be around the boards next challenge. I don't know. Not saying goodbye really, just, I need a break from this and probably won't be around much. I'm sure at some point I'll start lurking and shitposting on your threads soon enough.

[Ann of Owlshire]

Challenges and such are a tool to use. Sometimes they're the right tool. Sometimes they aren't.