The Sniffles

A virus has infested our house. The cold virus, to be exact. Started out with the little man (who has since almost fully recovered), then my hubby, and now me. Thankfully it seems like it's quick cold since my husband's already on the mend. But me, right now, I'm in the full blown sick-mode. I called in sick too, which I rarely do, but I really hate exposing other people (especially if it's not necessary I'm there). Of course when I'm a actually a doctor, calling in sick is typically not an option. 

I have to admit, I really hate staying home sick. It's not exactly like it's a "day off". You can't do anything, you're miserable, and you feel useless (at least I do). I am not one to just sit around and be lazy. The more I have to do, the better. I'm more productive when I'm busy. So to sleep in or sit on the couch and do nothing is killing me right now. Hopefully I can kick this cold's butt and get back in action tomorrow for my last day of my rotation. Another four weeks done, and then I'm on to the next one. In the mean time I'll be slurping down some homemade soup and catching up on emails and paperwork. 

Oh yeah, I almost forgot that I need to get a flu shot!

ee i ee i oooooo

Picking a child's halloween costume is a very stressful event. Ask any mother. I seriously cannot wait until Killian is old enough to just say, "Hey mom, I wanna be a red Power Ranger." Then Power Ranger it is! But until he's old enough to actually tell me that, I am burdened with the job of deciding on which embarrassing costume to dress my child in. 

Last year he was Tigger.....

 This year we were originally going to do family-themed costumes, but I think it's a bit ridiculous how much costumes actually cost (especially since you really only wear it once). So we nixed the adult costumes and just decided to find a really great one for the little man. Now if you've ever perused the internet for toddler costumes, you'd be bombarded with cuteness. How do you chose??? Well after narrowing it down to a few favorites we decided he would be a cow. The only problem is there was about forty different cow costumes. 

Well, as you know we've found the most perfect one from Pottery Barn Kids.....

"Moooooo"

I can't wait to pull him around in his wagon and go trick-or-treating! 

Back on Track

Despite running two 5k's this summer, I have sadly been slacking in the working-out department. I've been so busy with being on clinical rotations this fall and trying to spend more time with my family, that I haven't devoted much time to fitness. Usually I go for walks on the weekends with Killian and our dog after the hubby heads to works, but that hasn't really done much for my figure. So I decided I needed to start making some changes to get back on track.

First thing I did was sign my husband and I up for another 5k, since having a goal set in mind is always my best motivator. Then I decided that if I had enough time to sit in front of the TV at all, then the least I could do was some stretching or ab exercises. Also, this week I started hitting up the gym again and seeing how I did on the treadmill. My first day I ran a mile and a half, then walked another mile and a half. Today I got to two miles, then walked a mile. I was surprised at how easy it was to start to build up my endurance, especially since I haven't run since August. I'm also going to start doing some Itsy Bitsy Yoga classes with Killian on the weekends, and some hot yoga with the hubby.

And since losing weight and getting in shape isn't all about exercise, I've also been trying to focus on what I eat a little more. In the past I've noticed that just trying to eat "healthy" hasn't always worked for me. I definitely need more structure in my diet. So my husband has been making me healthy smoothies* twice a day, which is great for me because I absolutely hate thinking about what to eat and planning meals. I wish I was more interested in cooking, but when you work 10 hour days and have a toddler to take care of, study, prepare for residency interviews, and try to squeeze in a workout....... then there really isn't any time to cook.

Ultimately my goal is to get back in bikini body shape this summer. I had these delusions of grandeur thinking that I was going to bounce back so quickly after having a baby and be able to wear all my old clothes again (yes, even my bathing suits). Well, obviously that's not always the case. But now that I'm over a year post-baby belly, I need to get my butt in gear and start making a greater effort to regain my body! Not only just to look better, but to feel better and have more energy. I'll keep you guys updated on how it goes.

*If you have any good smoothie recipes, please share!!

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

I had another amazing day off with my family. Since it was a cold and rainy day, we wanted to do something fun indoors. So we trekked down to Boston to the New England Aquarium. Even though Killian's still a bit young, he had a great time watching all the fish, seeing the penguins, and yelling at the sea lions. It was awesome to see how amazed he was by all the sea-life, pressed up against the glass tanks. He wasn't even afraid of the giant shark that swam by! It took everything in my power not to try to take a penguin home with me, though I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have made it very far had I tried.

Afterwards, we went out to dinner at one of my favorite restaurants, The Cheesecake Factory. And then we were on the hunt for the perfect halloween costume for Killian, which we found at Pottery Barn Kids! I'll leave you in suspense on what we picked until a later post, though. Overall, a wonderfully fun day with my boys.... couldn't ask for anything more.

Mam-o-mammogram!

I wonder why it always takes a celebrity diagnosed with some form of disease or cancer or something to bring awareness to medical issues. Yesterday news spread like wildfire that E! reporter and reality TV star Guiliana Rancic has been diagnosed with breast cancer. What's most shocking about the news is that she's only 36 years old, four years younger than the recommended age for women to even have a mammogram. Interestingly enough, it was found incidentally by mammogram that was recommended she get prior to her third IVF procedure. If her doctor had never insisted on getting a mammogram (since IVF treatment involves lots of hormones which could potentially speed up the growth of certain breast cancers), then it wouldn't have been discovered until she was 40. Who knows how much it would have grown and spread by then?

But what makes her any different from the 1 in 8 women who are diagnosed with breast cancer? Nothing really, except that she has the ability to make her diagnosis public and bring more awareness to the issue. It also once again opens up a public discussion and debate over cancer screening. Patients are more confused than ever about health screening and tests. How often to get PAP smears, at what age to get your first mammogram, should men have their PSA tested, do you really need a flu shot..... How do you know what's really necessary and what's not? And if it is necessary, when and how often do you need to be tested? Well, since I've started out talking about breast cancer, and it is breast cancer awareness month, I'll provide some information on screening guidelines per the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists.

If you visit the ACOG website, you can find their most recent statement and position on breast cancer screening and mammogram recommendations. They state, "Due to the high incidence of breast cancer in the US and the potential to reduce deaths from it when caught early, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (The College) today issued new breast cancer screening guidelines that recommend mammography screening be offered annually to women beginning at age 40." It goes on to say, "Although women in their 40s have a lower overall incidence of breast cancer compared with older women, the window to detect tumors before they become symptomatic is shorter, on average. The five-year survival rate is 98% for women whose breast cancer tumors are discovered at their earliest stage, before they are palpable and when they are small and confined to the breast. If women in their 40s have annual mammograms, there is a better chance of detecting and treating the cancer before it has time to spread than if they wait two years between mammograms."


Now for women with a family history of breast cancer, the rules are a bit different. You may need to start having mammograms at an earlier age. It depends on who in your family has had it and at what age. I recommend discussing this with your physician, and you can decide together at what age it's appropriate to have a mammogram, or if you need any genetic testing done to test for the breast cancer genes - BRCA1 & BRCA2. Please keep in mind though, that only 5-10% of breast cancers are hereditary. So even if you do have a family history, it doesn't necessarily mean you carry the genes. 


As a medical student, I've done a lot of family practice rotations. The best part of family practice and primary care is being able to practice preventative medicine, meaning making sure patients are up to date on their vaccines, scheduling everyone a colonoscopy once they turn 50, and encouraging women to get their mammograms. So needless to say I've had to field a lot of questions surrounding what's important for cancer screening, particularly breast cancer. And as an (almost) doctor I think it's important to be well educated on the subject and be open to making clinical decisions along with your patient, not just making them for your patient. I want my patients to feel empowered and knowledgable and know that by having their yearly mammogram, they have control over their bodies and facing cancer head on!

Here's Looking at You Kid!

Over the last four years of med school I've worked with dozens of different physicians of many different specialties, all in varying stages of their practice. As a medical student, you're the bottom of the food chain. Your opinion rarely matters and no matter how old you actually are, you're usually referred to as "kid". Now that I'm getting closer and closer to adding those two important letters at the end of my name, I'd like to think that I would be taken slightly more seriously as a medical professional. Well, that's not always the case.

A lot of the doctors I've worked with are at least a couple of generations older than me and therefore will always see me as a somewhat of a child. On the rare occasion that I made an amazing diagnosis or done a procedure near-flawlessly, did a doctor pat me on the back and treat me as his/her (almost) equal. But the problem lies in the fact that because not only do I look like I could play I high-schooler on a TV drama, but I really am kind of young- 27 to be exact. And for the same reasons my father will probably never head my advice, nor will these doctors see me as being on the same level. Which is yet another reason why I am oh-so anxious to graduate in a little over seven months (take note of the countdown on the right side of the screen).

As a medical student, I am always respectful of the physicians and other medical professionals I work with. I wish I could say that the respect is always mutual, but often it's not. I don't know if it all goes back to this idea of the learning hierarchy of medicine, where med students and interns are typically hazed by those above them. Quite honestly I think that docs do that just to make those below them feel like it's so hard to be a doctor, and "look how smart and tough I am for being where I am now." Then you have those docs who announce in a very grandiose tone, "Back in my day, medical students kept their mouth shut and stood in the corner of the room." Yeah, I got that one from the same doc who said to me while I was pregnant, "This is why women shouldn't go into medicine".

I guess my point in all this is that just because I'm a medical student and fairly younger than my superiors, doesn't mean I deserve to be treated like a teenager who needs some serious discipline. I'm a grown woman with a husband and a child of my own. I'm obviously mature and driven enough to have made it this far. And with close to eight years of schooling under my belt, I may actually have some knowledge and skills that are worth something. So when I finally get to climb from the trenches that is residency and become an attending physician, I hope to remember how I felt as a mere medical student and treat my future students with respect.... even if their white coat is a few inches shorter than mine.

A Balancing Act

I haven't been such a great blogger lately.... I could make up some excuse that I've been so busy with school and everything, but quite honestly I haven't. I've just been spending a lot of time playing with my little guy and relaxing. I finished up an amazing family practice rotation, and just started another four week rotation. All my residency applications have been sent, my boards are done, and I've scheduled all my residency interviews! Whew, what a load off my shoulders. The only thing between me and residency is rocking my interviews and entering my list for the match. I really can't believe I'm almost done. I can see the finish line!

Apple picking last year. Killian sound asleep in his sling!

This month is going to be pretty easy going. I'm only working four days a week and have some great hours. The best part is that the place I'm working at is only about 15 minutes away from my house. I get to come home for lunch and see my little guy, and I have Wednesdays off to be with my boys. So for our first official family day, we decided to go apple picking. Last year Killian was just three months old and slept the entire time we went. This year he's walking and exploring and just so much fun. He's starting to be so independent and refused to let us carry him at all, even though he kept stumbling and tripping every few steps. It was really such a great day just being with my husband and child and enjoying the fall weather.

This year he's big enough to pick his own apples!

Balancing school and being a wife and mother can be challenging at times. The thing is, you're never on an even keel. Sometimes you put a little more time and energy into one area over the other. Thankfully right now I have the luxury of being able to spend more time with my family, but just a few weeks ago I was devoting all my effort into studying for boards and working on my residency application. It's a give and take. Sometimes I don't always feel like the best mother or the best med student, but I think I do the best I can and at the end of the day I'm proud of my accomplishments.