Post by Matthew Hawkes

I made it out of year 2 of medical school!!! 🥳 This last year has been a bit of a rollercoaster for me. Having to do the resit for year 1, to the buildup to my official depression diagnosis crushed me. I was at some of my lowest points of my life this year. I told myself I would never be put in those situations again. I got my head down (logged off LinkedIn), spent on average 10+ hours in the library per day for 2 months straight. And got over the line. What lessons have I learnt from year 2 of medical school? 1. Let go of people who make you worse or slows you down. A lot of people will never understand you, what you're doing, nor your journey. No matter how hard you might try to make things work, it never will. So you must stop the suffering. You must learn to let go. It's difficult in the moment, but you will thank yourself in the long run. 2. Medicine *shockingly* doesn't get easier. Seems obvious right? As you progress, you keep on building on more knowledge, which means you end up having to understand and apply more knowledge than before. Therefore, it's essential to manage your time well, self reflect on your personal weaknesses, and continue doing the things that keeps you sane! 3. Resilience and determination is what gets you through medicine. Everyone is an academic weapon in medical school. Everyone stood out in the application process for medical school. Everyone is capable of becoming a doctor in medical school. But one thing that separates you from someone not making it out is resilience and determination. Why are you at medical school? What gets you up in the morning? What motivates you to earn that doctor title? When you are at the worst moments, when you feel like you want to cry, remember why you're doing this. Working in healthcare is hard and doctors have lots of responsibilities; that's why medical school is hard. These experiences builds your character, and will make you a stronger doctor. If there's somebody I could thank, I'd like to thank AnkiWeb & AnkiMobile for being there at my highest & lowest points throughout the year. Without you, I'd be so lost! I look forward to my iBSc in Sports & Exercise Medical Sciences in the next chapter. I shall start posting regularly again - DM me if you need support :)