December and January - Tea and Tigers

December:
A belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year first of all! December was a tad crazy for me flying home to see family and friends. I enjoyed spending time with my Eloise, eating a ton of amazing food, and a lot of laughing and sweet moments with my sister.

My lovely friends on New Years

Christmas with the family

Eloise is a Scrooge

My siblings (Brett and Alli)

My favorite place in my hometown

Me and my child

Alli and Eloise Christmas Eve

January:

So I fly back to New Orleans, and I am instantly SICK. I come home to my clean, but no food* apartment with a definite need for cold medications. Luckily to my pharmacology knowledge, I made it through the first week back at school with my personal pharmacy. (Even if my Sleepytime herbal tea is unregulated by government standards and might be a placebo- I am still telling myself that my sinuses were soothed).

The last unit we were in was Endocrine pharmacology, which I thought was really interesting! We had a TBL on Diabetic drugs like insulins and hypoglycemics, as well and a CBL on contraceptions. I didn't have a ton of familiarity with endocrine-affecting drugs, but I found several of the topics like discussing treatments for uterine fibroids and endometriosis cool. In addition to Medical Pharmacology, we also have a separate Endocrine Pharmacology class that we starting reading a book called Why Don't Zebras Get Ulcers? The author's writing style is captivating for the audience to be engaged with stress and body function such as cardiovascular health. I am taking neuropharmacology, and we are presenting topics like Schizophrenia and Alzheimer's. Environmental Signaling we had an interesting discussion with a visiting professor discussing lead levels in the pipes in America... which honestly was a little scary to realize how prominent it is!

Study-wise I am continuing with my method I think I perfected last semester. I think the most significant hallmark of my studying is trying to fit all of our drugs in clinical scenarios, where I can image a more "hands-on" type learning.

I am starting up the semester with the same volunteer organizations! Nothing new, just my regular routine.

(Oh yeah, and LSU Tigers wins the National Championship! Big win for LA)

Blessings,

Ms Ashley

Volunteer hours January: 6

Comments

June- Physical Health During the MCAT

The MCAT study period can be stressful! When you are laser-focused on a prep-course, it can be hard to think about your health, but the truth is applying to medical school is like a marathon! When you train for something requiring discipline, you have to be mindful of how you are also preparing your body and mind for it too! Here are some ways I stay healthy: Physical Health: Diet- What do I typically eat? Well let's start with my rules for food: first off, I MEAL PREP. Secondly, I stopped buying fattening junk food. Third, I am rolling on a budget people. Fourth, I have also become a bit of a food snob since I have been eating fresh food... so sorry, not sorry. Breakfast : Premier Protein Shake + Mix-ins I buy by the case-load from Amazon , my favorite are Cookies and Cream I blend these with "Frozen Smoothie Packs" I make: usually frozen berries, chia seeds, and spinach (sometimes I will add PB2) (I discovered this on WW Freestyle when I was

May- AMCAS and AACOMAS

Even though I've completed my program, May seems to be non-stop. I'm pretty sure my family thinks I must be bored out of my mind, but it doesn't seem like there are enough hours in the day. May has been mainly sunny and hopeful. I've been applying to jobs (A LOT), applying with AMCAS (MD schools), and AACOMAS (DO schools). If you've never seen a med school app before, you'll probably be surprised at how much time goes into perfecting them. I'm also preparing for the MCAT (of course, June 27th is going to be my day to shine... or evening. I'm taking it at 6 pm, what is that?). Here are some May updates for you. May Life Updates Cucumbers from my garden with Greek yogurt dip Unusual chilly day in the hammock

May II- Graduation Edition

It's still a bit surreal that my classmates and I are done with the program. I think it's been hard to find closure as the world paused time or is operating in slow motion. It's like we have all been hibernating and awaking to Spring, except Spring is entering a reality of change. Although we were physically apart for graduation, we made the best of what we had: having an "official" ceremony in the morning and a departmental party on Zoom later in the day. It was heartwarming to see my colleagues in their regalia and their family members joining to celebrate our accomplishments. My own family joined in from Indiana! Linh made a video of all of our pictures together and a videos of us saying goodbye, which was really bittersweet. Caps off to us! Roll Wave, Ashley Happy Graduation Pharmacology Class of 2020! Tulane Medical School Graduation Message Link

Confessions of a Crescent City Transplant

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