Boy_wonder
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So here's my prep journal. I'm gonna build my plan up in a few posts and fill you in on how I'm going to go about step 1 and step 2 in a year. Hopefully, this time next year, I will have achieved my aims. Aims..sounds like a good place to start.
Aim:
My aim is not only to score 99 in both step 1 and 2 but to score as high as possible. Simply put, I want to go as high as is possibly achievable for me. I want to learn concepts that will last me a lifetime and help me in my future work. Aside from this, I have one main aim outside of study and that is to gym it up and put on some muscle. Hopefully this will help me develop some discipline for my studies.
Background:
I am an international medical student. I have previously studied all subjects for step 1 in some form or another, but not in a very USMLE type way. In terms of Step 2 material, I have studied paediatrics, obs and gynae and psych in a non USMLE directed way and have had brief romances with Medicine and Surgery. So as you can see while I have a basic level of competency, I am not designed in my current state to tackle the USMLEs.
The Basic Plan:
I'm going to use a mixture of materials including Kaplan and Goljan. I will use my own textbooks as a basic text and use wikipedia to make associations between various things. I will post the subjects I am doing as I go along but the basic plan is to go through all subjects and prepare notes; then go though another time and start to attempt recall by various exercises such as drawings and flashcards. Finally I will do questions from Qbanks and UW and build up stamina for an 8 hour exam.
First Subject: Histology
For the last 2 weeks I have been going through Wheaters histology and Kaplan and making notes using these 2 books and Wikipedia, making associations with other disciplines along the way e.g. Kulchitsky cells are APUD cells in respiratory tract linked with small cell carcinoma etc. Will finish it in 2 weeks and start my prep proper from then on in as I have a few exams to finish in my course. So to conclude, long way to go, but with your help, advice, support and criticisms, I feel I can make it. Hope to see you round. 
Edited by Boy_wonder on 05/02/08 - 06:01 AM. Reason: Make it more readable
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| P4a99
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GL
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2008 Step 1 Study Plan Discussion ..... I am a moderator not a source for download links. Please do not ask me for any.
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| Boy_wonder
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Thanks p4a99.
Gonna try and keep it updated with things I come across that may help others in their studies, hopefully by the end, the journal will be full of great stuff for future test-takers.
Edited by Boy_wonder on 05/02/08 - 10:09 AM
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| Boy_wonder
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So here is what I reviewed in Histology today so far:
Nucleus:
It is tightly coiled inactive chromatin, it is located at the periphery of the nucleus and appears dark. Euchromatin is the opposite.
Nucleoproteins are synthesised in the cytoplasm and shipped to the nucleus. The nucleoli are the site of rRNA synthesis and ribosome assembly. They have 2 zones: a granular zone that is involved in ribosome assembly and a fibrillar zone that synthesises RNA.
Histones are rich in lysine and arginine.
Barr bodies are inactivated X chromosome in females. They are absent in Turner's syndrome and there is one barr body in Kleinfelter's syndrome.
Endoplasmic Reticulum:
May be smooth or rough.
Rough is involved in secretion.
The principle functions of smooth endoplasmic reticulum include:
1) sequestration and release of calcium in certain tissues
2) lipid metabolism begins here with the release of fatty acids from triglycerides and the assembly of apolipoproteins
3) steroid synthesis
4) detoxifcation by hydroxylation and conjugation
5) glycogenolysis and gluconeogenesis: removal of phosphate from glucose-6-phosphate.
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| Boy_wonder
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Golgi Apparatus:
The forming face is the cis golgi network and is convex in appearance. Here, glycosylation is completed by adding sugar residues.
At the maturing face or trans golgi network, the proteins are accurately sorted into secretory vesicles or lysosomes. The trans golgi network is associated with the plasma membrane.
2 important clinical correlations here are Hyperproinsulinaemia and I Cell Disease:
Hyperproinsulinaemia:
This disease is seen more frequently in type 2 diabetes and occurs due to failure of a peptidase to cleave proinsulin.
I Cell Disease:
The phosphorylation of mannose residues of lysosomal enzymes takes place in the Golgi Apparatus.
* This phosphorylation is a 2 step sequence.
* The first step involves N-acetylglucosamine-phosphotransferase: a deficiency here results in I Cell Disease whereby a whole family of enzymes is sent in the wrong direction to the extracellular space.
* Due to a lack of these enzymes in the lysosomes, massive inclusion bodies of undegraded glycoconjugates occurs in the lysosomes themselves.
* These lead to a range of symptoms that are similar in many ways to Hurler's syndrome: skeletal abnormalities, restricted joint movements, mental retardation, coarse facies and death before the age of 10.
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| Boy_wonder
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And I'm back!
Wow, tough week of college exams done there, 4 exams in 4 days meant that my histology review was put on hold but yesterday covered liver, pancreas and now starting kidney.
Feeling pretty relaxed about it all. Pretty confident that if I study hard, then it should be easy to do well in this test. Believe me, I'm not being cocky or complacent about it but there is no point in messing your head up with doubt and what not when you've done the work.
So today's objective: finish renal and move on to endocrine system while reviewing some earlier notes.
Keep up the good work everyone
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| Boy_wonder
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So today's plan is going smoothly so far, the aim being to cover 2 more chapters in histology namely the male and female reproductive systems.
I'm finding that using wikipedia along with Wheater's really is taking my knowledge to a whole new level then before. I remember reading one of the 99ers saying they did the same thing before but it really does open your eyes to the possibilties the examiners have when asked to submit questions.
An example: macrophages are involved in a spectrum of disorders namely the histiocytoses.
Hope everyone else is studying well today. Really pumped up at the moment and can see my goal clearly.
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| SOS
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good going.
all the best.
interesting thread.. the names wonder... hmm.... bond fan
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| Boy_wonder
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Cheers SOS.
Preparation going well so far. Will be finished histology in 2 days.
It seems to be one of the more under-rated subjects of the exam but the way I'm trying to study it should help both my histology, pathology and overall mark.
Knowing for example that tumours expressing vimentin are of mesodermal origin or that desmosomes are attacked in pemphigus and realising what their normal function is will give me more information when trying to answer the trickier questions on the day itself.
Should pay off.
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| luck08
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GL> I will be in your journal from time to time. keep up the good plan.
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| Boy_wonder
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Cheers luck08.
Hopefully you and others will drop in and we can discuss stuff regarding my prep or the exam itself or subjects or whatever
Look forward to hearing from you all as I step up my prep up once I clear these exams. This journal could continue for a year, who knows, but hopefully it can help and motivate others as well as myself.
Goodnight guys.
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| 5fluorouracil
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good thread.... all the best during your studies.... good luck!
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Yes we can.... and yes we will!!!!!
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| Boy_wonder
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Thanks 5fluoruracil.
Hope to see you around for future discussions. How's your prep going?
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| Boy_wonder
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Aim 1 complete:
So I have finished Wheater's histology and made notes of what I found to be revelant from it. In the next month, I will actively review these notes and have a look through kaplan's ones as well while I move on to aim 2.
Aim 2: Behavioural Science and Biochemistry
I feel I can do these two fairly quickly as I have read a bit of behavioural science before and have seen Stephen Daugherty lectures. Biochemistry could get challenging towards the end but I've gone through histology without a hitch so I expect biochemistry will be failry logical and more of a exercise in memory than understanding. The reason I am doing behavioural science and biochemistry together is that biochemistry isn't a strong point of mine and when I will obviously get tired of looking at it, I can pick up behavioural science and study it for a complete change of scene. I will review and histology as I complete these two.
I think I deserve a smiley face
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| Boy_wonder
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Another good day put in so far:
Finished first chapter of Kaplan behavioural science notes and have done first chapter in Lippincott's biochemistry on DNA.
Had college exam this morning in ENT and did well so great morale booster.
Gonna keep going for as long as possible today, and try and do another biochemistry chapter and review some histology.
Come on!!!
Another chapter of lippincott reviewed and some hard lessons learnt by looking at the questions at the end.
Edited by Boy_wonder on 05/14/08 - 11:50 AM
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| Boy_wonder
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So today:
Achieved:
- 2 more chapters of Lippincott's biochemistry.
- 1 more chapter of Kaplan behavioural science and questions attempted at the end, will correct them tomorrow, one weak are was the chi square and other tests so now that I have spotted it, I can address it in time.
Tonight:
- review histology and biochemistry already covered and study for my psych exam last week (final one!).
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| Boy_wonder
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So finished the DNA part of Biochemistry and moved onto amino acid metabolism and urea cycle today. Did those 2 chapters in Lippincott's and boy they were a tester.
I've learnt some new things but it's a bit of a haze now and will need to be revised again soon. It's tough, tougher than I expected but as Stephen Daugherty said, if you are enjoying what you're reading then something is wrong. That is not to say I hated doing it. I didn't, learning is good fun, but it was a challenge.
Did another chapter of Kaplan Behavioural Science as well.
Tough day at the office.
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| cheech
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Boy_Wonder,
Nice job!!!!
How do u stay so motivated?
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| Boy_wonder
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To be honest cheech, right now i'm running a bit on empty. It will all change next friday when I finish my last college exam in psych for the year and break for the summer. This will finally liberate me and allow me to study concentrate my efforts. Right now, Im going to have to cut down on it til then cos have to study psych.
How do I stay so motivated normally?
I could answer your question with another question: why be demotivated when studying this stuff? It's what I'm going to be studying for the rest of my career so if I didn't enjoy it then I would be asking myself some serious questions about what I want to do. I enjoy finding out how stuff works and bringing it all together. There is a great sense of accomplishment in such work. Would it surprise you to know I am not religious despite such motivation? I find it helps me personally as I always see things within my control, and therefore things like results rely on my ability. Thats why I think getting a 99 is a reasonable objective I suppose.
And when I'm not feeling motivated, then I watch House. Can learn from that too
Edited by Boy_wonder on 05/17/08 - 04:00 PM
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| Boy_wonder
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So I am going to take a 5 day hiatus from Biochemistry until I finish college exams. It's for the best, as then I can concentrate fully and renew my efforts with much better motivation and vigour.
Achieved so far:
Histology review
Behavioural Science and Biochemistry started.
Will restart on saturday after friday's exam..can't wait.
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| cheech
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Boy_Wonder,
its not that I don't enjoy the material, just that some days ( espcially last week) I just get tired of being in da library and studying. I admire u determination. Keep up the good work. Ur journal is definately motivating!!
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| dowjunk
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Cool post!!! i love the way u post important points.........hope to see it coming....its pretty informative for us!
Well!!!!!!! keep it going!
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Grad of 2007. Work in progress.......
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| Boy_wonder
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I'm back and ready to go. Exams finished.
So achievements today so far include:
1) started Kaplan Internal Medicine
2) finished amino acid part of biochemistry
3) just review a part of histology so I will see here if I can recall what I learned with you:
Disease: Deficiency
Gaucher's: glucocerebrosidase
Nieman Pick's: sphinogmyelinase or NCP 1/2
Tay Sachs: hexosaminidase A
Hurlers: alpha L iduronate
Hunters (X-linked recessive): iduronate sulfatase
Fabrys: alpha galactosidase A
Farbers: ceramidase
Metachromatic leukodystrophy: arylsulfatase A
Krabbe: galactosylceramidase
Refsums: faulty alpha oxidation of phytanic acid
Zellweggers: PEX 2 deficiency
Acatalasia: absence of catalase
Infantile adrenoleukodystrophy: PEX proteins
Peroxisomes:
* beta oxidation of fatty acids
* bile acid synthesis
* contain catalase
Hope everyone is going well
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| ocano
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Hi man !!
I am international stud and starting also... have very few time but trying to do my best.
those notes about ur reviewed things will be very helpful.
Thanks a lot
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| Boy_wonder
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No problem ocano, can't say I will be putting up everything I read, but If I come across things that are interesting to me or often not studied by other students then I will write them up. Just call in for a look.
Have been working consistently over the last few days and am working my my way through both biochemistry and genetics. I think another week and a bit should have these.
Might write up some more histology after I review it tonight. Hope study is going good for all of ye out there. Keep it up. It's very doable just keep going.
All the best, Boywonder.
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