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HGPRTase
Forum Guru Topics: 36 Posts: 541 |
Hello everyone! To signal my fresh, new, positive outlook on my CK prep, here is my new journal. For those unfamiliar with me, I'd like to share with you my thoughts in my last post in my old diary: "This forum is simply amazing. You guys speak the right words at the right time. Just when my spirit was at its lowest, you carried me through the pain and helped me fight it out, knowing that this battle is one worth fighting for. I admit I do not get adequate moral support from my whole family and I cannot blame them. It has been 3 years since I graduated from med school and become a licensed physician in my home country but until now, I rely mostly on my parents for basic sustenance, including the fees for this exam. It is a sad reality but one cannot live by a basic general practitioner's pay in my country. However, I cannot let these things stop me from pursuing a vocation I choose. More than a career path, it is a sense of purpose driving me to follow this dream of attaining the best specialty training I can get for myself and my patients -- a US residency. Right now, I burst with optimism because of your fervent prayers and support. I welcome each day of study with zest and hope because I know that I am pursuing a dream that has always tugged at my heart -- to train as a doctor in the United States of America. At a point that I'm just taking the second step of the exams, it may still sound a remote possibility but with all your help, of God's grace, and with all humility, I take baby steps towards that goal. Thank you for all the kind words and the prayers. You people do not know how it has helped my soul by leaps and bounds. I apologize for the sentimentality of this post but I feel very emotional now because of the tremendous encouragement I get from all of you. What support I hope to get from most of my family, you fill in. I shall create a new post to signal my fresh new perspective in this exam prep. Like a phoenix reborn, I shall spread my wings and fly. I kneel to my God and ask for His blessing." With eyes brimming with hope, I seek YOUR help, dear friend, as we share sleepless nights of studying, 100 or so coffee cups, the pains, the agonies, and the triumphs, and together we shall blaze our trail to VICTORY in this battle! Feel free to share your thoughts. Drop me a line 
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HGPRTase
| Forum Guru Topics: 36 Posts: 541
I'm on my last chapter, of my last subject, on my last round of the Kap Notes today. Woohoo! I'm two days ahead of schedule, after which, I revise Crush the Boards for the 3rd time before I start doing UW for 30 days. I'm back on track, thanks for your prayers I've been doing the QBook questions, so far I'm in my 70s in IM, OB, and Surgery. I'm doing quite poorly in Pediatrics so I have to work on that. Catch you all later Happy studying.
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FX5
| Forum Elite Topics: 12 Posts: 245
That's the spirit... way to go!
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drlilac
| Forum Junior  Topics: 84 Posts: 3423
New journal for HG?! Cool! 
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simon73
| Forum Guru Topics: 7 Posts: 906
Great Job. I like your spirit and you are in good shapre with your qbook scores. Keep it going.
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Antib
| Forum Newbie Topics: 6 Posts: 227
Good luck Hgptrtase, in ur preparation. U r in right path... May GOD help u in getting all ur success...
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HGPRTase
| Forum Guru Topics: 36 Posts: 541
I can't help but smile while reading all your kind and encouraging posts. It's time for my afternoon snack after a good, long Friday for me. FX5, thanks for dropping by! Drlilac, yup, a new journal for me because I'm letting go of all the negative energy in my older posts. Ha! How's it going, Simon? I'll check on you and Drlilac later! ;P Antib, nice to meet you! Thanks for your prayers and may God guide you in your studies too. Do you have a journal too? I know it's a weekend and I know I should be sulking that I'm being such a nerd holed up in my room studying but -- man, I've never felt THIS GOOD about holding a reviewer and "eating up" mastering all its contents. Maybe some of you will find this experience weird, but, I don't know, perhaps it's just all that positive energy flowing from all your prayers and some inner motivation that tells me: I MAY BE A NERD NOW BUT THAT'S FINE, IT'S ALL GOOD.  I finished Psychiatry (3rd reading) last night and ran through some of my notes in FA Step 1 Behavioral and Psychiatry. They were very still helpful in the retention of concepts. I also read my notes from Dr. Alina Mayo's Psych lectures. They were really worth watching. This morning I took the 2nd Psych test in Qbook and got 42/50. Not bad, I guess, but I need to pound some more info in this thick skull of mine. UW Psych is the next best step Since I'm two days ahead of schedule, I decided to move on to the next book/reviewer in line while I'm still hot for more knowledge, and forego rest later. (M. Scott Peck in his book, "The Road Less Traveled" mentioned that one should delay gratification in order to reap better rewards later on -- or something like that. Hehe) Nerdy, nerdy, I know, but it's okay  I'm now treading my way through Crush the Boards. This is my 3rd reading of it as well. On my first two readings, the material seemed vague to me, but as moved along with my revision (Kap Notes included), they began to have more meaning. It's also becoming too colorful (highlights and flags!) and starting to have lots of wonderful little notes, diagrams, and mnemonics in it. I'm really starting to make it my own. I hope it helps come exam day. I'm quite slow with Crush now because I still have to cross-reference concepts with Kap Notes and the textbooks if concepts are still unclear. I hardly leave a poorly understood topic in it that's why I'm super slow leafing through the pages. That's all for now folks. I need to finish my tuna sandwich and Coke now.  Happy weekend, you all. And have a grand time prepping for Step 2! Before I begin snooping around with my friends' prep4usmle journals, let me leave you with this Biblical verse that has sustained me since first year of medical school. I know we're of various faiths/beliefs in this forum but some of you might find courage in this quote: "I can do ALL things through Christ (substitute with your God if you so wish) who strengthens me". - Philippians 4:13 Until next time
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drlilac
| Forum Junior Topics: 84 Posts: 3423
Hi HG You are definitely blazing through!!!!Give me some of your stamina, will you? Last night I couldn't even finish Derma  I wasn't in a mood to absorb at all. BOO HOO And tonight my husband and his best friend are going to watch Jesus Christ Superstar in the living room while I'll be cooped up in the guest room studying. Waaahhh! I wanna join them- although I've watched that play several times esp during lent. Oh well.....Gotta do what I gotta do!!! Good luck today HG!
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HGPRTase
| Forum Guru Topics: 36 Posts: 541
Hey DL! We can do this! Remember, DELAY GRATIFICATION. I know how fun it is to watch a musical like Jesus Christ Superstar (and I like Carlie Smithson's version of the theme too. Haha. Too much for gossip ;P) but yes, we have to glue our butts to our study chairs and do what we ought to do! I've passed up several fun times with loved ones too because of the exam. Just remember, IT WILL ALL BE WORTH IT in the end. Maybe the material you study tonight will help you, not just in answering an exam question, but more importantly, save a patient's life in the future. So just do it, DL. Just do it. Your friends here in the forum are right here to support you, don't ever think this is "just" cyberspace. We're real people, in the real world, praying for your success. (And I hope you guys do so for me too!) It's bedtime for HG. I finished mastering 3 chapters in Crush today. I know it's such a slooow pace but I feel that my learning curve was at its steepest today. We'll see how it goes when I do UW. Haha. Good night. May we all have the sweetest dreams to turn our HbA1C >7mg/dL and our FBS > 200 mg/dL, and pray for strength for yet another day of review tomorrow.
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simon73
| Forum Guru Topics: 7 Posts: 906
Hi HGPRTase keep up the momentum and prep going. I answered your question in my journal. Yes, we are all real people with ups and downs in prep and life. We are here to support each other and pray for each other. Have a good weekend at studies.
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drlilac
| Forum Junior Topics: 84 Posts: 3423
Hey HG! Where are you?
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HGPRTase
| Forum Guru Topics: 36 Posts: 541
Hi guys. Good to see you again! I took a break yesterday. I wasn't able to read much. I had a dinner of crabs and lobsters with the family. I was too sleepy to go back to my books when I got home. Today is another day for me. I feel bad because I overslept a little. I need some coffee to sustain my energy. I'll visit your journals in a bit, DL and Si. Happy studying
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drlilac
| Forum Junior Topics: 84 Posts: 3423
Hey HG....We do need to take breaks once in a while I always have lunch with my family on Sundays after church and not to mention cleaning the house on that weekend too which I guess I can consider a "break" from the books A lot of people say that the qbook is not very good but I'm just doing it to help me integrate info into questions, you know? I just got done reading IM Kaplan so that's why I'm doing the questions on qbook on IM as well. I did 3 blocks last night. My lowest was 42/50. Have 4 more blocks to finish today. Happy studying HG...See you later
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HGPRTase
| Forum Guru Topics: 36 Posts: 541
Bonjour! I just feel a little guilty for taking long breaks but I guess I need it. DL, yeah, I'm also using the Qbook to keep me on my toes rather than just passively absorbing info from the reviewers. I should start UW on Thursday. Wait a minute...your lowest in IM was 42/50?! Great job! Today is the start of another long week for all of us. May God give us strength
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drlilac
| Forum Junior Topics: 84 Posts: 3423
Hey HG!!! How's it going? I'm done with Kaplan qbook. I didn't get to do the last block. I'm beat How are you planning to use UW? Random, mixed subjects? In step 1 I did random subjects and timed (most of the time).
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drlilac
| Forum Junior Topics: 84 Posts: 3423
I won't start UW till I'm done reading Kaplan. Since I work I only have 4-5 hours to study so I can't afford (money and time) to subscribe UW for longer than 2 months. If I were studying full time I would just probably do UW for a month. What say you?
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HGPRTase
| Forum Guru Topics: 36 Posts: 541
Hey DL! I plan to subscribe to UW for 30 days since I'm now studying full-time. I plan to do it : SUBJECT-WISE-TIMED for 20 days, ALL ERRORS-TIMED for 4 days, then MIXED-TIMED for the remaining 6 days. I did mixed-timed all throughout in my Step 1 prep and it was okay but this time, I wanna be a little more systematic and thorough. And you? Gosh, I'm reading Crush (3rd Round) now and I'm moving at a really slow pace. I underestimated the time I will allot for it and it's time consuming to keep on going back and forth between Crush, Kap Notes, and my lecture notes but it helps me retain more info. I plan to study elsewhere tomorrow because I'm getting tired of the same old room. I need a little change in environment to prevent mental tetany Good studying to you all. Please pray for my tortoise-sloooooooowwwwwww pace.
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drlilac
| Forum Junior Topics: 84 Posts: 3423
Hey HG! Great schedule for UW I think I'll do subject-wise too. Wow, look at all the materials you have Hehehe. I won't be able to do that. I'll be too confused Do you like crush tho? I was gonna buy FA plus I can use that too for CS...but is it even good? Hey HG, I really like your attitude- really positive outlook in life in general. I have a plan in the future and I wanna share it with you. I'll PM you later....
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HGPRTase
| Forum Guru Topics: 36 Posts: 541
That's just about the study materials that I have been reading for the past 3 months - Kap Notes, some DVD lecture notes of it, Crush, and UW (in the next few days, I hope). Crush is okay but I constantly have to relate it to my notes in Kaplan. I don't know about FA but I haven't seen too many glowing recommendations of it here in the forum and among my friends who have taken the CK. Today is another day of battle. I've been really slow reading Crush but I'm so compelled to go back to Kap Notes if the topic I read doesn't sound too familiar. I wanna get over this sooner than soon though! Argh! DL, thanks for the comment. I try to have a positive attitude on life but I'm just human and there are some days when I feel stuck in the quicksand and find it so hard to move on. Know what I'm saying? These past few days are like that but thanks to all your support, it's easier to carry on. Have a fun day studying. I may not be posting anymore today and tomorrow as I shall force myself to finish Crush already in prep for my UW exams. I ask for your prayers. Thank you, dear friends.
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classymom
| Forum Junior Topics: 25 Posts: 533
Hi HGPRTase...what an intriguing name....Good progress till now...and hope to see you surging ahead.As for me ...Im an old Img, with obgyn pg from my country...working full time...with 2 \kids....step 1 done...step 2 in June. By my standards you are way ahead..keep it up.!!
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