Settling in

Pretty much was moved in last weekend and am now feeling fairly settled in the new place.   Am remembering the major life events that cause stress in people's lives and that moves are high on the list.   So is divorce.   Am wondering if med school is on the list...  So, this is my 5th move since starting med school.  Hopefully, it will be the last until residency (not counting rural and away rotations...).  Maybe this will help me connect with the stress that folks are facing every day as I meet them in clinic, as they lay in hospital beds and hope for recovery.  I am reminded of how good it felt to relax tonight - for my feet to get warm and to drift off into a deep slumber in a quiet room where no noxious smoke drifted into my awareness.  I hope I can remember and recognize and appreciate the deleterious effects of stress in our patients' worlds.  I hope I can find ways to minimize it for them, so they can get on with more productive efforts.

I was reading today about the wild horse auction here in Oregon.  Noticed an article about a fellow with cystic fibrosis who went out and bought himself a gentled mustang after a good experience with a friend's horse.  He said taking his horse on a trail ride was the most amazing thing he had ever done.  He said it made him forget about his wife who had just died of cancer and made the long-term pain in his back disappear.  He said doctors don't know everything.  I confess that's true, but I'm learning as fast as I can, so I won't be so clueless when I get there.  Maybe I could acquire a few of those horses and use them as therapy horses.  I do like that idea.  Would be pretty amazing, actually.

Spent some time today thinking about a rural practice that I might be able to do eventually.  Looked at the WY maps again.  Really think I'm falling in love with the state and that it truly belongs at the top of my list.  I have created a weighted spreadsheet with about 20 criteria, so I might compare apples to apples for the various residency programs I am interested in.  Have it narrowed down to 8 or 9.  Definitely a solid list.  It gives me a frame of reference and a sense of direction.  Was well worth the time putting it together last summer.  Now, it's just nice to pull it up for a reminder and to tweak it from time to time.

All is good.  Kind of digging the kidney.  Amazing organ, it is.  Will have another look at it tonight.