Belladinotte Posted May 28, 2015 Share Posted May 28, 2015 I am starting PA school this August and starting to feel the anxiety I experienced in undergrad begin to slip back into my life. I have pretty bad GAD and handled it in college by working out, keeping busy constantly and surrounding myself with non-competitive people. However, I was definitely on the edge of taking a prescription for it and would like to continue without any drugs. So..how have you all handled your anxiety in PA school? Any different coping mechanisms than undergrad or tips to share? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marktheshark89 Posted May 28, 2015 Share Posted May 28, 2015 Go to a psychiatrist for advice. There are many who require medication to keep their anxiety at bay during pa school, and other strategies that they can provide or teach that may be beneficial. PA school will be much more stressful than undergrad.! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator rev ronin Posted May 28, 2015 Administrator Share Posted May 28, 2015 One of my closest friends in my program had test anxiety so bad that he had to repeat didactic year. I knew he knew the material well, but he managed to consistently talk himself out of the right answers. He came back with beta blockers, succeeded, and is now practicing and living the PA dream. Would he have been better off to have taken medication earlier? It's entirely possible. PA school is the mental equivalent of a marathon, or special forces school, or something else long and relentlessly physically grueling. You need to be able to keep up with the pressure-cooker environment that makes your pre-PA studies look like a walk in the park. Just about everyone, no matter who they are, has to uplevel their study habits to succeed in PA school. If your only known problem is the anxiety, then hit that puppy hard and make sure it does not prevent you from succeeding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted May 28, 2015 Moderator Share Posted May 28, 2015 keep up the exercise and give yourself scheduled non-school breaks every week to go to a movie, date your S.O., be a normal person, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dndandrea Posted May 29, 2015 Share Posted May 29, 2015 keep up the exercise and give yourself scheduled non-school breaks every week to go to a movie, date your S.O., be a normal person, etc. I agree with this. I just started lifting/exercising a few months ago so that I could have a good reason to get my mind off of school for a little bit 4-5 days a week. Every school I interviewed had students that said this really helped them, which motivated me to start (plus the many benefits of working out). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CAAdmission Posted May 29, 2015 Share Posted May 29, 2015 Storming the beach at Normandy = anxiety PA school = no anxiety If you can't handle anxiety, healthcare might not be the place to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will352ns Posted May 29, 2015 Share Posted May 29, 2015 It's okay to feel anxiety. It's how you work through it....that's what matters. I've been in PA school and I've been in combat. I felt more anxiety in PA school....it's just a different type of anxiety. The trick is to not let it get the best of you. I am pretty sure nobody in my class would think I was stressed or anxious...follow the advice already given and you will be fine. Remember, they can't take your birthday away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoopeda Posted May 30, 2015 Share Posted May 30, 2015 Daily simple breathing exercises that go along with yoga or sitting meditation have an incredible influence on stress and anxiety. www.dhamma.org is one of many non-sectarian very down-to-earth (read: no shaman or feathers and bells--just ordinary people wanting to live happier, more peaceful lives). Nature's beta blocker! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cinntsp Posted May 30, 2015 Share Posted May 30, 2015 SSRI. Half of your class will be on one too. Sent from my SHIELD Tablet using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dndandrea Posted May 30, 2015 Share Posted May 30, 2015 Storming the beach at Normandy = anxiety PA school = no anxiety If you can't handle anxiety, healthcare might not be the place to be. Sounds a little ignorant... Try thinking mental health, or more specifically, anxiety disorders. Makes all of that irrelevant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterallsummer Posted May 30, 2015 Share Posted May 30, 2015 Storming the beach at Normandy = anxiety PA school = no anxiety If you can't handle anxiety, healthcare might not be the place to be. Are you kidding me? Anxiety is totally subjective. Some people go through the horrors of war and are fine. Others are born with debilitating anxiety disorders for "no reason." A few years back (not sure if this is still current) the m/c cause of PTSD was a car wreck. Sorry, but I find this statement wrong and perhaps somewhat offensive. To the OP, I really suggest you get your resources (friends, family, +/- counselor and practitioner) together before school starts. TBH, PA school will likely be much more stressful than undergrad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CAAdmission Posted May 31, 2015 Share Posted May 31, 2015 Are you kidding me? Anxiety is totally subjective. Some people go through the horrors of war and are fine. Others are born with debilitating anxiety disorders for "no reason." A few years back (not sure if this is still current) the m/c cause of PTSD was a car wreck. I am just suggesting that if someone feels that school cripples them with anxiety, they better re-visit the stress that a healthcare career will subject them to. Do you want the anxious guy running your code? Sorry, but I find this statement wrong and perhaps somewhat offensive. I respectfully disagree with you and I have no control over what others might find offensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Paula Posted May 31, 2015 Share Posted May 31, 2015 You can go to your primary care provider first to discuss your anxiety. PC should be able to address it with appropriate advice and medications, if needed. Do not, however, let them prescribe you a benzodiazepine as they can be quite addicting... SSRIs can work wonders for you, especially if you have had anxiety all your life. Psychiatrist referral is needed if you have other issues like bipolar or schizophrenia or a deeper mood disorder that truly compromises your ability to live successfully or interact with other people. Don't wait for an evaluation as it can take time to find the right medication if it is recommended to start on one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belladinotte Posted May 31, 2015 Author Share Posted May 31, 2015 Thank you everyone for your thoughtful and encouraging responses! Luckily I just have Generalized Anxiety Disorder and am hesitant to take any medication because I don't want to become reliant on them after PA school. I will start with HIIT classes at the gym and more meditation but definitely keep in mind a dr. appt if my past techniques don't pan out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Belladinotte Posted May 31, 2015 Author Share Posted May 31, 2015 CJAdmission, I suggest you read up on anxiety disorders as your post was very ignorant and short sided. There is a huge difference between "I am nervous for PA school" and "I struggle with anxiety in every day life and I'm wondering how it'll intensify and can be dealt with in PA school." Many medical professionals are perfectionists with Type A personalities and subsequently suffer from anxiety disorders which they control. Some of the best doctors I know, even surgeons, have crippling panic disorders that require medication but colleagues and patients would never be able to tell because they take care of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ohsnapPA Posted May 31, 2015 Share Posted May 31, 2015 @CJAdmission Having anxiety is not a bad thing.There are studies that actually show that anxiety is correlated with high IQs and empathy, which are all strong character traits for people in healthcare. http://www.feelguide.com/2015/04/22/science-links-anxiety-to-high-iqs-sentinel-intelligence-social-anxiety-to-very-rare-psychic-gift/ Discouraging someone who has anxiety from going into healthcare because of the stress is really short-sighted and ignorant. There are plenty of ways to treat and manage anxiety, that l would expect you to know as a PA. I really hope the only admissions you are in charge of is admitting Clint Eastwood as your default pic... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterallsummer Posted May 31, 2015 Share Posted May 31, 2015 Do I want an anxious guy running my code? I really don't care - I know plenty of great doctors who have anxiety and can run codes much more competently then some of their more relaxed counterparts. If everyone who had anxiety had to stop practicing medicine, the world would lose a huge amount of great PAs, docs and RNs in the blink of an eye. Anyway, we will have to agree to disagree. Furthermore, I really do not want anyone who thinks that anything less than a war is worth having anxiety about, because possibly that doctor/PA lacks empathy, has a poor understanding of psychological and psychiatric problems in general, and I would fear that poor understanding of anxiety may carry over to a poor understanding of pathophysiology in general. However, to each his own, time to lay this topic to rest. Thanks for the reply. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbrothers98 Posted May 31, 2015 Share Posted May 31, 2015 I am starting PA school this August and starting to feel the anxiety I experienced in undergrad begin to slip back into my life. I have pretty bad GAD and handled it in college by working out, keeping busy constantly and surrounding myself with non-competitive people. However, I was definitely on the edge of taking a prescription for it and would like to continue without any drugs. So..how have you all handled your anxiety in PA school? Any different coping mechanisms than undergrad or tips to share? Thanks! You will face a lot of information in PA school so learning to study is key. Plenty of undergrads that get great grades due to a variety of factors but then dont do well in PA school. They dont know how to prioritize and dont know how to time manage. Get good at this and your stress will be less. Exercise is key. Every day for 30-60 minutes. Meditation and yoga all count towards this. Sleep on a regular basis even during finals, 8hrs a night. Avoid dietary indiscretion, packing on the pounds is easy. Then the clothes you own for rotations wont fit. Dont live with classmates. You will need that break from them. Take an evening off every week for something not school related. Realize you wont know everything and dont have to. Pay attention to objectives, pay attention to what is tested. These all give insights into what you should be focusing on. Last, dont waste time on internet forums letting people you dont know push your buttons. There are better things to do. Good luck. GB PA-C Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoopeda Posted May 31, 2015 Share Posted May 31, 2015 Great advice, all. Good luck, OP! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SHU-CH Posted May 31, 2015 Share Posted May 31, 2015 Some people can make a great career with anxiety - do be a little careful with specialty selection, though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jlumsden Posted June 1, 2015 Share Posted June 1, 2015 I would add that with the demanding schedule PA school loads you with, getting exercise is going to become a challenge. If that is your main coping skill, I would recommend checking in with a primary care provider, as others suggest. There is nothing wrong with using psychoactive medications if your anxiety is holding you back from your potential. Don't white knuckle it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
db_pavnp Posted June 1, 2015 Share Posted June 1, 2015 I find that lifting weights is a very time efficient mood altering activity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted June 1, 2015 Moderator Share Posted June 1, 2015 I find that lifting weights is a very time efficient mood altering activity. yup, ditto jump roping. also riding a stationary bike while reading lets you multitask. we had a gym at Hahnemann and I used to read class assignments on the bike at lunch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbrothers98 Posted June 2, 2015 Share Posted June 2, 2015 Those of us whom attended prior to the turn of the century could jump rope and read the assignments at the same time also....just saying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted June 2, 2015 Moderator Share Posted June 2, 2015 Those of us whom attended prior to the turn of the century could jump rope and read the assignments at the same time also....just saying. well, yeah, and on a treadmill no less....that just goes without saying....:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.