Anxious.

I am so relieved that we’re finally done with our Pediatrics clinical round exams (that was initially scheduled for February) after months of postponement. It was different from the exams we had in the years before – in addition to the usual MCQs & spot pictures, this time we had to diagnose, talk to & examine patients with our own hands (& I had the ‘best’ luck of getting a strict veteran doctor who tortured me with endless detailed theoretical questions while I was actually examining the patient & he went on & on waiting for me to run out of answers, & was finally saved after the next student came for her turn!), & experienced firsthand what it was like filling in an actual triage-like forms (IMCI) that was half in Arabic, though the main challenge would be to not mistakenly place a child in a non-danger zone when he actually is one.

It was a great experience & I am still pretty excited about it; made me think a lot about the actual work I’ll be doing in the next few years. The fear of getting wrong amplifies, to scrutinize every theory & scenario possible has gotten to a whole new level, & the need of perfection that I’ve been trying to suppress my whole life is no longer containable… which can only mean, I’m about to become even more difficult & unpleasant & bitchy in the near future (heheh!). I am excited, I am terrified!

My most favorite child from our days in Mubarak Pediatric Hospital. I call him Meshi-boy because he was just starting to talk then & he was obsessed with the words ‘meshi’ & ‘wahda’! It was the most memorable complete recovered case of a Guillain–Barré syndrome. The most adorable child I’ve ever met!

So, tomorrow… a new chapter of Special Medicine begins, which I expect would be a whole lot more interesting & captivating compared to the super dull General Medicine we’ve been having for the past few months. I’m looking forward to seeing unique neurological symptoms & bizarre dermatological cases! Fingers crossed for whatever’s coming!