Any Med Students/Doctors out there?

[MedStudent1]

Was just wondering how you guys deal with the constant, immense stress?

[Hidden]

I am not a med student but really think people on this board may learn a lot from you being one. Most of us here see doctors regularly but don't have an opportunity to see life from their perspective. You must have a lot of academic pressures on you. What type of medicine would you like to practise?

[MedStudent1 in reply to Hidden]

Hello Aspen. Yes it's incredibly stressful being a medical student.... before i did medicine i had no issues with anxiety/panic/depression, but now it's more or less an everyday struggle. One good side of doing medicine is that i can understand exactly how the drugs may/may not affect my body, so i can be wary of certain drugs such a Xanax, which i do use when needed, but ensure that i do not get depdendent. There are too many doctors out there who have no idea what anxiety and depression really is, and it's unfortunate because they fail to warn their patients about the possible dangers of certain medications. As for the field of medicine i'd like to practise.... perhaps psychiatry or neurology. Still don't really have a clue haha

[Hidden in reply to MedStudent1]

HelloMedStudent! What are the greatest stresses for you as you study to become a doctor? It is balance your academics with your own personal life? I would guess you would not have a lot of free time to relax or enjoy your own hobbies.

I am prescribed Lorzapam which others have told me is Ativan- but of course I don't know. I do know I am allowed one a day. And now I have taken one in maybe three weeks. For me I always think of how tired it makes me. And then balance to whether or not I willing to pay the price.

That is wonderful you have dedicated your life to helping people.💐

[MedStudent1 in reply to Hidden]

Actually to be honest, free time is not the issue... i have quite a good memory so it's no real problem learning the content (and boy is there a lot of it!) For some reason however, my anxiety got way out of control and i started having panic attacks. I've brought my anxiety down over the last 10 months... have been on 20mg fluox, thinking of going up to 40mg, however i still require the occasional Xanax such as during exams. As long as i can remember i was interested in the human body and how it functions.

[BEAR777 in reply to MedStudent1]

Hello hope you complete your studies Sounds like you know what your doing! Sure wish I had a PCP like you over 30 years ago have been on Xanax that long Worked great as a matter of fact TOO great now Im 65 many comorbidity's and going through a living hell with the Xanax I would think by now their would be a way out of it surely a better way to deal with panic disorders and a safer way of helping the LYMBIC SYSTEM and THE AMYGLOID spelled that wrong GABA needs much more study

[MedStudent1 in reply to BEAR777]

Hello Bear777 thanks for the reply! Yes Xanax is, medically speaking, THE MOST ADDICTIVE DRUG! And not just prescription meds either, i'm talking more addictive than heroin... cocaine... whatever you can think of. In medicine we define the addictive nature of a drug depending on how your body can cope without it. Since Xanax works on the GABA system (just like other benzos, but xanax is the most potent one) you can actually die during withdrawals, just like alcohol, which also works on the GABA system. This is because, once you stop the drug, your body no longer has the ability to synthesise GABA by itself as effectively, as it required the drug to release GABA. The dosage and length of time you take the drug obviously have a major impact. Stopping taking the drug after a long period of time means reduced GABA, therefore reduced inhibition of respiratory system among many other factors... leading to abnormal neurotransmitter activity in the central nervous system, causing seizures, coma and possibly death .

But i completely agree with you, there must be more research done on these mental disorders because the number of people being diagnosed with these disorders are increasing exponentially with each generation.