This week has been a little stressful. I had two exams which I had to study for while being sleep-deprived from taking care of my nieces and nephew this past weekend. I think I did okay on them but as a pre-med student okay is never good enough! The good news is that I am done with all of my prerequisites so I can finally relax a little and (try) not to stress out too much about grades. This week things definitely started making me realize that I am going to be graduating soon. I’m excited but at the same time I’m actually a little sad. I’m might be one of the few people that truly enjoy school. I love learning new things and applying them to my everyday life. This is the main reason why I chose Neuroscience as my major. I get to analyze my and other people’s actions and think about why and how they might be acting in a certain way. For instance, this week my friend made a comment on how depression is a mindset and that those diagnosed with should just “snap out of”. It was rewarding breaking it down to him and explaining how depression isn’t a switch that is voluntarily turned on or off. By the end of the conversation he probably knew a lot more about the neural mechanisms underlying depression than he wanted to know, but at least it served the purpose of making him understand the disorder and sympathize with those with it.
Another highlight of this week was seeing my best friend from Nigeria today. She came to visit her cousins who live about an hour from my sister so I came down to see her. The sad thing is the last time I saw her was a few days before I left Nigeria. I was not allowed to tell anyone that I was leaving to come the United States because it is custom for my tribe to not to speak on major changes to anyone until the transition has been completed. It was really disheartening but she understood why I couldn’t tell and forgave me. I am really excited to see her though. She has grown so much and I am so proud of all she has accomplished and who she is becoming. I’m planning on taking her to a lot of places this weekend so we can explore the city together so it should be fun!
Congratulations on finishing your prerequisites! What an accomplishment in itself! I am hoping to graduate this December, so I definitely understand that bittersweet feeling:) I’m so glad you got to meet your friend from Nigeria! As an immigrant myself, it’s always such an amazing feeling to see my family and friends who live abroad. Thank you for sharing your tribal customs with us. I find cultural differences fascinating. I can see how this particular custom could help make a major transition easier!
I completely understand the feeling of stressing out about grades. I am a Biology Pre-pharmacy major and it’s definitely hard when your wanting to apply to a school in the medical field. I am just now finishing up all of my prerequisites and I applied early to pharmacy school so this will be my last year as an undergraduate as well. I get that same sad feeling sometimes when I think about no longer being an undergrad. However, at the end of the day I guess we are both about moving to the next part of our lives. Congratulations on your upcoming graduation and I wish you the best of luck with medical school!
I really enjoyed reading your post! I especially appreciated when you shared about your culture. Customs aren’t always easy, but many times the meaning behind them and the fact that they belong to a foundation built by our families and past ancestors makes it a beautiful thing. I’m glad you were able to see your best friend, i’m sure she was very excited as well! Thank you for sharing!
Fola! I’m so glad I got to meet you during our last WS job. You’re such an amazing person, and I’m proud that I get to have you as a friend. Congrats in your med school journey. I know a lot of pre-med majors, but m=not all of them actually go through with it towards the end of it, but not you! You actually applied and are getting offers. Don’t stress, you are doing so great!
Oh man, is that graduation feeling an emotional rollercoaster! While I still have 2.5 years left, I can only imagine what you’ve been feeling. It’s also great that you’ve been applying your neuroscience knowledge in everyday life – it goes to show that you’re really passionate about what you signed up for! I’m glad to hear that despite all of the stress, you’re so close to reaching the finish line!
One of my blog posts was pretty similar, because it was also about struggling though exam week. I can relate to your struggles all too well with trying to make it through stacked exams. It must be pretty hard being a neuroscience major too, I’m in nutrition and still struggling. I also like my major for the same reason as you. Being able to inform others whenever they are wrong or are in need of help, feels pretty rewarding.