I Would Walk 500 Miles
“When I wake up yeah I know I’m gonna be
I’m gonna be the man who wakes up next to you
When I go out yeah I know I’m gonna be
I’m gonna be the man who goes along with youIf I get drunk yes I know I’m gonna be
I’m gonna be the man who gets drunk next to you
And if I haver yeah I know I’m gonna be
I’m gonna be the man who’s havering to youBut I would walk 500 miles
And I would walk 500 more
Just to be the man who walked 1000 miles
To fall down at your door”-Lyrics from “I’m Gonna Be” by the Proclaimers
Today I experimented with my commute to the hospital. I walked 2.2 miles to a subway stop, rode the train for about 50 minutes, and then walked 0.7 miles to the hospital. That’s almost 3 miles, and 6 miles round trip. My feet did get a bit tired. But my brain remains energized and happy. I did not have to deal with traffic. I read interesting stuff during the train ride, and I got in my exercise for the day. I think I will use this route for a while, at least until I become too tired or physically unable to do so. Remind me at some point to write a post about the benefits of walking to work. There are oh so many.
In other news, I continue to love psychiatry. My patients as of late are incredibly, severely mentally ill. I admitted a patient today who was one of the most psychotic and treatment resistant schizophrenic patients that I’ve ever seen in my entire life.
My attending had me do a PANSS (Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale) score on the patient. She scored a 123. To give you context, here are the numbers:
“Being considered “mildly ill” according to the CGI approximately corresponded to a PANSS total score of 58, “moderately ill” to a PANSS of 75, “markedly ill” to a PANSS of 95 and severely ill to a PANSS of 116.”
One thing I can say right now is that I am definitely satisfied with the psychiatry program that I chose. The patient population that I have been exposed to is an incredibly challenging one. The patients I’ve seen during my two inpatient psychiatry rotations are undeniably profoundly mentally ill. I see things on a daily basis, which some people only read about in textbooks. The exposure presents an immensely intense and enriching learning experience. For that, I thank my lucky stars.