{"id":1451,"date":"2019-10-03T20:06:27","date_gmt":"2019-10-03T10:06:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thejugular.org\/?p=1451"},"modified":"2019-10-03T20:06:27","modified_gmt":"2019-10-03T10:06:27","slug":"the-heros-burden","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jugular.org.au\/index.php\/2019\/10\/03\/the-heros-burden\/","title":{"rendered":"The Hero’s Burden"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n \t<\/i> Read Time:<\/span>4 Minute, 32 Second <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n

written by DANIEL XUE (edited by JONATHAN CHENG) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heroes are people who are worthy of admiration and respect. They hover above the rest through their endless determination and self-sacrifice. When the world comes crashing down and all hope seems to be lost, we look to these heroes to save us.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But being a hero isn\u2019t easy. Being a hero means pouring countless hours into polishing your craft. It means going beyond your limits and striving to not only be your best, but to stand out from the rest. It means sacrificing time; time that could\u2019ve been spent with friends and loved ones. It means putting in effort; effort that could\u2019ve been used to develop yourself and your passions beyond a singular focus. It means all of these things, simply for the sake of the greater good.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That, is the hero\u2019s burden.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So it\u2019s not much of a stretch to say that doctors are like our everyday heroes. Doctors dedicate themselves to helping others, often at the expense of their own physical and mental wellbeing. They\u2019re competitive and driven, always searching for that something which sets them apart. They dedicate time to learn and grow, and selflessly channel that knowledge through effort for the sake of their patients.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But no modern-day hero would be complete without their own rendition of the hero\u2019s burden.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s start with time. It\u2019s pretty finite stuff, so we have to choose where and what to invest it in with great care and consideration. If you have hobbies, passions or interests outside the medical field, then it goes without saying that you won\u2019t be putting in as many hours as you could\u2019ve otherwise. The thing is, when I think about the trust and faith that my future patients will place in me, I feel compelled to try harder. If you make a mistake, people can die, and that\u2019s terrifying. I don\u2019t know what I\u2019d do with myself if lives were lost because I chose to watch Netflix instead of studying. But a doctor isn\u2019t a martyr. As medical students, we don\u2019t sign up for this profession with the purpose of giving up our own lives to save others. We shouldn\u2019t have to. And yet, it can be hard to shake that feeling of guilt; those crushing thoughts that drop your conscience like anchors to the depths of despair.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then there\u2019s the matter of effort. \u201cP\u2019s get degrees\u201d is a phrase that I\u2019m sure you\u2019re all no stranger to. Or more recently, C\u2019s get honours. Now, as a Phase 1 student, I’m told all the time by older years that most of what I\u2019m learning now won\u2019t be relevant by the time I get to the hospitals. But I\u2019m not really talking about the coursework here. I\u2019ve seen friends assisting in research projects as freshers, and I\u2019ve seen countless others eagerly networking with doctors at whatever event was available at the time. Looking around, it\u2019s hard not to feel like you\u2019re falling behind from your peers. And with all the talk of strict competition and limited spots, sometimes I wonder just how much I\u2019ll have to sacrifice if I want to move forward in medicine.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The thing is, I didn\u2019t sign up to be a hero. I always try to do my best when it comes to medicine. I spend a fair share of my time studying at uni. I put in a good effort to get the most out of the learning opportunities that I\u2019m given. I\u2019m always on the lookout for any engaging extracurricular opportunities that come my way. By all means, I\u2019m walking down the path of becoming a modern-day hero.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But I\u2019m not willing to bear the burden of being one. Because to me, there\u2019s something more important.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI wish there was a way to know you were in the good old days before you actually left them\u201d – Andy Bernard (The Office).\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If there was ever a time to call the \u201cgood old days\u201d, I think it\u2019d be this one. There will come a day when I\u2019ll miss coming into uni. I\u2019ll miss that feeling of freedom when SG ends early, and the triumph of peeking under the door into your mates ongoing class just to let them know you were done. I\u2019ll miss the pracs where an assessment of grip strength to determine life expectancy devolves into a flexing competition where every guy refused to believe that they were as weak as the equipment revealed. I\u2019ll miss staying back past 10pm on a Tuesday in the dusty Edmund Blacket Building of POW, trying (and failing) to learn how to cartwheel over bindi-covered grass as four other Medshow casties spit out a torrent of advice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But if I spent all my time and effort trying to be a hero, then I wouldn\u2019t really have anything left to miss.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m gonna leave you guys with a quote I heard at a Pathways Night from one Dr James Otton, but whose sentiment has been echoed by any and all other doctors I\u2019ve asked so far.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDon\u2019t make medicine your priority\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And hey, if the pros are talking, then who am I not to listen?\u00a0<\/p>\n

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