A Great Hummus Recipe

I have made a lot of different hummus recipes in my time. I mean a LOT.

This one is the best I have ever made:

Pretty Much The Best Hummus Of All Time

The most exciting part (apart from the obvious fact of it being The Best Hummus Of All Time) is that the ingredients are standard. I think it is the technique and the amounts that make it so special.

Anyway, give it a try if you are hankering for some hummus. ;)

I used borlotti beans and added a little basil for flavouring and it still turned out extremely creamy and divine.

Huzzah for hummus!

Med Spec

'Medical Sub-specialties' is a great rotation, but I am feeling completely exhausted. Lately there is not much time that isn't spent either studying like a girl possessed, or in clinics/meetings/rounds.

It seems that a lot of lunches are spent in professional meetings, so there isn't much time-out. I guess it is probably better to go home earlier than spend more time at work, but I am used to at least having a few minutes to myself each day to collect my thoughts.

I'm really enjoying the subject matter and can tell that I have learned a lot. There is still so much that I have to learn before I can start to feel any kind of confidence. One of the lovely people supervising me has said that the important thing about being a junior doctor is knowing when to ask for help - and that you should ask for opinions often rather than not at all.

Of course, asking an opinion isn't the same thing as calling somebody up with no information, unprepared and having no idea what you are doing. I constantly feel clueless, and although I know that the exceedingly intelligent doctors around me have felt the same way in the past, this doesn't make me feel any better.

I don't feel comfortable when I get pimped and don't know the answer. I am not at all upset, but the discomfort comes from feeling like I should know what is being asked, and that I am scared about being a bad doctor and that my lack of knowledge could in some way hurt somebody in the future.

This isn't something that I obsess about, but it is a thought that haunts me a little, particularly when we have tutorials where they mention the old "this happened to an intern in this state X decades/months/years ago".

I really enjoy this area, so it has been a great start to the year. We have a week and a half left before our exam, and I can't wait for the week off. Note to self: less coffee and stress will lead to less need for ranitidine and small snacks of bread.

It is a horrifying yet wonderful thought that our first rotation of the last year of medical school is nearly over.

Clem7 Run

I ran my first 10k event today - well, I ran the second half because I spent the first half walking with Mr TGWTBS, but it is still a milestone for me. :)

It was extremely humid and we were running through a big tunnel underneath the main river in town, so the air wasn't great, but I am still proud of running the second half.

This is a new traffic tunnel beneath the river, and they opened it today for a fun run (10.4km, roughly) and an open day afterwards.

It seems a little backwards, doesn't it? Normally I would think that novice runners would run until they run out of steam and then walk most of the course. However, I spent the first half being social, as this was a special event that I pushed Mr TGWTBS to go in because I wanted us both to be able to say that we had walked the length of the new tunnel. When we got to the half-way mark, I felt really sweaty and warm, but I knew I had a lot more in me, so I kissed Mr TGWTBS goodbye and ran the rest of the way.

The conditions were quite punishing, so I have learned a few valuable lessons for the first time I enter my 'proper' first 10km, like bringing a little bum-bag with a bit of water in it and hydrating properly before the event. I didn't collapse like a LOT of other people (particularly in the last 2km, which were all uphill) but I was very dry and overheated by the finish.

Still, I am very happy to have taken part. :)

Inspiration

I have been reading the blog Lockup Doc recently, and came across this post with some wonderful links.

If you need some inspiration in your life, I can highly recommend it. I may have shed a few tears watching the videos. Good tears.

Huzzah

In contrast to yesterday, I had a great day today.

It reinforced my intention to pursue psychiatry. We had some challenging patient encounters, and I handled it really well, de-escalated and made sure that we all ended up communicating well and felt heard and understood.

It is lovely when it feels like things are coming together, even if it is only a tiny bit.

Not in the zone

I'm not altogether into the medicine right now. Mr TGWTBS is going away for work on Sunday for weeks and weeks and I'm sad.

When I'm working in my own job and have responsibilities to take care of it is easy to get wrapped up in the work and not think about it.

It is much harder as a student. You have big gaps in the day, there is not a lot to follow up and it is harder to get involved in the running of the ward when you are in tutorials, clinics and lectures sporadically through the day.

As a result, the sadness is with me more, and I find it harder to be in the zone. It goes away when I talk to patients, do examinations, take histories and all of the little things that you get to do sometimes as a student, but a lot of our time isn't spent doing this.

I don't know if I'll be better once he is gone - I may well be, and I will be in much less of a rush to get home. Right now I just want to be home before he goes away.

It isn't a major tragedy, it is just sad, and that is okay.

FebFast

I am jumping in and doing FebFast this year.

Basically, it involves me not drinking any alcohol for the entire month of February in order to help raise money for organisations that help with our society's terrible drug and alcohol problem.

I am also participating for my own awareness, as I'm hoping to be more conscious with my drinking. I don't drink much at all, particularly as my husband doesn't drink a drop, but when you are having fun with friends it is easy to finish one glass too many, and this is something with which I'm not comfortable.

It will also be very interesting to attend big social events and be completely sober.

I am not too worried about pressuring people for fundraising, because my entrance fee plus the money donated by a few people I'm close to is an amount I'm comfortable with. I'll drop hints, but if nobody responds, that is perfectly fine by me. :)