What it Takes to Wear This “White Coat” as PA Student

Hey guys! I know it has been a while since the last post. Please forgive me! It is so hard to pretty much do anything outside of school right now. My life has been on “whew chile lately.” I’m sure any PA student in didactic year can relate.
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I’m a month into my second semester of PA school and it has been a whirlwind! I’m currently taking Clinical Medicine, Pediatrics, Surgery, Physical Exam, and Clinical Skills & Procedures. I wanted to take the time and just let you guys know “what it takes to wear this white coat as a PA student.”
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PA school is very difficult. It’s probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do. There is a constant overload of new material that you are learning every day. It's not that the material is necessarily hard or not interesting it's just that it is so much at a time. Wearing this white coat as a PA student means literally eating, breathing and sleeping PA school. It means being in class all day just to go home and spend more hours studying and reviewing what you learned that day; just to do it all over again the next day. It means learning “fifty leven” diseases and conditions in a short time period. It means exams every week and multiple ones on the same day at times. It means being miles apart from family if you’re like me, and not getting to see them for months at a time. It means not being able to chat and talk with your family and friends every day because you have to study! It means not getting to watch your favorite TV shows all the time lol (seriously though I was 2 weeks behind on my shows and I finally got to catch up this weekend lol).  You have times when you feel you are not adequate to handle this. It is feeling overwhelmed more days than not. Sometimes it's feeling like “what the heck have I gotten myself into.” Before attending PA school people try to tell you how it is going to be but you never really understand until you are actually here doing it!
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I don’t want you guys to get scared by this post and not want to pursue the profession. I mean learning how to save lives is going to be hard but it's going to be so worth it in the end. When I learn something and it makes sense, I’m like omg! (I legit got happy the other day because my little cousin had croup and I was like did they give him dexamethasone and his mom was like omg yeah how did you know Bahahaha! I was like let me find out I’m learning something) 
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Self-care days are so important! Didactic year is tough but it is doable y’all. Sometimes it's easy to get depressed, that’s why you have to set out time for yourself so that you can rest. Talk to your classmates and let off steam. It can be hard talking to people that are not going through this process because they don’t really understand but your classmates do! They are going through the same process as you. I thank God for my PA frans! Most importantly lean on the LORD. He wouldn’t have allowed you to go down this path if he knew you couldn’t handle it. Yes, it's hard but you have to keep your eyes on the prize. Literally, I haven’t been able to sleep at night. I felt like I was starting to have anxiety about school and I was like the devil is a lie! I shall not stress and worry but know that God is with me at ALL times.  In no way am I trying to complain I’m just being honest about the hard work you have to put in to be a medical provider. I’ve literally been going non-stop since we started back in January but I know it's going to be so worth it, so I just have to keep the course! (Last week was exam week and God came through y’all! I literally almost started shouting once I pressed submitted and saw my grade on one of my exams lol) He is beyond faithful!
 
So, if you know anyone in any health professional program make sure y’all check on them and send prayers up for them lol! We will appreciate it 😊
 
It takes a lot to wear this white coat as a PA student but I’m so glad GOD chose me to serve in this capacity!
 
I love you guys and God loves you sooooo much!