You want me to talk about it?

As the first month of my program comes to a close I realize that despite the chaos, the logistical nightmare of starting at a hospital, the new challenges and the heat…oh yes the heat…I am still standing. The lack of air-conditioning in my apartment has led to what feels like interior temperatures of at least 150F/55C…leading me to scoff at those who complain about Bikram Yoga…try Bikram Living. I have found some comfort in trips to the beach, and am starting to feel more at home here in New Haven. Work is going well ~ I have completed my crash course in neuroanatomy and have started testing patients….pretty interesting stuff and should be a smooth four months.

The only slightly disturbing aspect of our induction to Yale and the hospital has been our ‘group therapy’ sessions…not for patients…but for ourselves. Apparently there were a group of residents who nearly killed each other ten years ago and they had to bring in a group facilitator to settle everyone down. They figured it was such a good idea now every incoming class has group ‘meetings’ for the first few months of the training year. To provide a small insight into the content of these meetings…and perhaps provide some insight into why I tried to put a fork in my eye in the first session…here is the transcript:

Facilitator: ‘So to introduce yourselves I want to go around the room and I want you to say your name and why you decided to go into psychology.’

Group Members: ‘Standard interview response….being sure to use phrases such as ‘passion’ and ‘desire to help others’.

Facilitator: ‘Ok…so now we are going to go around the group again and for those who are brave enough….I want you tell me why you REALLY went into psychology”

Group Members: Various sounds of commotion…some vomiting into trash cans…others attempting to punch themselves in the face…

Six months of this….plenty of time to root out all that trauma from childhood….

Onward….!

Pictured: Yale’s Dining Hall and Library

Pretentious, moi??

So it has been just over a week since I arrived in New Haven and I have successfully navigated my first week as a new fellow at Yale. By no means does this imply I know what I am doing, just that I am still in possession of a working ID card and will apparently still be paid at the end of the month. It has been good so far, people are nice, and navigating the hospital and clinics seems manageable. My first rotation is in the neuropsych/neurosurgery department ~ which specializes in incurable cases of epilepsy. It is pretty interesting stuff, with my first morning taking me to the operating room to observe a patient have half of his brain anesthetized and then his memory tested.  I will be in this clinic for the next few months before rotating through to transplant and oncology.

At the end of each day I am trying to examine whether I have become more pretentious ~ whether there are lingering thoughts of my general superiority, a strange urge to ‘pop my collar’, a tendency to speak with an ‘academic pause’ (an excruciatingly annoying habit of pausing frequently to let the listener fully ‘appreciate’ the ‘gravity’ of your words…if I ever do this…slap me…hard), a growing fascination with boat shoes, or mounting frustration at the sheer lunacy of not being able to purchase toilet paper with the word ‘Yale’ inscribed on it.  So far I think I am ok, although I know ‘Ivy Leaugitis’ (or as Jen puts it…’Pretentious Pocket”) is an insidious disease and I must stay vigilant (although it does wonders for one’s posture).

My 4^th of July was spent in a forest owned by Yale (of course they do) with some friends from the forestry graduate program. It was very relaxing – and a nice way to prepare for the suffocating 100F/40C degree weather that descended upon us the next day. Now it is time to get to work and make the most of this year on the east coast. With emails and phone calls maintaining our relationship ~ which is always tough ~ especially after spending 300 hours locked in a car together (I swear…there is no sarcasm here) I am adapting to an apartment to myself ~ a new city and university ~ and just like your first day of kindergarten…the need to make new friends…the adventure…as always…continues.

Pictures: Yale’s main library and college streets, my apartment, and new digs…Ikea calls this the ‘prison cell’ look.