After 10 GCSEs, 1 AS level, 3 A levels, two degrees and five years as a doctor, you would think that my time sitting exams would be over...you would be wrong!
Yesterday I sat one of my MRCPsych exams (MRCPsych stands for Membership of the Royal College of Psychiatrists). Membership exams are a necessity for every junior doctor climbing the career ladder- you can't be a specialist without them. They are also expensive (£400 each attempt) and notoriously difficult, and many doctors believe that they aren't representative of a doctor's abilities as a clinician, merely how good they are at exams.
Regardless of that- no membership exam= no ladder climbing. Having struggled to focus on revision for previous exams because of my tendency to get easily distracted, I decided that I needed to pull out all the stops- get out of the city, turn off the phone and hole up somewhere quiet (I love Leeds, but I would rarely describe it as 'quiet') for a week, and get down to some serious studying and exam question practice.
To that end I found a little cottage in the middle of Nowhere, South Somerset, with internet access but no phone signal, and best of all, a hot tub for the end-of-the-day-relaxation! On went the work email Out of Office Assistant and off went the bane-of-my-life-pager (after it went off halfway down the M5 somewhere near Cribbs Causeway). A week's worth of groceries were ordered from the nearest supermarket- a Waitrose in the little town of Wellington- to complement my 'self-catering pack' (a small box of tricks I keep especially for self-catering trips, which includes good coffee, a small cafetiere, Yorkshire and chamomile tea, herbs, spices, sugar, flour, pasta, rice, a decent chef's knife, cleaning wipes, loo roll and washing-up liquid) and a very small (well, small for me) holdall of mainly pyjamas and hoodies was packed.
After arriving on Saturday 3rd and being greeted by the cottage owner, I didn't see another person for 6 days until my return to Leeds, and apart from a little Tweeting, a blog update and a couple of personal emails, didn't communicate with anyone either. I worked for 12 hours each day, chilled out for 5 (including cooking, naturally!) and slept for seven- virtually unheard of for insomniac me.
Was it a good idea? Well, I certainly felt more prepared for the exam, and less anxious during it. As to whether I've passed the wretched thing- only time and the Royal College of Psychiatrists will tell.
Revision Hibernation- culinary highlights
I always need a motivator when revising, especially now that I've lost the discipline of studying full-time, and what better way to motivate oneself than by yummy food?! Studying for 12 hours per day is no excuse to revert to ready meals (actually, while we're on the subject, there's almost no excuse for reverting to ready meals!). Of course, it's also not really the time to be trying out experimental, multi-staged, complicated recipes either. So it was old favourites all the way for Revision Hibernation Week! Here's a little rundown!
- Chilli con carne- one day with rice, the next day as nachos with tortilla chips and melted cheese
- Lamb steaks with redcurrant and rosemary sauce, mash, vegetables and Yorkshire pudding
- Pancakes (made from leftover Yorkshire pudding batter), banana, caramel ice-cream and cinnamon syrup
- Moroccan-spiced stir-fried lamb, pitta breads, green salad, yoghurt and mint dressing
- Fresh pasta with tomato, basil and marscapone sauce, roasted tomatoes, peppers and garlic croutons (Meat Free Mondays still apply to Revision Hibernation Week)
- Chicken and bacon club sandwich with oven-baked sweet potato chips and salad
- Cheese and chive souffle omelette made with eggs from the cottage owner's hens, with sourdough toast, bacon and roasted mushrooms
- Maltesers, salted pretzels, Ritz crackers, blue corn tortilla chips, clementines and Somerset apples
If you'd like any recipes, email me :-)
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