Sad
I just walked into the medical school main building at my university. On my way in I passed two first year medical students, recognizable from their bright blue backpacks. Both girls were smoking cigarettes outside the front door. How sad that the people who are supposed to be advising others on how to protect their precious health are ruining their own. They have no excuses; we grew up in a generation that fully knew what dangers cigarettes hold, and yet the smoke. We had the benefit of ads and publicity campaigns aimed at stamping out cigarette smoking. I don't even think smoking holds the "cool"ness factor that it once did. So then, why?
There was one smoker in my class when we started and he no longer smokes and I think that's great. There's no time like now to quit.
I know that medical students aren't gods or immune to the plights of normal human beings but I hope that we are well educated about the health effects of our actions. If you are a med student and you smoke, maybe you can enlighten me as to why.
8 comments:
I think that's a pretty shortsighted and rather pompous comment. You know nothing about these girls or what else is going on in their lives. Some people find it easy to quit smoking, others find it close to impossible. If someone finds that this is the thing that lets them cope with the enormous stresses of medical school, then what's it to you? Is it any worse than the binge drinking that many med students do following exams? We all have the right to make choices about our personal health, and the trade offs in our lives. For some people it may be that the stress of quiting smoking at this point in their lives would be so great that they would not be able to pass their courses. I'm not a smoker, but if I were, I bet that I'd place a higher premium on not failing out of med school than on dying some years earlier due to lung disease. And that would be MY choice to make, and a perfectly valid one. Maybe these girls have other personal things going on, other issues in their lives, etc. I hope that you aren't going to judge your future patients in the same way that you judged them.
I'm a 2nd year med student, and smoking is something that I've battled with off and on since college. For me, it's a MAJOR stress relief. In college, I used to grab a pack for finals, and that was it. In med school, it was intermittent, whenever exams got really tough. I haven't smoked for about 4 months now, and I certainly hope I don't pick it up again, but I do know that if things get stressful enough, I just might. We are smart people, and smokers know it's bad for them, but once you start using it as a crutch, it's hard not to. As one of my profs said last year, there's nothing he can prescribe that both relaxes and stimulates the mind like nicotine does. Sadly, it works, and that's why so many people use it as a stress relief
anonymous you're a bleeping pompous arse yourself!
Smoking is NOT just about them smoking, it's also about second hand smoke. It's disgusting.
I know myself that dying of lung cancer is the most painful way of dying. It's excruciating to slowly suffocate, and I mean slowly.
There are ways to stop smoking. Try anything that comes to mind and I believe you'll find your thing. Acupuncture, hypnosis, patches, gum. Who cares, but it's a disgusting habit, and usually low class people that smoke.
Hee hee I know I'll get some pompous comments on that last bit.
Anonymous,
I have to say, I'm surprised that you think I'm pompous, but you're entitled to your own opinion. I understand that it's hard to QUIT smoking, but I also find it hard to believe that people still start in the first place. Sometimes I think people use stress as an excuse to do things they know they shouldn't do. They are many other healthier ways to deal with stress, and there are many people in the university willing to help students to find these things. With all the support in the community, I still find it hard to believe that doctors/future doctors smoke. And, for the record, I don't think binge drinking, binge eating, bulemia, or whatever other unhealthy outlets people use for stress are that acceptable either for people who know better.
Lol I hope anonymous reads my last post - I'd love to see his or (I suspect in this case it's actually) her reaction.
I certainly see your point: why did they begin to smoke in the first place? I think... ha! my comment was so long I'm going to post about it instead. Anyway, in short, I think is an ownership issue: my body, my choices.
Choices with crap consequences, but there you go.
I do find it hard to understand why people my age (mid-20's) start to smoke, since we all know the dangers. I smoked a few cigarettes in college to see what the attraction was--I realized cigarettes taste good, but I would cough for a few days afterward, and I quit (having never been addicted, so I can't comment on actually being addicted to nicotine).
If you are in the medical field, it's not just your body you're screwing up with cigarette smoke. I've had patients with severe asthma attacks who got worse when their doctor, nurse, RT, or other health personnel entered their room reeking of smoke after a cigarette break. Also, if you smoke while at work in a hospital, you are likely smoking in a place where patients and/or families could easily encounter your smoke (unless you are in a designated smoking area, or on the roof or something like that).
I used to be more interested in a person's individual rights to smoke, but I've gotten more concerned with second-hand smoking and it's immediate and long-term effects. Unless you are SURE your smoking isn't in a place where the smoke affects someone else, and you are careful to properly dispose of the butts, then it is likely that your smoking is adversely affecting other people, which is rude.
I think you'll realize as you progress farther in your medical career that oftentimes it seems we are in a profession dedicated to the care of other's lives, at the cost of our own. We work ridiculous hours, under stressful conditions, for shrinking compensation. Cigarettes, or rather nicotine, actually help with concentration, and with relaxation, and many docs who have resigned themselves to letting their profession kill them smoke for that stress relief. Just a thought.
Additionally, I know a surgeon who eats the most unhealthy food I've ever seen anyone consume. His reasoning? He wants to die of a massive heart attack by the time he is 60, becuase he doesn't want to be a patient on a medicine ward.
Nathan,
I agree with you completely. Therea are very few med students that I know that don't engage in some form of self-destruction (be it alcohol, food, smoking, sex, etc) because of the rigors we put ourselves through to become doctors. We are pushed to the limits, and there's very little emphasis on how to appropiately handle the stress we have, at least not in the pre-clinical years. Yeah, smoking is OBVIOUSLY really bad for you, but it serves a purpose for the people who do smoke. Also, it's tough to put off doing something immediately satisfying for a better outcome years down the road. That's why I took up running. I can't run well and smoke while studying at the same time! But it's hard to keep up, and when exams hit, the cravings are still there.
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