Residency Year 3: The Pursuit of Perfection

Hello everyone! It feels refreshing to be blogging again. With everything that has been happening in 2020, it is safe to say many of us have been feeling off-balance. I can't believe I am four months into the third year of residency. It seems like just yesterday I wrote my first residency blog post titled "2 Weeks Down, 3 Years & 50 Weeks To Go!", and I truly cannot believe how quickly time flies.

Although the first two years had their challenges, the third year of residency has been the most challenging year by far. Third year residents are seen as "upper levels", meaning that you are expected to be more knowledgeable, more surgically savvy, and more responsible for teaching the first and second year residents. All these expectations can bring feelings of hypercriticism and self-doubt.

It is well known that perfectionism and "the pressure of perfect" is pervasive in medicine and if not channeled properly, those feelings can lead to mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion. When you fall short of the high expectations from yourself, peers, supervising doctors, nurses, and patients, it can be very difficult to handle. In the midst of the tears, anxiety, and frustration, it is important to continue to find the motivation to persevere. It doesn't matter how many times you get knocked down, what matters is the ability to pick yourself back up.

Whether it is seeing appreciation from patients and their families, noticing the increase in knowledge, or having a great day in the operating room, every little success counts. I am grateful to work with people who have become my family and are always a source of support. The countdown to graduation now begins, one year and seven months to go!