VCarter

I'm starting to plan out a new tattoo! With only one tattoo (right ribcage) the asymmetry is starting to bug me (I'm super anal retentive), so I'm planning something out for the other side so I feel more "balanced". Once again it will probably be something super girly and brightly colored, I'm thinking possibly flowers (orchids, irises, lilies, my favorites). I love the planning process!

Both my parents like the tattoo I currently have (a pair of ballet slippers on my rib cage) as well as the ideas I've been tossing around for a few others I want to get. Then again, my parents are pretty freaking cool.

Both my parents have tattoos that pre-date my arrival, but I was probably 5 or 6 when I first got to see a "before and after" sort of deal when my dad added to his collection (until the color was put in he spent many hours sitting patiently as I happily scribbled away on my personal coloring book with washable markers).

Got to spend the past 3 weeks back home visiting my parents while doing a rotation in neurology. I was also able to take in a few ballet classes at my old studio, turns out that I can still function reasonably well en pointe!

UGH. Crazy busy day, dealing with an a-hole attending and a pager that just wouldn't stop beeping. However, after a backrub from my sweetie and 4 martinis life is feeling much better (and slightly more spiny).

Oh PCR, either your best friend or your soul-sucking worst enemy. What's super awesome is when you order your primers, spend a month freaking out because you can't get the right band, then receive an email saying they screwed up and sent you the wrong sequence. Not that I'm bitter or anything. As much as I loved my basic science days, I'm glad they are long behind me now.

Trust me, there are still plenty of people pursuing medicine as a career. Where I am studying there is an average of 800-900 applicants every year and only 100 spots available.

@beez - mattresses are tricky to deal with since they can't just be tossed in the washing machine. I would get some Lysol or other disinfectant spray, and give the whole thing a good spritz until it is damp and let it air dry completely.

Norovirus definitely tends to have a seasonal distribution, more common during the winter months when people spend more time in close quarters. Symptoms definitely tend to have a quick and dirty appearance (usually 24-48 hours after exposure), and usually go away within a few days. It is a huge pain in the rear to deal with in a hospital setting, I've seen whole wards shut down within only a day or two since the thing spreads like wildfire (in fact my internal medicine rotation just got switched to a different hospital because of an outbreak). Unfortunately there really isn't much you can do for treatment aside from supportive care, lots of rest, plenty of fluids, and all that jazz. Once you are feeling better I would highly recommend giving everything a thorough cleaning (hot water for fabrics, bleach solution for solid surfaces) since the virus can persist.

I wonder if it has something to do with the fact that a tattoo machine doesn't really look like a needle, in the same way that a hypodermic needle and syringe does. Maybe it also has to do with the fact that getting a tattoo is a voluntary action, whereas needles in a medical context tend not to be. I'm finding also that the patients I deal with who have the greatest needle anxiety also tend to be those who have had bad experiences in the past (having an old battle-axe of a nurse aggressively try multiple times to ram an IV line into my hand as a kid definitely had me spooked of needles for a while).

Hmm, never heard of this one! In my mind it seems like the leaf is basically acting like a heat sink, and absorbing the heat given off by the inflamed body part (heat being one of the cardinal signs of inflammation), leaving the underlying tissue cooler and thereby feeling less irritated.

I basically grew up in a dance studio, and spent the majority of my life as a "bunhead" using my 20+ hours a week of ballet, jazz, tap, etc. as my primary way of staying in shape, accompanied by some yoga, pilates and running. Unfortunately I had to give that up once I started med school, as my schedule is way too hectic and my body is way too damaged at this point. I'm in the process of training for a half marathon, so I have a 5 day schedule for my running and I also try to get to at least 3 yoga classes per week.

@Elise - Congrats on surviving! I found that the first 24-48 hours were the worst in terms of finding clothing to wear. If you can get away with a tank top with just the built in bra I would try that (i found that the band of my bra touching my tattoo was very uncomfortable for the first couple days). Unfortunately (or fortunately) I am rather "ample bosomed" and it isn't really feasible for me to go out in public without a good bra.

Wow!!! Some amazing tattoos have been happening lately! I only got my first one a couple months ago but this is making me itch to get started on my next piece.

Survived my first week of acting like a "real doctor", complete with 2 overnight call shifts. Thankfully it was pretty uneventful, with no really hard cases to deal with. I have however confirmed that pediatrics is not going to be on my list of residencies to apply for, dealing with screaming kids and hypochondriac parents is definitely not my cup of tea.

I think that was the problem with Firefly, it wasn't a terrible pile of crap and therefore had no place on TV. They needed to make more room for high quality programming like Jersey Shore lol.

If you are that concerned about it I would suggest going back to your pimple artist and having them take a look.

I have started the next phase of my medical training - moving from student to intern! It scares the bejeebus out of me that I am now having to be responsible for real patients. First overnight on-call shift is Monday, which I anticipate will be both interesting and completely overwhelming.

I am hooked on Game of Thrones! I'm not normally a huge fantasy/sci fi fan, but this show is quite well done.

Both of my parents have tattoos, so telling them about my own ink was never a worry (I was honestly more concerned about telling them I was moving across the country with my boyfriend- now fiance- for school). As a kid I remember taking markers to my dad's arm to color in a piece that he only had the outline of (after it was healed of course), he was my living breathing coloring book! I think my parents were actually slightly disappointed that I didn't ask them to come with me and be part of my first tattoo experience.

When I started med school our entire class got the Judgey McJudgeypants talk about maintaining a professional appearance out of respect for both the field and for our patients. They even went so far as to out and out say that any non-traditional appearance may result in lower grades during our clinical evaluations based on how professional we appear to be and how serious we are taking our training. I don't have any major visible modifications (aside from a tiny stud in my nose piercing), but one of my classmates (who has an amazing Japanese themed sleeve) was sweating bullets throughout the entire talk. While I do agree that we need to dress and act professionally, and that perhaps face, hand or neck tattoos may not be the best choice to make at this point in our careers I really dislike the idea that part of our grades is basically determined by our looks. This was also highly ironic as the person delivering this talk happens to have more than one or two tattoos of their own.

One of the best tips I have for preventing ingrowns is to exfoliate before shaving. That and some good old fashioned hydrocortisone cream at the first sign of redness worked wonders for me in the days before I switched to waxing my girly bits.

I don't have anything in other locations for comparison, but my only tattoo to date is on my ribs and I honestly didn't think it was painful. Granted it was only a 90 minute session, which may have something to do with the lack of ouchness, but I found that the vibration was the most annoying part. My artist was surprised how well I sat, and said that I put some of the big boys to shame (I'm female, and only 4'10" tall). The next piece I'm planning may change my tune as it will be on the other side of my ribcage and much larger in size.

Thanks for the welcome! @Graeme - I'm originally from Vancouver, but have moved to Saskatchewan for school.