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Hey guys! 👋 Hope you've all had a fantastic week. I wrote this newsletter intending to post it a week ago, but posted the last newsletter instead. My apologies for any confusion with the chronology!
I'm writing this newsletter from the doctors' on-call room as I embark on my first set of night shifts as a doctor. To be honest, I was quite apprehensive about these nights. From what I've heard from my psychiatry colleagues, these shifts are notoriously stressful and demanding. I'm the sole doctor on-site responsible for over 100 patients. Although I have a consultant on call whom I can contact for emergencies, it's still quite daunting to grasp the extent of this responsibility.
To help me get through these nights, I decided to book a mini holiday to Italy next week, using the days off I'm given to recover from these shifts. I know this might sound trivial, but one strategy I use to navigate difficult times is to plan exciting activities immediately after a stressful period in my life. I acknowledge that booking a holiday may seem privileged (I'm very grateful to have family living abroad), but this could also be as simple as going out for lunch or catching a movie I've been looking forward to in the cinema.
What this does for me is that whenever things become particularly stressful, I close my eyes, take a deep breath, and remind myself of where I'll be in just a few days. When I finally reach that destination, it becomes a comforting memory to look back on those stressful moments with a smile, reassuring myself that the next challenge will pass too.
A week later, I'm back in the UK, finishing this newsletter and looking ahead to another busy week. I have another 12.5-hour on-call shift on Thursday, and I've booked a locum night shift in psychiatry for Saturday night. I intend to fill the following week with as many hard-working opportunities as possible. To help me through it all, I already have the next trip planned to visit family and relax, which is coming up soon. I know this "strategy" will leave me feeling both relaxed and accomplished when I finally reach my destination.
So, the next time you anticipate a stressful or busy period, consider if there's anything you can plan or schedule for yourself once it's all over. The greater the stressor, the more significant the reward you can plan for yourself! 🙂
See you next week! Kenji.
👍🏾 Things I’ve enjoyed this week
Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones (Netflix Documentary) - This is a great documentary on Netflix looking at blue zones, which are areas in the world with a higher proportion of centenarians. It looks into how these people live that leads them to have such a long life expectancy.
Headspace (meditation app) - I’ve recently started getting into meditation to balance having stressful moments at work and I’ve really been enjoying it! This teaches you the basics of meditation and guides you through the process. You can try it out free for a month if you’d like!
Multi-gym access (life hack) - I’ve found myself at multiple times having a spare 45 minutes during my day wishing I could work out but being far away from my usual home gym. So this week, I upgraded my gym membership where I can use any site across the country and I’ve already used it a few times where I finish work a bit early and have time to get a workout in before going for my evening locum shift. I hope it increases my habit of working out more often! Wish I had done this sooner.
📹 The latest video in case you missed it:
What I eat in a Day on a 13-hour on-call shift (psychiatry)
📚 Highlight of the week
The great possessions of the rich do not worry the poor’, adding, ‘on the other hand, if the wealthy man’s possessions fail, he is not consoled by the many things he already possesses. Wealth is like sea-water; the more we drink, the thirstier we become; and the same is true of fame.’ He also highlights the relativity of a person’s feeling of satisfaction: it ‘rests not on an absolute but a merely relative amount, namely the relation between his claims and his possessions’. In other words, it is not what we own that satisfies us but rather what we have in relation to what we feel is possible and attainable for ourselves. That is the tension that causes dissatisfaction. Luxuries beyond that horizon (a billionaire’s fleet of private jets) are not likely to seriously interest us. Schopenhauer of course recognises the advantages of having money: he notes that it is uniquely ready to meet a large number of our needs by transforming itself into the specific thing that we require.
The great possessions of the rich do not worry the poor’, adding, ‘on the other hand, if the wealthy man’s possessions fail, he is not consoled by the many things he already possesses. Wealth is like sea-water; the more we drink, the thirstier we become; and the same is true of fame.’ He also highlights the relativity of a person’s feeling of satisfaction: it ‘rests not on an absolute but a merely relative amount, namely the relation between his claims and his possessions’. In other words, it is not what we own that satisfies us but rather what we have in relation to what we feel is possible and attainable for ourselves. That is the tension that causes dissatisfaction. Luxuries beyond that horizon (a billionaire’s fleet of private jets) are not likely to seriously interest us. Schopenhauer of course recognises the advantages of having money: he notes that it is uniquely ready to meet a large number of our needs by transforming itself into the specific thing that we require.
"You help people when they need help, not when you are ready to help them."
Resurfaced to me by Readwise
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Want to learn more from me? Check these out👇
🩺 (Free) How to Get into Medical School - From Application to Doctor: https://skl.sh/2TwpH0N
👨🏼💻 An Essay Writing Masterclass - The Best Essay Writing Technique: https://courses.kenjitomita.co.uk
🏥 My Online Medicine Interview Course: https://courses.kenjitomita.co.uk
📑 Study notes, my university personal statements, dissertation and more:https://www.kenjitomita.co.uk/shop
🛠 My favourite tools 🔨
📚 Listen to my favourite book of all time (or any other) free on Audible
🥼 My daily hospital scrubs: HappyThreads
🎒 My everyday and travel bag from Menos (use KENJI10 for 10% off)
📝 My favourite iPad screen protector: Paperlike