Managing Stress in Medical School
SMART: A Wellness Guide for First-Year Medical Students
Medical school has intense academic demands such as long hours studying, memorizing considerable amounts of information, and preparing for multiple exams (Henning et al, 1998). Medical students have reported these as stressors that often affect their overall wellbeing.
But you may already know this. So, what is it that you may not know? There are unexpected stressors associated with these academic demands that can lead to an imbalance, leading to increased stress and anxiety.
It is common to focus so much on academics that you begin to neglect self-care such as nutrition and sleep. Or, the 'culture shock' of now being equal in a group of your peers may cause self-doubt and feelings of inadequacy.
This website will review the unexpected stressors and offer you SMART, a wellness approach to managing time and stress during medical school.
"I was expecting difficult work, but I could have never anticipated how hard the learning curve would be"
~ Medical Student
Another medical student described the amount of material needed to study as
"trying to drink out of a fire hydrant"
SMART is a 5-step framework for creating structure and managing stress in medical school. The steps focus on strategies that help you manage your schedule and increase time management efficiency. It also encourages you to find a healthy academic/life balance by maintaining self-care through mindfulness.
SMART can help you manage common, as well as unexpected stressors in medical school that can lead to burnout.
The SMART framework is easy to use and incorporate into your lifestyle. This website will provide you with resources and strategies that will help you practice the SMART wellness approach to managing stress in medical school.
There are 5 steps to SMART. Learn more about the steps below.
The SMART Framework
The SMART Framework:
Structure
Mindfulness
Allies
Right-Mind
Therapy and Self-Care
Create Structure by having a daily routine and schedule for your academics and self-care.
