From Miami -> To NOLA

These have just became the crazy times of year 2020. Right when studying just picked up for the Shelf Exam. Due to the spread and safety of Covid-19 (Coronavirus) our Shelf Exam was cancelled with only 4 days left for the day. It was very stressful to hear that with all that studying and preparedness I have done for this huge exam was cancelled. Also all our classes have no been converted to virtual classes, in which we use zoom. Sadly, due to the rapid spread of the virus in New Orleans, my parents suggested me to return home to Miami and continue my studying from over there. I am happy to be home but I am so sad my New Orleans experience has been cut very short. Although I did miss home, it is sad I am not able to see my friends or go to the places I love because the city is on lockdown. This virus has made people crazy in this city and it’s fun to watch, from home of course. The good thing is that I have been kept busy training my dog, as well as, taking care of the other two dog

It's my first Mardi Gras Season! I am so excited to experience this holiday here. Even though a lot of events aka the Shelf exam is coming up. I'm glad we celebrate this fun weekend and then we grind for the big exam. I am also planning to re-take the MCAT again and I am bit nervous taking exams but I feel like I can do it. Class has been less demanding because of the big exam coming up, but they are covering really interesting topics like neurology and what kinds of none recreational drugs, as well as psychiatric disorders. These are really helpful because some of these diseases people can relate too. Especially, anxiety and depression disorders where I think we go through at some point in our lives. But all these drugs and disorders we learn how to manage them through the book we are reading in which it brings a lot of topics for discussion.  I also had the chance to do two volunteer events in which I really enjoyed. We volunteered at the Rock n Roll Marathon in th

Happy New Year Everyone! My break was very eventful it was nice seeing my family, friends, and dogs over the break. I was also very excited because my family got to meet my puppy in training that I'm raising for the rest of the year.  But now we are back and ready to finish this semester strong. There is a lot of events coming up, in which I am so excited for, this will be my first Mardi Gras experience and I'm so excited to watch all the parades, catch all the beads and try different flavors of king cake.  The semester has already started we just finished the endocrine and reproductive module which I thought was really interesting and how we still need to focus more on the health of women and why certain things occur. We are now finishing the Neurology module and it’s amazing how complicated the brain can be and no one knows why and that there has been little progress done even though so much research has been done. We also have added more electives this semester. The

We practically did not have a month November. Before I knew it I was home for Thanksgiving Break and it became the first day of December. We have been through two modules the Cardiac Unit and the Renal/ Pulmonary Module. Both were extremely challenging in which it caused me to review the concepts multiple times and also use my stick figure artistic skills to draw different pathways to better understand. I finally got to home after two months of being away from my family. This is the longest I have been away from them and I missed them and my dogs so much. They were very excited to see come home for a few days. We spent Thanksgiving this year in Mexico City eating tacos on the street instead of turkey. We visited many towns around the city that were filled with historic pyramids from the Mayan years and even before that. This month I continued volunteering for the LASPCA. For the first time I choose to walk and socialize with the dogs. The easy part was socializing and p

The month of October has flown by. We are already half way through the semester and I have learned so much from each module. We have already covered Basic Principles and Inflammation, Infectious Disease and the Autonomic Nervous System. My personal favorite has been the infectious disease module because my undergraduate degree is in Microbiology and Immunology so I was able to put together my previous knowledge and what I learned in this module to better understand how the drug works in fighting an infection. We are currently now going through the cardiovascular module which I have enjoyed learning how to read ECGs and being able to apply my knowledge in the cardio unit to a scenario in the simulation lab. These past modules have not been easy and require a lot of time to preview before and review after a class, but is essential to succeed.  I also have been able to volunteer at the LASPCA animal shelter. Where I have learned a lot about the rules and regulation that New Orleans P

Moving only 868 miles away from home has been difficult. Not seeing your family or your dogs running towards you once you step through the door is a habit I did not want to get used to. But I always remember that these new adjustments I did it to benefit myself. I also chose a city in which there is plenty to do, so distractions are easy to come by, also technology, aka Facetime, helps a lot too.  This month has flown by with two exams done and a million more to go. Being a part of the Tulane Masters in Pharmacology, I have met so many wonderful professors and people who have helped through the tough times during classes and exams. Without them I would have not had the clarity and the success that I have so far. Having the flexibility to ask questions to the professors and study as a team helps a lot in this program. One weekend we spent the day to volunteer at NOLA on Tap. It is an LASPCA event in which they fundraise money by having a beer fest and meanwhile showing off their