Last week in my anatomy lab we learned about the spinal cord and brain. For the past few weeks I was losing my interest in learning anatomy because it was just so much memorization and I could NOT retain anything...
In Friday's lab I was so tired from trying to memorize the lower muscles that I was no excited to try to learn about anything. We learned about the spinal cord first. It was pretty cool. But still, nothing that I didn't expect. When we went over to the other TA to learn about the brain I got so excited. Most of the brains in the lab are TA only, which means only TAs are allowed to hold them because they are recently dissected and new to the lab so all of us didn't expect to be able to touch or hold anything. There was a brain that was still in half a skull. It was freaking awesome! All I wanted to do was be able to hold it. I could barely pay attention while she was teaching about it. She was trying to lift up the cerebellum to teach us about the stuff beneath and more inferior. She couldn't hold the brain and lift the cerebellum at the same time. SO she asked if one of us would hold it for her. I have never been so willing to volunteer in a class more in my life. It was awesome.
I thought that was cool. I didn't know what today would bring in lecture.
My professor brought fetuses that were miscarried. I was really nervous at first because I didn't know what to expect. At first she showed us a brain that she had dissected but kept the eyes attached. It looked creepy was so cool. She then pulled out a fetus that was (she guessed) 11 weeks when the mother miscarried. She had made a cut so we could see the little organs inside. She then pulled out a fetus that was really hard for me to see and hold. It was a fetus that had Spina Bifida and also Anencephaly. We were also able to hold conjoined twins that shared a liver. It was definitely a once in a lifetime experience. Times like this in anatomy make me love the class even more. I know that a lot of other schools don't get the chance to study off cadavers or be lucky enough to have a professor that provides an experience like this for her students. Even though this class consumes most of my study time, is one of the most difficult classes I have taken and seems to be impossible to pass sometimes, it is totally worth it.
4 comments:
I loved anatomy too. I took it twice, once at BYU, and then again my first year at dental school. We spent one whole semester just on the brain alone.
That is pretty cool.
I remember my anatomy lab at BYU. It was awesome. Sounds like you are loving it. Keep up the good work.
Whitni, I am so impressed by your attitude; you are obviously meant to be in medicine. I don't think I could see the fetuses without crying.
Keep up the updates, and I'm with Shannon. I know why I went into education and not nursing. I would not be able to look at that fetus and learn, I would just see the missed possibilities. Keep up the good work Whit. Love you.
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