Anatomy Lab

My last day of Anatomy Lab was one the of the happiest days of my life. Truly. It’s up there with the birth of each of my children. When I heard that metal door slam behind me in that nondescript building on the street corner across from the main building where I took all my classes, I was awash in a sensation freedom I cannot adequately explain. I think I cried.

Anatomy lab was one of the most challenging parts of PA school for me and I think I still have a little PTSD from it.  Looking back, I think I was just massively unprepared for the time and study that was going to be required for the class. When I entered PA school I had three small children, including an infant, was still breastfeeding, and was living– miles away.

Some people in my class had cadaver lab in undergraduate, and some had subsequently been TAs in those classes. So there were people in my class working on their third or fourth dissection. In my community college A&P class, we spent a few weeks dissecting a cat. 

My dear friend wrote a beautiful article about Anatomy Lab.

Obviously A&P is essential to understanding medicine. I keep an anatomy book on my work bookshelf to this day.

How to Survive Anatomy Lab

1.Put in the time

You need time to navigate the bosy

2.Gather your Resources

You need some quality resources for anatomy. Again, the primary resources are your professors, lectures and notes. Don’t go broke buying a million things. 

University of Michigan Medical School (google.com)

2.Study, Memorize, Repeat

Anatomy moves along systematically. Look over the basic information before you attend class. Try to stay engaged in class. Review that night.

3.Find Your People

Being alone in the anatomy lab is a little unsettling…but sometimes unavoidable. Better is to try to make a regular study date with some classmates. You do not have to study with your lab group, but you always can. I know some poeple but definitely try to spend a little time in the lab the week before a practical exam.   

4.Make Connections

The best thing I did in anatomy lab was hire a tutor. There was a medical student at my school that even the professors referred to as “The King of Anatomy.” He was brilliant and funny and approachable, and had a wealth of resources at his fingertips. 

5.Get In the Right Headspace

Anatomy lab will end. Don’t let it break you. Y