CultusIf you are thinking of studying pharmacology, medicine or biology then you need to understand that this is not just a choice of course or career. As with any field of study what you are choosing is a way of life that will impact on the sorts of people you spend time with, your interests and the way others treat you. When you pick such a certain career path you will find that it defines you in more ways than you could realise and this is something you need to be prepared for going in. Read on…
The way you think
Learning to study a new topic and one that’s as in-depth as pharmacology will mean entering a whole world of different knowledge. You’re going to spend a lot of time researching the brain, researching chemistry and generally approaching things from a very scientific perspective.
On the one hand this is of course going to affect your day-to-day as you’ll spend a lot more time now in books on the human body. But what it’s also going to do is to change the way you approach certain problems and issues in the outside world too. For instance when you next feel tired, in love or hungry, prepare to look at it in a completely different way: as chemical signals that trigger certain feelings or emotions and that cause the body to behave in different ways. This can be frustrating for some people that you talk to (people don’t like ‘easy’ answers to complex emotions), but it can help you to get a much better understanding of the way your body works and how you can get the most out of it. Ultimately you will start to see biology and psychology in terms of cause and effect, while this might occasionally lead to a misunderstandings with friends, it will also result in better health and lifestyle for you.
Hypochondria
Oh, and here’s something else to expect: when you spend all day reading about different conditions and their treatments your brain can play some funny tricks on you convincing you that you must have the same problems. This is why it’s so common for students in any medical field to believe that they have all the conditions they’re reading about. Try to remain level headed and objective, but expect to get to know your doctor quite well…
The way others see you
Know that when you study a heavy science like pharmacology or pharmaceuticals, you are going to impress a lot of people. They will start to think of you as a font of knowledge, and actually this can be very good for your confidence. A word of warning though: they will also assume that you know the answer to every single one of their ailments and will approach you every single time they have a lump, a stomach ache or a splinter. Expect to be seen like a walking encyclopaedia of medicine. Just try to get a kick out of it rather than getting frustrated!
About the Author:
This post has been contributed by Peter James who is a part of the research team at Georgetown University, an institution conducting analysis of statins and rhabdomyolysis. He is quite passionate about his work and he enjoys spending time with his family when he gets free.