Author: Valerie Efros

Valerie Efros Valerie Efros (5 Posts)

Columnist

Michigan State University College of Human Medicine


Hello! I'm Valerie. I'm from the suburbs of Detroit and graduated from Michigan State University in 2009 with my BA in Psychology. I'm currently living in Grand Rapids Michigan with my fiance Adam, where I'm now in my second year of medical school at MSUCHM. I'm the aunt of two little kiddies that I love to death (Asher 3.5 and Shana 1.5) and the proud mama of a silly red-brown dog named Bo. Before starting medical school, I sang in an a cappella group for 3 years, traveled to India, volunteered at a Navajo hospital in New Mexico and many other uninteresting things I won't mention. I still sing as much as I can, love hot vinyasa yoga, hiking, camping and spending time with my family. If I'm not studying, you can probably find me on my couch in sweat pants eating frozen yogurt, watching Modern Family, The Mindy Project or The Goldberg's.

Therapeutic Misadventures

Therapeutic Misadventures catalogs the unanticipated effects of medical school and is meant to provide a sense of the emotional roller coaster that is medical education. It is a peek into what it really feels like to be a medical student and the perpetual challenges that come with that life. Spoiler alert: it's hard.




Response to “Med Student Suicide, Depression”

The subject of mental health is especially close to my heart; my struggle with depression and anxiety has had an immense impact on my experience during medical school. Yet I never realized how utterly commonplace this is until reading a recent piece on Medscape, “Med Student Suicide, Depression: National Response Needed.” I had no idea, none at all, how many others there were struggling just like me. What I do know is, had there been a screening method in place and more than a half-ditch effort to de-stigmatize these problems, my medical school experience could have been vastly different.

Falling Down the Rabbit Hole

how quickly one turns on oneself  inner demons circling overhead like opportunistic infections ready to invade predator and prey so vulnerable unprotected and unarmed.  survival of the fittest  I wrote this poem just a few weeks ago during a moment of overwhelming emotions that felt all too familiar. I’ve been writing poetry since middle school; it has always been a source of refuge for me, an outlet for my deepest fears and anxieties. Letting my …

Valerie Efros Valerie Efros (5 Posts)

Columnist

Michigan State University College of Human Medicine


Hello! I'm Valerie. I'm from the suburbs of Detroit and graduated from Michigan State University in 2009 with my BA in Psychology. I'm currently living in Grand Rapids Michigan with my fiance Adam, where I'm now in my second year of medical school at MSUCHM. I'm the aunt of two little kiddies that I love to death (Asher 3.5 and Shana 1.5) and the proud mama of a silly red-brown dog named Bo. Before starting medical school, I sang in an a cappella group for 3 years, traveled to India, volunteered at a Navajo hospital in New Mexico and many other uninteresting things I won't mention. I still sing as much as I can, love hot vinyasa yoga, hiking, camping and spending time with my family. If I'm not studying, you can probably find me on my couch in sweat pants eating frozen yogurt, watching Modern Family, The Mindy Project or The Goldberg's.

Therapeutic Misadventures

Therapeutic Misadventures catalogs the unanticipated effects of medical school and is meant to provide a sense of the emotional roller coaster that is medical education. It is a peek into what it really feels like to be a medical student and the perpetual challenges that come with that life. Spoiler alert: it's hard.