Life at Uni

Well, I have survived my first week at uni and all is well. It has been a wonderful week crammed full of classes and studying. (Crammed is a great word since I am learning all about "cramming" knowledge into my tiny brain! ha) Monday was our first day of class and it started off at 9:00am with a lecture. I have lectures/workshops/tutorials ALL day on Monday until about 5. Because they have to accommodate our schedule to fit in 24 hours of clinical each week (spaced over 3 days) we have everything jam-packed on Monday and Friday. - With a few things thrown in between depending on our clinical schedule.

All of my lecturers are fabulous. Their knowledge and experience is so vast and they have so much to offer us through their own experiences. Everything is web-enhanced here at Massey, so you have all sorts of online aids to help you study etc. They also post all of the lecture slides online where you can print them off and take them to class to write your notes on etc. It's all very organized and extremely beneficial. (Travis bought me a really awesome printer/copier/scanner so it has already been put to great use!)

I am hoping to take a picture of our clinical lab sometime because it is SOOO cool. It is a small building that has been set up like a "fake" hospital. It has wards with real hospital beds and full body mannequins and is like a full-on simulation center. It's like a great big play room where we learn all of our basic skills. For now the lab part is mostly just review for me, but I am really learning a lot from the lectures - even just in the first week!

It is definitely exciting being challenged to look at things in a different way. One of the things that separates Massey from the other schools is that their program is intensely focused on research and "evidence-based practice". This is good for me because I have already done a lot of hands-on work, but have never really learned about the clinical research type stuff. I am very excited about this and anxious to learn in more detail.

As for my diet/exercise this week - I have been really faithful to my 'plan'. I got up every morning at 6am and did yoga and took the time to wake up slowly and relax before walking onto campus. I was able to fit in my lifting/gym workouts in between classes and that worked out really well. I have kept my running up this week as well by running when I get home from school. It's a great way to unwind before diving into my evening study sessions! =) Travis and I did finish the seventh week of the Super Seven Series so that is now over...oh so sad...I have also done a LOT more walking this week since I walk to school and all around campus. I took my lunch to school every day this week (veggie wraps with hummus and heaps of veggies/spinach). I am down to 136lbs so I only have 4 left to go before I hit my bottom weight! My mileage has increased a lot as of late, (I ran my first 7 miler on Sunday!) so I should see those last few pounds drop soon...not too concerned about that, but it will still be a great day when it happens. I have also fit in an evening yoga session each night to unwind after the long days...this definitely helps with relaxation and sleep! =)

Overall, I think that if I can stick to my very detailed schedule I should be able to find balance and stay sane! =) It's been a wonderful first week, and I just have to say that my excitement does continue.....Although I might have to cut down on my amount of study if I plan to do ANYTHING in my life besides read and take notes! haha.....Again, it's still about finding balance and it might take me a week or two to sort that out. =) Unfortunately I am not as blessed as Travis when it comes to studying (He managed to get through West Point by watching Simpsons and Family Guy for study time - as he informed me this evening! ha....must have been nice for him!)

So, that is the overview of my first week at uni!! More to come....

"It is never to late to be what you might have been." ~ Namaste