Lipitor of the Soul: One Man's Response to Society's Heart Problems

Dalai's Note:  My son, Dalai, Jr., offers this response to my recent post...Recently, my father, Doctor Dalai, wrote an article entitled “Atherosclerosis of the Soul” in which he describes “a thickening, a coarsening of whatever it is that makes us, well, us.” As a Freshman at BigBucks University, a medium sized research institution in the Midwest known for its rigorous Pre Med curriculum, I have both witnessed and experienced this phenomenon first hand. I have seen behavior that those removed from the situation would call soulless, robotic, and callous. I have watched myself and my fellow students push ourselves well beyond our breaking points with sleep deprivation, overloaded schedules, and extracurriculars. I have seen and, in many cases dealt with myself, depression, doubt, and even suicidal thoughts brought on by upcoming tests, returned grades, and vast, intangible plans for the future.At the beginning of the semester, I studied for five or more hours a day, slept maybe four hours a night, and had an A+ GPA. I also hated every second of it. The draining hours spent in the library only reminded me that I had plenty of time to take care of my grades, but not myself. I ate terribly, saw my non-premed friends little, and kept up with the bare minimum of hygiene. Showering became an extra alarm clock to wake me up in the morning instead of a way to smell presentable. After my first round of tests, I found myself sitting on one of the highest GPA’s on ...
Source: Dalai's PACS Blog - Category: Radiologists Source Type: blogs