A Fistful of Neurons

May 18, 2015

4 Must-Read Anatomy Books

I’ve got a nice collection of plush organs, cells, and microbes. (My uterus is by my desk – not every day you get to say something like that.) #heartyourguts

A photo posted by Jennifer (@bottlethecrazy) on Aug 6, 2014 at 7:04am PDT

I spend a lot of time reading a variety of books, but some of my all-time favorites are those dealing with anatomy, cadavers, pathology, and medical history. I’ve divided some of my favorites into different sections — anatomy, pathology/forensics, general medical, and mortuary — and I plan to highlight the best of the best (in my opinion) here. Today, I’m starting with anatomy.

It’s really difficult to pick favorites, so I chose four books that I’ve read more than once. In fact, I even own multiple copies of some of them. Here’s a bit about each one. If you decide to buy or borrow, I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

The Anatomist: A True Story of Gray’s Anatomy – Bill Hayes

The author, Bill Hayes, tells the story of the two men who created the most famous medical text of all time — Gray’s Anatomy. Part biography, part guided tour of the human body, The Anatomist explores the lives of these two men while balancing chapters with the author’s own experience inside an anatomy classroom dissecting cadavers. And if you don’t already own a copy of Gray’s Anatomy, you’ll probably place an order on Amazon after reading this.

Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal – Mary Roach

Mary Roach is one of the funniest science writers today, and one of my all-time favorite authors. In Gulp, Roach explores the bizarrely fascinating digestive system, answering questions like: Why is crunchy food so appealing? Why doesn’t the stomach digest itself? How much can you eat before your stomach bursts? And so on.

As you’d expect with Roach, this isn’t a methodical top-to-bottom tour. It’s more delightful and memorable than that. She’s a gorgeous writer, a master of sly asides, puns, and the bizarre but ultimately relevant story, sounding at times like an absurdly well-informed comedian (her footnotes are must-reads). – Mari Malcolm, Amazon reviewer

Stiff: The Curious Life of Human Cadavers – Mary Roach

See? I told you I love Mary Roach. Stiff was the very first book I read by this author, and the very first book I read about cadavers. In this book, Roach explores the role cadavers have played in some of science’s “boldest strides and weirdest undertakings.” From medical school classrooms to ballistics labs and car crash tests, Stiff takes a unique approach to issues surrounding death. This is a must read for anyone considering donating their body to science.

Body of Work: Meditations on Mortality from the Human Anatomy Lab – Christine Montross

This is another fantastic read for body donors and medical students. The author, Christine Montross, details her semester-long dissection of a human cadaver. She uses brilliant and beautiful imagery to describe the intricacies of the human body, it’s almost poetic — a stark difference from Roach’s humorous and airy take.

The story of Montross and Eve [the cadaver] is a tender and surprising examination of the mysteries of the human body, and a remarkable look at our relationship with both the living and the dead. – The New York Times

Stay tuned for more book recommendations. Up next: pathology and forensics!

May 5, 2015

6 Study Tips for the HESI Exam

Last week, I had to take the Health Education Systems Incorporated (HESI) exam. This was part of the admissions process for the BSIT program I’m applying to. I had a lot of anxiety about it despite having studied for two weeks leading up to it. I don’t know about you, but standardized tests — specifically ones that have a significant impact on my future — make me panic. This is especially true of anything involving math.

In the past, I found that sometimes singing to myself before starting an exam helped calm my nerves. It was a simple way to trick my brain into thinking that the end of the world wouldn’t be prompted by turning my exam over. But unlike your run-of-the-mill exam, the HESI covers more than just one subject. It includes algebra, anatomy & physiology, biology, chemistry, grammar, physics, reading comprehension, and vocabulary.

The majority of my recent classes have been biology-based, so I felt very overwhelmed when I began preparing for my exam. As it turns out, all that panicking was pointless because I ended up scoring very well on it — I got a 94%. So I thought I’d share some of my study tips to help out anyone else who might be stressing over their upcoming exam.

Tip #1: Purchase a prep book

The Admission Assessment Exam Review, 3rd Edition was recommended to me by the woman proctoring the HESI at my school. I foolishly ignored her suggestion and instead found a cheaper option on Amazon. I ended up buying this book and I was really disappointed. Not only were there formatting errors, but there were significant typos and errors in the grammar, algebra, and biology sections.

So yes, you might spend $10 more than you’d care to, but the quality of information you’ll receive will be infinitely better. I know this because a classmate bought the first book and was much happier with it than I was with my budget-friendly purchase.

Tip #2: Download a prep app

The HESI A2 Exam Prep iPhone app really came in handy when I was on the go. Rather that lug my prep book on the train with me, I was able to continue studying on my phone. While the app itself is free, it’s really limited. You’ll want to spend the $10 on the in-app purchases to unlock all of the subjects. From there you’ll have access to more than 1,000 practice questions and built-in study reminders.

Another reason the app is helpful is that it’s similar to how the actual test will be given. The HESI is a computerized exam, so studying from a paper prep book can sometimes throw you off. Don’t worry — you’ll be given plenty of scrap paper.

Tip #3: Find out which sections you’ll be tested on

Eight subjects seems like a lot, but you might not be required to study all of them. For my exam, I was tested only on algebra, biology, grammar, reading comprehension, and vocabulary. Knowing this ahead of time, I was able to tailor my studying habits so I could focus on only the most important sections. Save yourself some grief and ask questions early. Don’t waste time trying to teach yourself physics if you don’t need it.

Tip #4: Study with multiple people

I found that it was really helpful to study with two different people: one who understood what it was that I was studying and one who didn’t.

This allowed me to review and practice the material in different ways. Studying with someone who understood the material came in handy when I didn’t fully grasp concepts. I could ask him questions and get detailed explanations. The latter came in handy later on when I wanted to make sure that I understood what I had learned.

If you don’t believe me, try explaining the stages of mitosis to someone who’s never studied it before. If they understand what you’ve described, then you have a really good handle on the mechanism. Of course this won’t work for every section, but I found it particularly useful for biology and vocabulary.

Tip #5: Don’t fill out practice tests in the book

To be clear, I’m not recommending that you ignore the practice tests. My advice is that you don’t fill in the answers to the practice questions in your book. Doing so will make it difficult to re-take the test since your answers will be visible. Erasing won’t help either. You won’t be able gauge how well you’re understanding the material if hints are clearly marked.

Furthermore, if you’re feeling really good about most of the questions, don’t keep repeating them. Save yourself some time and instead of repeating the entire test over and over again, just focus on the ones you got wrong. Then, once you’ve mastered those questions, retake the entire test one more time.

Tip #6: Time yourself

Although taking the practice test at home is much different from the actual test, it’s in your best interest to time yourself. The HESI exam has a four-hour time limit. That probably seems like a lot of time now, but it flies by — especially if you’re being tested on all eight of the subjects. Time your practice tests so you go into your real exam with an idea of where to start and how much time each section will eat up.

During my test, we couldn’t go back to previous questions. We had to answer each one and submit each answer. You’ll need to spend a bit of extra time on some of the questions since you can’t come back to it later. Timing yourself ahead of time will ensure that you’re able to give yourself some wiggle room during the exam.

If you’ve studied, the only thing left to do is relax and trust that you’ll do well. You know this stuff. Take a deep breath and begin. Good luck!

March 16, 2015May 5, 2015

A Possible Change of Plans

It looks like plans are changing, again. The program I’ve spent the last two years working toward has changed from certification to a full bachelors degree. As a result, a last-minute pre-requisite was added and the tuition increased five-fold. It seems, from where I’m standing, that the curriculum will stay the same and the only thing changing is the piece of paper I’ll receive after two years. To me, that doesn’t justify the price hike. It’s disheartening to say the least.

A friend told me that it seemed like the universe was putting up road blocks because it had something else, something better perhaps in store for me. I didn’t believe her at the time, but a few weeks later I had a conversation with a mentor of mine and he told me about a pathology assistant program that I might be interested in. I had no idea that this existed, so I’m very excited about the possibility of enrolling. Pathology is more along the lines of what I’m interested in, since Medical Examiner was my initial goal.

The downside, at least for right now, is that I need a bachelors degree to be eligible for the pathology program. Bummer. So I’m looking into a bachelors of science in biology at a nearby university. If I can finish that in two years or less, and spend significantly less money on tuition in the process, then I will strongly consider that route. I’m just not sure I’ll enjoy two years in biology more than radiography. Unfortunately, I won’t have enough information to make my decision for another couple of months.

Until then, I’ll continue researching options and try to keep my spirits up. I don’t do change very well and when everything is out of my control I get itchy. The good news is that I’m almost done with my current semester and I will graduate in less than two months. Counting down the days!

Unrelated, I dug out some of my favorite anatomy and medical-related books from storage this past weekend and I can’t wait to tell you all about them! Stay tuned.

February 4, 2015

A Must-Have App for Anatomy & Physiology Students

What bothers me about anatomy & physiology lectures is that there’s so much information being presented that it’s impossible to grasp everything in the first go-around. Fortunately technology has given us access to a lot of remarkable resources that can help us make sense of it all.

One of my favorite and most-used iPad apps is Anatomy & Physiology REVEALED. I used it almost daily last semester during A&P 2, which was primarily physiologic processes and mechanisms that needed to be explained visually.

There are two versions: a full version for $49.99 and single-module versions for $12.99 each.

The full version contains access to all of the modules:

Skeletal and muscular systems
Nervous system
Cardiovascular, lymphatic, and respiratory systems
Integumentary, digestive, urinary, reproductive, and endocrine systems
Body orientation, tissues, and cells and chemistry

Some of the key features include high-quality human cadaver images blended together with a layering technique that lets you peel away layers of the human body to reveal more than 5,000 structures. In addition, you’ll be able to explore interactive histology slides to learn microscopy anatomy of tissues. This past semester has given me a new appreciation for histology, so I recommend exploring this part of the app even if you’re not required to use slides.

For radiography students, the app includes labeled x-ray, MRI, and CT images to help you visualize and learn internal structures from an imaging perspective. I admittedly haven’t spent a lot of time looking at these yet, so if they don’t blow you away, I’m sorry.

The most useful part of this app (at least for me) is its library of videos and animations. I can read about a process over and over, but I need to see the mechanism for it to actually stick. The videos were especially valuable during the cardiovascular and respiratory chapters. Pressure gradients make my brain turn to mush.

Some smaller, yet convenient features include quizzes that test your ability to identify anatomical structures and audio pronunciations.

As I said, the full version of the app is $49.99 but it’s well worth the money and it’ll help you all throughout your A&P classes — probably even beyond. There’s also an online version that students can purchase access to. I haven’t done this so I can’t tell you much about it. You can learn more about it here.

P.S. There’s also a version for Android.

January 28, 2015May 5, 2015

Forgive the Radio Silence

I learned an important lesson this past summer: don’t start a new blog while taking calculus. Over the summer semester — which is eight weeks long by the way — I took Anatomy & Physiology I and pre-calculus. I followed that up with Anatomy & Physiology II and calculus in the fall. Hence the lack of posts on this here blog.

My A&P courses were fantastic, and I can’t wait to share some interesting fun facts and study tips with you all. Calculus, on the other hand, was a nightmare. I’m not mathematically inclined, but two semesters of calc helped me discover a new-found appreciation for algebra. Oh, how I miss solving for x!

But I’m not here to rant about sine and cosine. Consider this my warm-up post. I hope to spend a lot more time writing here in 2015, especially since I’ll (hopefully) be starting a brand new bachelors program in August to become a radiography technician. In the meantime, tune in soon for posts about autopsy seminars, must-hear medical podcasts, and more!