I may be in the minority, but I thought it sucked

[Brickhouse]

After reading all the posts in the compiled step one experiences thread, I had the sense that the test "wasn't that bad".

Well guess what? I just want to give a shout out to my peeps who thought this test pretty much the worst experience in med school, because that's about where I am with it.

I think I would rather have my nails ripped out by rabid monkeys than ever go through that again. And I swear to god if you've read any post from me ever you know I'm not a complainer, I hate complainers, I don't look for opportunities to complain....but this is my moment.

I had horrible nerves the entire time, not once did I calm down and "get into a groove", I had a pounding headache (I never get headaches) and everything I thought I knew left me the moment I sat down. I think they must've had some spy watching me study and reporting the topics that I didn't cover because that was what I was tested on.

Anyhoo, if any of you are a little frazzled after your test, could you please share so I know I'm not the only one?

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[Arsenic]

After reading all the posts in the compiled step one experiences thread, I had the sense that the test "wasn't that bad".

Well guess what? I just want to give a shout out to my peeps who thought this test pretty much the worst experience in med school, because that's about where I am with it.

I think I would rather have my nails ripped out by rabid monkeys than ever go throught that again. And I swear to god if you've read any post from me ever you know I'm not a complainer, I hate complainers, I don't look for opportunities to complain....but this my moment.

I had horrible nerves the entire time, not once did I calm down and "get into a groove", I had a pounding headache (I never get headaches) and everything I thought I knew left me the moment I sat down. I think they must've had some spy watching me study and reporting the topics that I didn't cover because that was what I was tested on.

Anyhoo, if any of you are a little frazzled after your test, could you please share so I know I'm not the only one?

i thought the same thing brick! the only topic i lucked out on was embryo, they nailed me with pharm and micro though.

i just hope we both did better than we think, for now just try to put it out of your head! when do you start 3rd year? i start day after tomorrow...

 

[CaptKirk]

i thought the same thing brick! the only topic i lucked out on was embryo, they nailed me with pharm and micro though.

i just hope we both did better than we think, for now just try to put it out of your head! when do you start 3rd year? i start day after tomorrow...

you rock brick... errr, I mean... well you know what i mean. anyway i totally agree, it SUCKED rhino balls. and i second arsenic, lets hope we did better than we think.

 

[Brickhouse]

i thought the same thing brick! the only topic i lucked out on was embryo, they nailed me with pharm and micro though.

i just hope we both did better than we think, for now just try to put it out of your head! when do you start 3rd year? i start day after tomorrow...

Thanks Arsenic I feel better already. I got a lot of pharm too and not the pharm I'd been getting on Qbank!
I start rotations July 5! I can't believe you're going right into it on Monday! I hope it's amazing!! Good luck!

 

[missbonnie]

brickhouse

i totally agree..and most of my classmates so far all felt the same way..it UTTERLY SUCKED..but nothing a few days at a tropical beach can't undo (just got back from vacation...totally needed it!!)

 

[kingcer0x]

i took it today and thought it sucked... came home and took a (long) nap, apparently i was screaming in my sleep... so yes, the USMLE literally gave me nightmares

 

[Diceman M.D.]

Yeah, OP, I'm with you, the damn thing was horrible. Too much molecular bio, too many behavioral science questions, I think I got maybe like 3 pathology questions on the whole 350q exam. I felt like I was sitting down for a psychiatry shelf or something.

"Your patient, Mr. Griffin, is brought in by his dog, Brian, who tells you that Mr. Griffin fell down the stairs trying to convert them into an amusement park waterslide. Mr. Griffin is unresponsive through the exam, only groaning for 5 minutes straight. The patient's son, Stewart, presents a living will form specifying no medical treatment to be given to the father, however the patient's wife, Lois, demands that her husband be given a barium enema. Meanwhile, the patient's friend Quagmire, who was last with the patient, is brought in with Trazodone-induced priapism and can only enunciate gibberish resembling the words 'giggety-goo'. What is the most appropriate course of action?

A. Send the patient home without treatment
B. Attempt to seduce Lois now that Quagmire is incapacitated
C. Duck, since Stewart is currently pointing some sort of laser weapon at you
D. Give up and go have martinis with Brian
E. Refer the patient to psychiatry
F. Drain Quagmire's cavernosum...with your teeth
G. Throw Meg out the window"


Answer: G

I kid you not the questions were all like this.

 

[Brickhouse]

Yeah, OP, I'm with you, the damn thing was horrible. Too much molecular bio, too many behavioral science questions, I think I got maybe like 3 pathology questions on the whole 350q exam. I felt like I was sitting down for a psychiatry shelf or something.

"Your patient, Mr. Griffin, is brought in by his dog, Brian, who tells you that Mr. Griffin fell down the stairs trying to convert them into an amusement park waterslide. Mr. Griffin is unresponsive through the exam, only groaning for 5 minutes straight. The patient's son, Stewart, presents a living will form specifying no medical treatment to be given to the father, however the patient's wife, Lois, demands that her husband be given a barium enema. Meanwhile, the patient's friend Quagmire, who was last with the patient, is brought in with Trazodone-induced priapism and can only enunciate gibberish resembling the words 'giggety-goo'. What is the most appropriate course of action?

A. Send the patient home without treatment
B. Attempt to seduce Lois now that Quagmire is incapacitated
C. Duck, since Stewart is currently pointing some sort of laser weapon at you
D. Give up and go have martinis with Brian
E. Refer the patient to psychiatry
F. Drain Quagmire's cavernosum...with your teeth
G. Throw Meg out the window"


Answer: G

I kid you not the questions were all like this.

At least you got me to laugh again!!

 

[ambientbaby]

I totally agree with you guys. Wow that was the worst. Every other question was pharm or behavioral. That was crazy. After about the 200 question, they all started to sound the same.

7-year-old boy presents with fatigue. On physical exam he has a temp of 101 and has a erythematous rash over most of this body. Upon questioning, you find that the boy has never been sick. What is the mechanism of action of the most appropriate treatment?

I never got into a groove and was rarely 100% sure on a question. My mind blanked most of the time. The stuff I knew at one time...I did not know. I can't believe I didn't know what LDLs do. That proves it. I might be taking this sucker again in a few months.

 

[nrosigh]

Diceman: This is the funniest post I have ever read. Thanks for making me spill coffee onto my pants.

Yeah, OP, I'm with you, the damn thing was horrible. Too much molecular bio, too many behavioral science questions, I think I got maybe like 3 pathology questions on the whole 350q exam. I felt like I was sitting down for a psychiatry shelf or something.

"Your patient, Mr. Griffin, is brought in by his dog, Brian, who tells you that Mr. Griffin fell down the stairs trying to convert them into an amusement park waterslide. Mr. Griffin is unresponsive through the exam, only groaning for 5 minutes straight. The patient's son, Stewart, presents a living will form specifying no medical treatment to be given to the father, however the patient's wife, Lois, demands that her husband be given a barium enema. Meanwhile, the patient's friend Quagmire, who was last with the patient, is brought in with Trazodone-induced priapism and can only enunciate gibberish resembling the words 'giggety-goo'. What is the most appropriate course of action?

A. Send the patient home without treatment
B. Attempt to seduce Lois now that Quagmire is incapacitated
C. Duck, since Stewart is currently pointing some sort of laser weapon at you
D. Give up and go have martinis with Brian
E. Refer the patient to psychiatry
F. Drain Quagmire's cavernosum...with your teeth
G. Throw Meg out the window"


Answer: G

I kid you not the questions were all like this.

 

[katrinadams9]

Yeah, OP, I'm with you, the damn thing was horrible. Too much molecular bio, too many behavioral science questions, I think I got maybe like 3 pathology questions on the whole 350q exam. I felt like I was sitting down for a psychiatry shelf or something.

"Your patient, Mr. Griffin, is brought in by his dog, Brian, who tells you that Mr. Griffin fell down the stairs trying to convert them into an amusement park waterslide. Mr. Griffin is unresponsive through the exam, only groaning for 5 minutes straight. The patient's son, Stewart, presents a living will form specifying no medical treatment to be given to the father, however the patient's wife, Lois, demands that her husband be given a barium enema. Meanwhile, the patient's friend Quagmire, who was last with the patient, is brought in with Trazodone-induced priapism and can only enunciate gibberish resembling the words 'giggety-goo'. What is the most appropriate course of action?

A. Send the patient home without treatment
B. Attempt to seduce Lois now that Quagmire is incapacitated
C. Duck, since Stewart is currently pointing some sort of laser weapon at you
D. Give up and go have martinis with Brian
E. Refer the patient to psychiatry
F. Drain Quagmire's cavernosum...with your teeth
G. Throw Meg out the window"


Answer: G

I kid you not the questions were all like this.

If only all the questions had such obvious answers!

 

[4424]

If only all the questions had such obvious answers!

i think a significant majority of people have a bad feeling leaving the test, but end up doing just fine. sdn is a pretty skewed population base but from what i saw from my class, a lot of people left that test concerned.

keep in mind most students pass and there's nothing you can change at this moment anyway so enjoy your time off before rotations.

 

[Brickhouse]

I totally agree with you guys. Wow that was the worst. Every other question was pharm or behavioral. That was crazy. After about the 200 question, they all started to sound the same.

7-year-old boy presents with fatigue. On physical exam he has a temp of 101 and has a erythematous rash over most of this body. Upon questioning, you find that the boy has never been sick. What is the mechanism of action of the most appropriate treatment?

I never got into a groove and was rarely 100% sure on a question. My mind blanked most of the time. The stuff I knew at one time...I did not know. I can't believe I didn't know what LDLs do. That proves it. I might be taking this sucker again in a few months.

Wow - we had the exact same day. This was my experience to a T. My mind was totally blanking. I think 5 weeks of 10 hour study days caused the system to overheat.

 

[Brickhouse]

i think a significant majority of people have a bad feeling leaving the test, but end up doing just fine. sdn is a pretty skewed population base but from what i saw from my class, a lot of people left that test concerned.

keep in mind most students pass and there's nothing you can change at this moment anyway so enjoy your time off before rotations.

Thank you for your wisdom. That sounds sarcastic but I'm completely serious.

 

[burlypie]

You can never take your feelings after finishing a test too seriously. This past year I left almost every single exam feeling like I utterly bombed the thing (seriously) and I always did fine (exactly the mean, always.). I think that whenever we have to actually think a question through it gives us the feeling that we don't know it becuase the answer doesn't come right away. And in all probability we got the answer right because we know *something* at this point -- even if we don't know we know it. Does that make any sense???

I take the beast tomorrow. I'm sure I'll think that it sucked afterwards

 

[Brickhouse]

You can never take your feelings after finishing a test too seriously. This past year I left almost every single exam feeling like I utterly bombed the thing (seriously) and I always did fine (exactly the mean, always.). I think that whenever we have to actually think a question through it gives us the feeling that we don't know it becuase the answer doesn't come right away. And in all probability we got the answer right because we know *something* at this point -- even if we don't know we know it. Does that make any sense???

I take the beast tomorrow. I'm sure I'll think that it sucked afterwards

I think going in knowing that you might feel like crap afterwards is a good thing - not to be a pessimist because I'm really not, but I wish I'd gone in knowing I wouldn't feel good afterwards because I was honestly expecting to feel victorious. That may have been naive on my part.
GOOD LUCK to you and remember, don't feel bad if you don't feel good when it's done. (if that makes sense....)

 

[MeowMix]

My guess is that you probably did better than you feel like you did.

Step 1 is a very difficult exam, because it requires you to master a vast range of information, some in great detail, some pure memory, some conceptual understanding. Many of us have learned that material over a relatively short time period (only 2 years), and have to do all the conceptual integration on our own, since we aren't taught that way. Step 1 was much more difficult than my PhD oral exam (2 hours on any topic in my field, with a Nobel laureate on the committee of 4). I have great respect for anyone who takes on this challenge and passes the beast.

I know people post on here and write about how any idiot who gets through second year can easily score 220 - well, that's not true. I have friends who studied hard through second year and barely passed, and it's not because they're idiots. This exam requires you to not only master the content but then also be able to hang on and perform well under an enormous amount of pressure, and to perform well on a computerized test with a unique testing style. The pressure is even greater if you believe that your future career success depends on your score (I'm not going to get into whether that's actually true or not).

My struggle was trying to feel good about my progress before the exam. I got 198/430 on every stinking NBME except the last one (201!), over a period of two months while studying hard. People on here were agonizing about their 600s, and to be honest it would have been better for me to just quit reading SDN altogether because all it did was beat down my self-esteem. A couple of people like Mr Whiskas posted about similar progress to mine with good final results, and that helped. I spent a lot of time focusing on more positive thoughts and turning off the negativity.

During the Prometric practice test a week before the exam, I lost it. I spent most of the first block trying to deal with thoughts like, "I have learned nothing in the past 2 years. My study strategy was completely wrong. I will never know enough to be a good doctor." My score was pretty much the same as all my wretched NBME tests; passing, but certainly not the score that I had hoped for after all that studying, and with not much room for error on the real thing. I drove home feeling like an absolute failure.

I think the best thing about that experience was that it happened a week before the exam. It forced me to really learn how to turn off the negative thinking, and just guess and go on when I didn't know answers. A very good friend pointed out that I could get every question wrong on 2 blocks of the exam, and still pass (and maybe even 3 blocks, if I had 50 experimental questions). That was very reassuring. Also, I read the SDN posts by Canadian students who had taken Step 1 (can't find the thread, sorry), where they talked about what a bizarre and difficult exam it was, and that made me feel better. My goal was to just get through the exam, and know that the odds were very good that I would pass.

When I got to the real thing, I ran into dozens of questions that I did not have a clue on. I kept reminding myself that I could get at least 100 questions wrong and still pass. I also knew that I could not get into any kind of negative thinking patterns, and I stopped those as soon as they started. I'd recommend the same thing for anyone else approaching Step 1 with normal doubt and anxiety.

 

[mimi1]

WOW, your post is really inspiring, Meow Mix! This is exactly what I am dealing with right now. I think that I am my own worst enemy and am constantly cutting myself down in my head. I am really trying hard to think positively and to block out those negative thoughts because they are nothing but damaging. I am also trying to prepare myself for not feeling good during and after taking the test. This is something that I'm really fearing. I just remember that sinking feeling after taking the MCAT and it was horrible! It was so difficult to get over and forget about. I just hope that by mentally preparing myself this time, I can avoid such negative feelings.

I just wanted to thank you for such an honest post and to wish you luck! I will be thinking of what you said as I prepare to take my test this week.

 

[MeowMix]

Every time I had a thought like that, I would just say, "I know you are trying to help me, but this is not very helpful right now, and I'm going to stop listening to you." Kind of like having a 5-year-old that is bugging you when you're trying to study. The first hundred times are the hardest.

 

[woowoo]

My guess is that you probably did better than you feel like you did.

Step 1 is a very difficult exam, because it requires you to master a vast range of information, some in great detail, some pure memory, some conceptual understanding. Many of us have learned that material over a relatively short time period (only 2 years), and have to do all the conceptual integration on our own, since we aren't taught that way. Step 1 was much more difficult than my PhD oral exam (2 hours on any topic in my field, with a Nobel laureate on the committee of 4). I have great respect for anyone who takes on this challenge and passes the beast.

I know people post on here and write about how any idiot who gets through second year can easily score 220 - well, that's not true. I have friends who studied hard through second year and barely passed, and it's not because they're idiots. This exam requires you to not only master the content but then also be able to hang on and perform well under an enormous amount of pressure, and to perform well on a computerized test with a unique testing style. The pressure is even greater if you believe that your future career success depends on your score (I'm not going to get into whether that's actually true or not).

My struggle was trying to feel good about my progress before the exam. I got 198/430 on every stinking NBME except the last one (201!), over a period of two months while studying hard. People on here were agonizing about their 600s, and to be honest it would have been better for me to just quit reading SDN altogether because all it did was beat down my self-esteem. A couple of people like Mr Whiskas posted about similar progress to mine with good final results, and that helped. I spent a lot of time focusing on more positive thoughts and turning off the negativity.

During the Prometric practice test a week before the exam, I lost it. I spent most of the first block trying to deal with thoughts like, "I have learned nothing in the past 2 years. My study strategy was completely wrong. I will never know enough to be a good doctor." My score was pretty much the same as all my wretched NBME tests; passing, but certainly not the score that I had hoped for after all that studying, and with not much room for error on the real thing. I drove home feeling like an absolute failure.

I think the best thing about that experience was that it happened a week before the exam. It forced me to really learn how to turn off the negative thinking, and just guess and go on when I didn't know answers. A very good friend pointed out that I could get every question wrong on 2 blocks of the exam, and still pass (and maybe even 3 blocks, if I had 50 experimental questions). That was very reassuring. Also, I read the SDN posts by Canadian students who had taken Step 1 (can't find the thread, sorry), where they talked about what a bizarre and difficult exam it was, and that made me feel better. My goal was to just get through the exam, and know that the odds were very good that I would pass.

When I got to the real thing, I ran into dozens of questions that I did not have a clue on. I kept reminding myself that I could get at least 100 questions wrong and still pass. I also knew that I could not get into any kind of negative thinking patterns, and I stopped those as soon as they started. I'd recommend the same thing for anyone else approaching Step 1 with normal doubt and anxiety.

more people should read this post before taking the test. i haven't gotten my results yet, but once i cut out the negative thinking on the nbme's, my score rose drastically. after talking with some of the geniuses on this board, one of the most universal pieces of advice seemed to be, "don't worry about the impossible questions, take a guess, and forget about, and worry about the questions that you do know the answer to."

i am convinced, that if you work hard, and have confidence that the work you are putting in is the right thing, then it is possible to smoke the exam. the exam is all about general principles, and a lot of the questions are fairly simple and obvious, but the problem for 2 years we have been conditioned to take tests under conditions in which we automatically know the answers after some solid studying. the tests our first 2 years test our ability to memorize facts and regurgitate them. the step tests your ability to integrate material. so you will recognize the answer to very few questions on the test, however if you will step back, take a deep breath, and remind yourself periodically that they are testing general concepts, and their goal isn't to trick you. half of the reason people struggle on this exam is b/c they make the test harder than it really is via panic attacks, freaking out, etc.

take what i say with a grain of salt though b/c i don't have my results yet. but i did spend most of the last week working on my mental condition more than anything. i had to continually remind myself that i know the material and that they are looking for general concepts. heading into the test, my goal was to #1 remain calm throughout the entire test, no matter how many questions i didn't know, #2 finish each block with at least 5 minutes remaining, (i watched my time on the questions i didn't know, and if after about a minute i still had no clue, i just picked one and went on to the next questions), and #3 constantly say "general concepts, they are not out to trick you, but rather to see how well you can do applying your knowledge, much like real medicine if you think about it"

good luck to everyone. if you have truly studied hard for 3 weeks, 6 weeks, or however long you need, you will be fine. however, if you haven't taken your studying serious then be worried. at our school, the pass/fail rate is consistent with the average, and it is almost unheard of to have someone fail who studied diligently. most of those that fail the first time, will tell you that they didn't study too much at all. one guy didn't even know about the nbme's the first time he took it and failed!!

remember the main thing is to remain calm and THINK THROUGH THE TEST, very few questions will be ones in which you can regurgitate memorized random facts, however with just a little thinking a lot of the questions can be answered.

 

[Diceman M.D.]

If only all the questions had such obvious answers!

Seroiusly, when in doubt on Step 1, always ask yourself: "what would harm Meg most?" Although...gotta say I'm a big Mila Kunis fan - one of the prettiest women in the industry.

To everyone, though - when they say 6-8 weeks for your score, do you really have to wait that long or do most people's scores get to them sooner?

 

[vtrain]

Seroiusly, when in doubt on Step 1, always ask yourself: "what would harm Meg most?" Although...gotta say I'm a big Mila Kunis fan - one of the prettiest women in the industry.

To everyone, though - when they say 6-8 weeks for your score, do you really have to wait that long or do most people's scores get to them sooner?

Since it's the high season right now, six weeks in about the norm. 8 is stretching it a bit.

All I have to say is THANK YOU for this thread. As I read the compiled experiences/results threads, I was literally about to snap as I saw how many ppl posted their 259/99 scores after 3 weeks of studying 5 hrs/day while scoring 80+ on qbank. Good to see that there are some human ppl on this website!

 

[katrinadams9]

I have no idea if it sucked or not. It's pretty much impossible for me to gauge how I did. We'll see in six weeks if I have to take the ****er again or not. Hopefully not. I scored a 220 on NBME form 1 and a 224 on NBME form 2. If I get around that I'll be super excited. Even around a 215 would be great. Hell, right now I'll just be happy passing!

 

[ocean11]

Since it's the high season right now, six weeks in about the norm. 8 is stretching it a bit.

All I have to say is THANK YOU for this thread. As I read the compiled experiences/results threads, I was literally about to snap as I saw how many ppl posted their 259/99 scores after 3 weeks of studying 5 hrs/day while scoring 80+ on qbank. Good to see that there are some human ppl on this website!

You know what.... I think many people LIE and I wouldn't trust anything ANYONE said or says, or at least take it with a grain of salt...

AS FOR MY STEP 1 Experience: IT REALLY sucked too (and I did really well at school this year.....): I studied for 2-3 weeks from 5-8 hours a day (I took a few days off too) and now am seriously regretting it! I had some questions that were OUTTA this world on the exam:

here's a sample:

In a randomized control study (add a paragraph here) what statistical significance, confidence interval and likelihood of sucess for the experiment for XYZ.... BUT here's the catch, it wasn't a simple 'memorize the formula answer' there was more to it...... and the answers were all VERY 'weird'....... and I had around 3 of these.... NEVER ever saw them in my epi class or on Q bank OR in first aid... NOT just that but there were like 7-8 answers not the 'standard' 5 and to add insult to injury they were on my FIRST block in the first 10 questions... how's that to shoot down your confidence.....

Then I had some random molecular biology and bichem, as well as pharm (much of which I forgot....) arghghghgh either way peeps I'll post my score regardless of how low it is (even if its a fail)

Peace out bro's

 

[vtrain]

You know what.... I think many people LIE and I wouldn't trust anything ANYONE said or says, or at least take it with a grain of salt...

AS FOR MY STEP 1 Experience: IT REALLY sucked too (and I did really well at school this year.....): I studied for 2-3 weeks from 5-8 hours a day (I took a few days off too) and now am seriously regretting it! I had some questions that were OUTTA this world on the exam:

here's a sample:

In a randomized control study (add a paragraph here) what statistical significance, confidence interval and likelihood of sucess for the experiment for XYZ.... BUT here's the catch, it wasn't a simple 'memorize the formula answer' there was more to it...... and the answers were all VERY 'weird'....... and I had around 3 of these.... NEVER ever saw them in my epi class or on Q bank OR in first aid... NOT just that but there were like 7-8 answers not the 'standard' 5 and to add insult to injury they were on my FIRST block in the first 10 questions... how's that to shoot down your confidence.....

Then I had some random molecular biology and bichem, as well as pharm (much of which I forgot....) arghghghgh either way peeps I'll post my score regardless of how low it is (even if its a fail)

Peace out bro's

Ocean11 - Im sure you did better than you thought. I've been following your posts and I' know you're a smart dude/dudette.

Keep the faith.

 

[Psychopathology]

Then I had some random molecular biology and bichem, as well as pharm (much of which I forgot....) arghghghgh

Peace out bro's

I agree that the molecular biology and biochem seemed random in a sense that the chosen topics were not particularly emphasized in either first aid or ________ (name any other review book or lecture in medical school) as compared to some other topics. I would have loved to have been asked about DNA repair mechanisms or intermediates of glycolysis, but not the stuff they hit me with. The questions came in two flavors: picky detail with nasty distractors as other answer options and questions that had very different answer options but required you to integrate material from one subject and or organ system to another.

Molecular genetics was heavy. I saw it coming. Anatomy below the neck was light on mine but neuro kept popping up. The questions were nasty but I had good reasons for each of my answers. Maybe they weren't the correct answers, but I could usually narrow it down to two, so I know I didn't flunk. Embryo was light and I made a very dumb error on a straight foward question. It still stings to lose a give-me-point that is straight out of first aid and Goljan and lecture and HY embryology.

Pharm. Wow. I prepared more for pharm than for anything else and to be honest, the questions were all straight forward. People are not lying when they tell you that pharm questions are mostly one or two step reasoning. They are not lying when they say that knowing the fact equates with getting the point... .... ... BUT



1) Susan Q manifests every single pathology identified in Robbins and Coltran. She is taking ACE inhibitors, proton pump inhibitors, allopurinol, cimetadine, sulfonamide, penicillin, griseofulvan, methotrexate, thalidomide, erythromycin, amitriptyline, isoniazid, rifampin, ethambutol, pheytoin, and a handful of other drugs that have at least seven severe side-effects each. Assuming this fantasy drug regimen does not instantly kill Susan, addition of which of the following substances will cause her to develop... the hicups?

a. simvastatin
b. lovastatin
c. atorvastatin
d. somatostatin
e. statinstatin
f. hope-you-memorized-thastatin




It got kinda rough on some of them. Straight forward but not sure I could memorize all of it with an extra brain and three months to prepare.

Basically, you know it or you don't. The patient on multiple meds scenario (that I had not encountered elsewhere) confused me and I often could not remember whether drug X or drug Y caused side-effect Q, especially when it was the product of a drug interaction.

As a consolation, there were questions that seemed straight out of first aid. There were enough nasty questions though to lower my confidence coming out of the exam.

If you do well on the practice tests, then take comfort that I have been told not to sweat the real thing, even if it beats us up a little bit. I hope people know what they're talking about. This test was doable, but some of it was very, very difficult.

 

[friedcfood]

took the test today...it was really hard...some questions were just plain whack! All I could think about was finishing and the the heck out of there. Wasted my time studying first aid, kaplan, and Goljan when most of the questions seem like it came from some obsure scientific journal on a disease that occurs in .001% of population on a drug that causes a side effect .001% of the time. Well, maybe an exaggeration but that was how it felt like.

 

[MeowMix]

Assuming this fantasy drug regimen does not instantly kill Susan, addition of which of the following substances will cause her to develop... the hicups?

Hiccups is an uncommon side effect of dopamine agonists
http://www.neurology.org/cgi/content/citation/66/5/774

 

[Ol'Girl]

I haven't come to SDN much, but in the last week I've visited the USMLE threads often and boy, am I glad to have found this thread.

I have less than a week left. Took form 2 on Tuesday, was borderline fail Hadn't reviewed pharm and biochem at all, so yesterday reviewed them. Took form 3, got the same exact score. Turned into a blubbering mess. Weak areas? Probably anything I didn't study in the last day.

I hear so often that this is about integrating and what not... but the questions I see on these NBMEs are more recall than anything else. Integrating, I can do. Recall, I can't. And if i can't recall all the pieces of information, then I can't integrate!

Person comes in with everyknownnonspecificsymptom and on justabouteveryknowndrug, but has somenewnonspecificsymptom. WHat is the mechanism of the appropriate tx. Ok, even if I can recognize the disease, figure out a tx, i won't remember the exact mechanism. I'll know it has *something* to do with XYZ, but then XYZ in some form shows up in 3/5 answers. ... or... the histo, anatomy stuff. Not a lot of integrating...

I'm stuck in this rut of "i'm going to fail i'm going to fail i'm going to fail" and don't know how to get out of it, and like many of you, reading about these people who have 85% qbank and "only" 256s on their NBMEs who throw those numbers out and ask people if they think they will pass... well @#$&, i'm ready to throw in the towel.

So what do i do?! How do I focus on my weak areas in this little time left, when it seems like *everything* is a weak area? When I'm a poor memorizer with an even worse self-esteem?

I just want to pass. *sigh*

 

[NYC-girl]

I haven't gotten my score back...but the same thing happened to me before I took the real test.
In fact, during one of my NBMEs I had a ton of time left in the blocks. I had my First Aid in my lap and was looking up questions and still couldn't find the answers...
The reason is...because they aren't expecting you to memorize everything. You have to figure out exactly what they are asking. They can ask you about some disease that you have never heard of, describe some crazy mechanism, but then really only want to know what c5 does.

With the pharm questions, it helps to group the drugs, and then memorize the outlying nuggets. That cuts down on a lot of thinking that you need to do.

On the first 2 NBMEs I got 400, and 420. I looked at the analysis and regrouped. When I took another one 2 weeks later, I got a 500.
Sometimes you catch yourself saying, I don't know what this is, but I know this and this and this....and choose and answer and move on.

I made an excel spreadsheet of what I wanted to get done and crossed things out as I did them. By the time I was done, I realized that I was more focused on finishing my list than I was about being scared.
I hope that this can work for you. Even if you only have a week left. Beign on top of your game mentally is half of the battle.
Also, if you are getting below 400 on the NBMEs you should re-consider post-poneing. there is a high correlation, and also you can get your nerves on track.
Good Luck

I haven't come to SDN much, but in the last week I've visited the USMLE threads often and boy, am I glad to have found this thread.

I have less than a week left. Took form 2 on Tuesday, was borderline fail Hadn't reviewed pharm and biochem at all, so yesterday reviewed them. Took form 3, got the same exact score. Turned into a blubbering mess. Weak areas? Probably anything I didn't study in the last day.

I hear so often that this is about integrating and what not... but the questions I see on these NBMEs are more recall than anything else. Integrating, I can do. Recall, I can't. And if i can't recall all the pieces of information, then I can't integrate!

Person comes in with everyknownnonspecificsymptom and on justabouteveryknowndrug, but has somenewnonspecificsymptom. WHat is the mechanism of the appropriate tx. Ok, even if I can recognize the disease, figure out a tx, i won't remember the exact mechanism. I'll know it has *something* to do with XYZ, but then XYZ in some form shows up in 3/5 answers. ... or... the histo, anatomy stuff. Not a lot of integrating...

I'm stuck in this rut of "i'm going to fail i'm going to fail i'm going to fail" and don't know how to get out of it, and like many of you, reading about these people who have 85% qbank and "only" 256s on their NBMEs who throw those numbers out and ask people if they think they will pass... well @#$&, i'm ready to throw in the towel.

So what do i do?! How do I focus on my weak areas in this little time left, when it seems like *everything* is a weak area? When I'm a poor memorizer with an even worse self-esteem?

I just want to pass. *sigh*

 

[lisa13579]

I haven't come to SDN much, but in the last week I've visited the USMLE threads often and boy, am I glad to have found this thread.

I have less than a week left. Took form 2 on Tuesday, was borderline fail Hadn't reviewed pharm and biochem at all, so yesterday reviewed them. Took form 3, got the same exact score. Turned into a blubbering mess. Weak areas? Probably anything I didn't study in the last day.

I hear so often that this is about integrating and what not... but the questions I see on these NBMEs are more recall than anything else. Integrating, I can do. Recall, I can't. And if i can't recall all the pieces of information, then I can't integrate!

Person comes in with everyknownnonspecificsymptom and on justabouteveryknowndrug, but has somenewnonspecificsymptom. WHat is the mechanism of the appropriate tx. Ok, even if I can recognize the disease, figure out a tx, i won't remember the exact mechanism. I'll know it has *something* to do with XYZ, but then XYZ in some form shows up in 3/5 answers. ... or... the histo, anatomy stuff. Not a lot of integrating...

I'm stuck in this rut of "i'm going to fail i'm going to fail i'm going to fail" and don't know how to get out of it, and like many of you, reading about these people who have 85% qbank and "only" 256s on their NBMEs who throw those numbers out and ask people if they think they will pass... well @#$&, i'm ready to throw in the towel.

So what do i do?! How do I focus on my weak areas in this little time left, when it seems like *everything* is a weak area? When I'm a poor memorizer with an even worse self-esteem?

I just want to pass. *sigh*

I found myself in the circle of self-doubt about 2-3 weeks before taking it June 12th. Then I read something on one of those stupid kaplan emails about the boards. It said that the questions are your friends, they give you clues to solving the problem. The answers are your enemy, trying to distract. It may seem silly, but this mindset really helped me focus and at the very least gain some confidence back. Every time I read a question I tried to have "fun" solving the problem as well as saying to myself...you can figure this out or at least take a very educated guess. I seriously think a good portion of the questions want to see your ability to make a very smart guess with the knowledge you DO have (which is A LOT don't forget). I MADE myself stay calm the entire testing day, thinking of it as just another set of questions like I have been doing for weeks. Of course there were many things I didn't know, but I left feeling like I did the best job possible. No score yet of course, but at least I'm not going insane!

Find a way to stay positive and Good luck

 

[xjacob]

I found myself in the circle of self-doubt about 2-3 weeks before taking it June 12th. Then I read something on one of those stupid kaplan emails about the boards. It said that the questions are your friends, they give you clues to solving the problem. The answers are your enemy, trying to distract. It may seem silly, but this mindset really helped me focus and at the very least gain some confidence back. Every time I read a question I tried to have "fun" solving the problem as well as saying to myself...you can figure this out or at least take a very educated guess. I seriously think a good portion of the questions want to see your ability to make a very smart guess with the knowledge you DO have (which is A LOT don't forget). I MADE myself stay calm the entire testing day, thinking of it as just another set of questions like I have been doing for weeks. Of course there were many things I didn't know, but I left feeling like I did the best job possible. No score yet of course, but at least I'm not going insane!

Find a way to stay positive and Good luck

I can see myself sitting in front of the screen, hearing voices in my head saying on and on: "The question is your friend! The question is your friend!"...and I might need a shot of Haldol after that.
In reality, tho, I think that's actually a good way of thinking about it up to the point where you get questions that contain superfluous or downright distracting info. These seem to be somewhat common on Kaplan (just got a question that involed someone having an anemia that was completely unrelated to the main pathology; they specifically admitted this in the explanation). Is this common on the real thing? E.g. a pt presents with exertional angina, intermittent claudication, [insert other consequences of atherosclerosis], and...say...congested sinuses.

 

[Brickhouse]

I'm glad people are finding some comfort in this thread, that was really the point. Hang in there and get through the post test misery. I'm almost 100% recovered from the trauma - in fact I'm almost optimistic, after hearing "you probably did better than you think" about 400 times. I've now started studying for step II. I'm not kidding. Hey, anything I can do to distract from what happened last Friday.
Now it's off to the beaches of Santa Monica!

I also want to give a shout out to my lurker friends Andrea and T-Town from the Phi-Town. Hey you lurking losers. Thanks for your support.

 

[Fif the Great]

Add me to the list that thought it sucked. Buncha pharm, buncha prego questions, and a whole buncha behavioral. I'll be happy with a pass at this point.

And I've been lurking on this forum since undergrad... so don't worry about the SDN peeps that cry about how they studied 11 hours a day for 8 weeks and still 'only' made out with 245/99 (I swear, I've seen posts like this). After reading quite a few of these people's posts, it's quite apparent that the first naked body they ever saw was probably in anatomy. So do what I do, read their drivel, stare agape at how they can be so unthankful, then smile and silently curse them in your heart.

 

[lisa13579]

I can see myself sitting in front of the screen, hearing voices in my head saying on and on: "The question is your friend! The question is your friend!"...and I might need a shot of Haldol after that.
In reality, tho, I think that's actually a good way of thinking about it up to the point where you get questions that contain superfluous or downright distracting info. These seem to be somewhat common on Kaplan (just got a question that involed someone having an anemia that was completely unrelated to the main pathology; they specifically admitted this in the explanation). Is this common on the real thing? E.g. a pt presents with exertional angina, intermittent claudication, [insert other consequences of atherosclerosis], and...say...congested sinuses.

There definitely were questions on the real thing that asked something you weren't expecty after reading the first part of the question. For instance, I had a few where they described the disease and I was all proud of myself for figuring it out and then they said the diagnosis in the question stem, asking something else. And I also did have questions where they listed a bunch of problems or drugs but only wanted you to focus on one.

 

[Brickhouse]

Add me to the list that thought it sucked. Buncha pharm, buncha prego questions, and a whole buncha behavioral. I'll be happy with a pass at this point.

And I've been lurking on this forum since undergrad... so don't worry about the SDN peeps that cry about how they studied 11 hours a day for 8 weeks and still 'only' made out with 245/99 (I swear, I've seen posts like this). After reading quite a few of these people's posts, it's quite apparent that the first naked body they ever saw was probably in anatomy. So do what I do, read their drivel, stare agape at how they can be so unthankful, then smile and silently curse them in your heart.

Hilarious. Hey, we'll all have that MD in two years, right? So what I'll be doing my residency in South Dakota? I hear it's lovely three days out of the year.

 

[doctorTT]

I just took it yesterday and all I can say is WOW I did not see that coming. I too had a lot of biochem/genetics/cell signalling that was quite obscure and could not be found in any of the review books; I don't even think we were ever taught the material. The only advice I can give is study everything else as hard as you can and when you come accross one of these crazy questions just convince yourself that it is experimental, pick your favorite letter and move on.

Secondly, I was wondering if any of you knew how badly I am screwed if i didn't get to complete 17 questions on the exam; besides those 17 questions I think I did comprable to my CBSSAs wherein I got around the mean. --yes I have testing issues but didn't have time to get the propper documentation proving dsmIV criteria.

 

[NGemie]

I was shocked when I took the test. I thought maybe instead of taking Step One, I was accidently given a test for those getting a PhD in molecular biology.

 

[bobmarley77]

If I fail, I hope that the people taking their "typing" tests next to me get hit by a bus. I had those damn headphones on and could still hear the damn typing. For those of you taking practice tests, make sure you take them with A LOT of distractions...have someone open and close a door for you every 5 minutes, type on a keyboard fast for 3 hours straight, etc

 

[Pox in a box]

I have no idea if it sucked or not. It's pretty much impossible for me to gauge how I did. We'll see in six weeks if I have to take the ****er again or not. Hopefully not. I scored a 220 on NBME form 1 and a 224 on NBME form 2. If I get around that I'll be super excited. Even around a 215 would be great. Hell, right now I'll just be happy passing!

I thought you were in '07 and took it last year.

 

[katrinadams9]

I thought you were in '07 and took it last year.

I woulda been in '07 if I'd gotten in on my first try. I'm a lowly '08 just starting year three.

 

[thackl]

Took mine yesterday. The first two blocks were very reasonable and straight forward. The next two required more knowlege but were also very straight forward (either you knew it or you didn't..... a lot of times I didn't ). I wasn't very tired yet, so I did one more b/f my lunch break and it was brutal. The last two after lunch were also train wrecks. If it was a straight forward Q and I just didn't know (which was many of them) then I x-ed out clearly incorect choices and made my best anecdote for what was left. Here's some examples: What's the exact mechanism of sphincter disfunction in Chaga's (I was just happy to know that autonomic disfunction and mega-GI were parts of the Dz). Another: If epitope rearangement is lost (asked in much more obscure terms), what immune function would be left in tact? Exact mechanism by which statin drugs work................. to reduce LDL (OK, that one wasn't so bad)? There were tons of these, most of which I can't remember b/c I was so clueless..... pointed Q's not in review books and much of it I had never learned of heard of. There were a bunch that covered foriegn material but gave tons of clues in the Q stem. I put in my best early guess and moved on...... then came back to those at the end (consistently had 10+ min left). As it turns out, the Q is your friend and many of those I was able to figure out but some took a while.

The other thing that was really interesting, was the minutia I went over the last two days and how much of it actually showed up over all 7 blocks (ie: CD40 def is responsible for HC class-switching problems). There were likely 15-20Q's I wouldn't have gotten had I not seen the fact one or two days b/f. Thank goodness for that b/c there was so damn much I didn't know and couldn't figure out (seriously, about half the crap on those last three blocks). Many of the Q's had low yeild stuff I had forgotten or asked something regarding a dz I knew quite well (ie: chaga's), but I just didn't have the detail THEY wanted. Then there was this random q-bank Q regarding Homocystene and a DZ that looks a lot like Marfans. The q asked what is pathologically increased to cause this. I recognized the dz and of course picked Homocystene in q-bank. WRONG! It's a methionine shunt and subsequent Met increase. Sooooo, almost word for word, this Q shows up (along with about 10 others from q-bank).

At this point, I'm just keeping my fingers crossed. I've walked out of several NBME subject exams feeling absolutely crushed and those tended to be the ones I scored the highest on. It is relative scoring afterall. In retrospect, I wish I had done all the practice ($45) NBME's and wrote all I didn't know. That was Norsigh's advice that I saw the day b/f my exam. He says 5-10/block were showing up...... what I diff that would make!

Good luck to all that haven't sat for it yet. Just remember, it's hard ofr everyone and don't give up.

 

[Ol'Girl]

Yeah, you know, what you described is exactly what scares me! People go on and on about how this is about "integration" and "concepts", but seriously, I can integrate all i want and figure out most of the steps... but if I can't plain recall which cytokin activates what.. then well, i have to guess, and i tend to pick the wrong one. Or with anatomy, embryology, pharm side effects... I'm a horrible memorizer.

I also think I tend to panic when I don't recognize the described disease. Practically everything has some kind of fever, lymphadenopathy, nausea, headache, abdominal pain etc... and all the information i thought i knew sort of leaks out my ears. I have heard that a ton of molecular bio and immuno have been showing up this year, along with autonomic pharm.

I think I WILL silently curse those "i only got a 252" complainers. Hell, I'm aiming for a 182.

 

[Samoa]

Hi guys. Newly minted 4th year here. I just wanted to let you know that I totally felt the same way during my Step 1, and it was all OK in the end.

I posted on the Compiled Experiences thread last year (post #178). Although I was trying to make light of it, I had a horrible case of test anxiety, which I've never had happen to me before. And when it was done, I felt sick to my stomach about my performance.

Seriously, I've never cancelled a score on a standardized test, and the only reason I didn't cancel my score that day was because I didn't know if the cancellation would show up on my record. I've always been a good test-taker. So I never pictured myself in a situation where I'd want to cancel, and I don't even look at that option beforehand.

I didn't do as well as my end-of-year shelf scores predicted, but I did well enough to make me a competitive applicant for a very competitive residency. And in the end that's all that matters. The rest is just bragging rights.

 

[vmed]

After reading all the posts in the compiled step one experiences thread, I had the sense that the test "wasn't that bad".

Well guess what? I just want to give a shout out to my peeps who thought this test pretty much the worst experience in med school, because that's about where I am with it.

I think I would rather have my nails ripped out by rabid monkeys than ever go through that again. And I swear to god if you've read any post from me ever you know I'm not a complainer, I hate complainers, I don't look for opportunities to complain....but this is my moment.

I had horrible nerves the entire time, not once did I calm down and "get into a groove", I had a pounding headache (I never get headaches) and everything I thought I knew left me the moment I sat down. I think they must've had some spy watching me study and reporting the topics that I didn't cover because that was what I was tested on.

Anyhoo, if any of you are a little frazzled after your test, could you please share so I know I'm not the only one?

So I took the sucker on Friday and I wanted to cry when I walked out. Most people say that I'll be fine which doesn't help. My biggest concrn is that I know that missed many of the easy questions....anyone had a similar experience??

 

[ambientbaby]

I'm in the same boat. It really scared me when I broke out FA and found that I got the following wrong (quite possibly the easiest, most straightforward question on the exam):

What is the function of an LDL?

I feel like if I got multiple easy questions wrong, then how the heck am I going to pass this sucker...

My biggest concrn is that I know that missed many of the easy questions....anyone had a similar experience??

 

[ambientbaby]

I had the exact same experience. Damn typers.

If I fail, I hope that the people taking their "typing" tests next to me get hit by a bus. I had those damn headphones on and could still hear the damn typing. For those of you taking practice tests, make sure you take them with A LOT of distractions...have someone open and close a door for you every 5 minutes, type on a keyboard fast for 3 hours straight, etc

 

[jmarra03]

I'm right with the original poster on the nerves. I had a rough go at settling into a groove and I know it cost me some questions I should have gotten had my heart not been racing 150 bpm and my chest closed up. I have been talking to my family and friends and they all say well the worst that happens is you retake it( which to me seems pretty darn painful!) anyhow I am praying that somehow the scale will be my friend again and I can pass this and put it behind me.

 

[Ol'Girl]

I'm right with the original poster on the nerves. I had a rough go at settling into a groove and I know it cost me some questions I should have gotten had my heart not been racing 150 bpm and my chest closed up. I have been talking to my family and friends and they all say well the worst that happens is you retake it( which to me seems pretty darn painful!) anyhow I am praying that somehow the scale will be my friend again and I can pass this and put it behind me.

Yeah, definitely the same experience. I just went ahead and took it today. There were so many questions on which I thought, "Ohmygod, i SHOULD KNOW THIS!".. but alas, information was leaking out my ears at an exponential rate. After all that time memorizing (or so i thought) glycogen/lysosomal storage diseases... i had 3-4 questions and couldn't remember a thing. Antibiotics... forget it. The last two blocks... my brain wasn't even functioning anymore.

I think the more I dwell on it, the more I will feel like i totally failed. I keep telling myself that, too... if i fail, then i'll just have to take it again. But sheesh, who wants to go through that hell again...

Oh yeah, and the super low refresh rate on the monitor made me nuts. It didn't so much give me a headache, but I was pretty nauseated by it.

 

[Options]

It is definately normal to dwell on those questions you didn't know, or worse actually knew but put down the wrong answer to. I knew my molecular biology in and out and just put down the wrong answer for several questions and realized my mistake afterwards.
I also had that nasty screen that comes up when you don't move the mouse for 3 minutes or whatever.. so the entire last half of the test I thought I was in trouble or would have some mark on my transcript.
But... even after all that, my score turned out to be smack in the middle of my NBME #1 and NBME #2 exams.