Just trying to make sense of things

An introverted, sensitive, first-generation Latina medical student trying to navigate the medical world as I try to figure out where my place is in this world.

[siobhanblank-deactivated2019011]

been watching livestreams of US news channels lately and

1) they have a LOT of commercial breaks

2) i didn’t realize that ads for medicine were actually like this

[siobhanblank-deactivated2019011]

ppl keep reblogging this and asking “well what are the medicine ads like in your country” and like…there aren’t any? It’s literally illegal to advertise prescription medicine here?

[jheselbraum]

All of America: God I wish that were me

[liberaljane]

Women's Not So Distant History

This #WomensHistoryMonth, let's not forget how many of our rights were only won in recent decades, and weren’t acquired by asking nicely and waiting. We need to fight for our rights. Here's are a few examples:

📍 Before 1974's Fair Credit Opportunity Act made it illegal for financial institutions to discriminate against applicants' gender, banks could refuse women a credit card. Women won the right to open a bank account in the 1960s, but many banks still refused without a husband’s signature. This allowed men to continue to have control over women’s bank accounts. Unmarried women were often refused service by financial institutions entirely.

📍 Before 1977, sexual harassment was not considered a legal offense. That changed when a woman brought her boss to court after she refused his sexual advances and was fired. The court stated that her termination violated the 1974 Civil Rights Act, which made employment discrimination illegal.⚖️

📍 In 1969, California became the first state to pass legislation to allow no-fault divorce. Before then, divorce could only be obtained if a woman could prove that her husband had committed serious faults such as adultery. 💍By 1977, nine states had adopted no-fault divorce laws, and by late 1983, every state had but two. The last, New York, adopted a law in 2010.

📍In 1967, Kathrine Switzer, entered the Boston Marathon under the name "K.V. Switzer." At the time, the Amateur Athletics Union didn't allow women. Once discovered, staff tried to remove Switzer from the race, but she finished. AAU did not formally accept women until fall 1971.

📍 In 1972, Lillian Garland, a receptionist at a California bank, went on unpaid leave to have a baby and when she returned, her position was filled. Her lawsuit led to 1978's Pregnancy Discrimination Act, which found that discriminating against pregnant people is unlawful

📍 It wasn’t until 2016 that gay marriage was legal in all 50 states. Previously, laws varied by state, and while many states allowed for civil unions for same-sex couples, it created a separate but equal standard. In 2008, California was the first state to achieve marriage equality, only to reverse that right following a ballot initiative later that year. 

📍In 2018, Utah and Idaho were the last two states that lacked clear legislation protecting chest or breast feeding parents from obscenity laws. At the time, an Idaho congressman complained women would, "whip it out and do it anywhere,"

📍 In 1973, the Supreme Court affirmed the right to safe legal abortion in Roe v. Wade. At the time of the decision, nearly all states outlawed abortion with few exceptions. In 1965, illegal abortions made up one-sixth of all pregnancy- and childbirth-related deaths. Unfortunately after years of abortion restrictions and bans, the Supreme Court overturned Roe in 2022. Since then, 14 states have fully banned care, and another 7 severely restrict it – leaving most of the south and midwest without access. 

📍 Before 1973, women were not able to serve on a jury in all 50 states. However, this varied by state: Utah was the first state to allow women to serve jury duty in 1898. Though, by 1927, only 19 states allowed women to serve jury duty. The Civil Rights Act of 1957 gave women the right to serve on federal juries, though it wasn't until 1973 that all 50 states passed similar legislation

📍 Before 1988, women were unable to get a business loan on their own. The Women's Business Ownership Act of 1988 allowed women to get loans without a male co-signer and removed other barriers to women in business. The number of women-owned businesses increased by 31 times in the last four decades. 

Free download

📍 Before 1965, married women had no right to birth control. In Griswold v. Connecticut (1965), the Supreme Court ruled that banning the use of contraceptives violated the right to marital privacy.

📍 Before 1967, interracial couples didn’t have the right to marry. In Loving v. Virginia, the Supreme Court found that anti-miscegenation laws were unconstitutional. In 2000, Alabama was the last State to remove its anti-miscegenation laws from the books.

📍 Before 1972, unmarried women didn’t have the right to birth control. While married couples gained the right in 1967, it wasn’t until Eisenstadt v. Baird seven years later, that the Supreme Court affirmed the right to contraception for unmarried people.

📍 In 1974, the last “Ugly Laws” were repealed in Chicago. “Ugly Laws” allowed the police to arrest and jail people with visible disabilities for being seen in public. People charged with ugly laws were either charged a fine or held in jail. ‘Ugly Laws’ were a part of the late 19th century Victorian Era poor laws. 

📍 In 1976, Hawaii was the last state to lift requirements that a woman take her husband’s last name.  If a woman didn’t take her husband’s last name, employers could refuse to issue her payroll and she could be barred from voting. 

📍 It wasn’t until 1993 that marital assault became a crime in all 50 states. Historically, intercourse within marriage was regarded as a “right” of spouses. Before 1974, in all fifty U.S. states, men had legal immunity for assaults their wives. Oklahoma and North Carolina were the last to change the law in 1993.

📍  In 1990, the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) – most comprehensive disability rights legislation in U.S. history – was passed. The ADA protected disabled people from employment discrimination. Previously, an employer could refuse to hire someone just because of their disability.

📍 Before 1993, women weren’t allowed to wear pants on the Senate floor. That changed when Sen. Moseley Braun (D-IL), & Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) wore trousers - shocking the male-dominated Senate. Their fashion statement ultimately led to the dress code being clarified to allow women to wear pants. 

📍 Emergency contraception (Plan B) wasn't approved by the FDA until 1998. While many can get emergency contraception at their local drugstore, back then it required a prescription. In 2013, the FDA removed age limits & allowed retailers to stock it directly on the shelf (although many don’t).

📍  In Lawrence v. Texas (2003), the Supreme Court ruled that anti-cohabitation laws were unconstitutional. Sometimes referred to as the ‘'Living in Sin' statute, anti-cohabitation laws criminalize living with a partner if the couple is unmarried. Today, Mississippi still has laws on its books against cohabitation. 

[dxmedstudent]

Medblrs, who's still around?

I'm aware that it's been some years since my previous medblr list and previous medblr roll call posts. Over the years we've built a thriving and supportive medblr community, which we've been really lucky to have. I'm using medblr in the widest sense, here - nurses, PAs, pharmacists abd all sorts of other professions are welcome.

Years have passed. Many of us have continued to live offline lives or post less frequently because work, kids, other interests and just life got in the way. Some have changed specialties. I know that there have been years I've been fairly quiet because life was busy! But even if you post infrequently, youre still a valued part of the community. Please feel free to reblog and add yourself to the list.

Some left the sphere of medicine, that's cool too - if you ever identified as a medblr, there's still a place for you here.

New medblr friends have joined - why not introduce yourselves? It would be great to make some new connections in this sphere.

I'm also curious about non medblrs who lurk here for fun.

I'll start first. I'm @dxmedstudent (she/her, late 30s), I also go by Tink (that predates my blog here and is somewhat unrelated). I started my blog here over 10 years ago when I was a UK med student writing med student comics which can still be found over at @dxmedicalstudent .

I spent some years in hospital medicine before becoming a GP this past summer. I haven't changed my name or icons in that time so if you think you remember me, you're probably right.

Lovely to meet you all, and to say hi to old friends.

[dogemd]

10 years strong on this blog (like 15 years on tumblr overall 🤯). I’m currently a hospitalist in the US. Family Med trained, did a global health fellowship, left said fellowship, and am back living in Residency city because I accidentally fell in love with another doctor who is in cardiology fellowship here (different hospital system but our paths crossed and it’s kind of awesome). Started this blog my first year of med school and have been through some shit (as have we all) in the last 10 years. I post way less medicine these days, but boy do I have some stories.

[ley-med]

I am adding myself to the list because let's be real I spend way too much time on this site, posting both med and non med things... And also because I absolutely adore the medblr (and vetblr) community and the stories, love how diverse our ranks are!

Anyway, hi, I'm Ley (she/they but really don't care), been here since my early med student years. Right now I am an anesthesiology-intensive care resident in Central Europe, who found their calling in trauma (and ortho) care, with just a little more than a year left in residency training. I sometimes go very long without posting and reblogging anything medical mentioned, but I am prone to venting my stories here. And prone to rambling about medicine. And my work. And prone to whining about residency, here and there.

[pharmdup]

Clinical pharmacist here, psychiatric pharmacy and pharmacotherapy. Definitely working in my first specialty, can’t say much because I’m afraid of doxxing myself. Love you guys!

[nerdgirlnarrates]

I guess I should pick a nickname for myself…maybe NG? That works. Blog is titled such because when I started this as a wee premed almost ten years ago, I envisioned more of a webcomic about my experience with school/medicine. That did not happen lol. Instead this is a sort of badly kept diary. Currently a first year internal medicine resident in the US and loving it 😊

[foreverastudentinmed]

Med student about to start OBGYN residency soon! I've been on and off tumblr for a while (mostly on the book fandom side of things) but figured I'd come back to use it as a "creative" outlet. Excited to join the community!

[foreverastudentinmed]

I matched and I'm going to be an OBGYN!

It's been a minute since this happened, but it was such a whirlwind of a week it has taken me some time to fully process.

Matching at my #2 program has come with grief, gratitude, excitement, accomplishment, and fear.

It's hard to not mourn all of the other possibilities I had pictured in my head.

[foreverastudentinmed]

An update.

I genuinely cannot remember when I created this account or when I posted my first update. All I know is the me who did it was likely sad, enraged, and stressed.... So it was likely during clerkships.

Well, now I'm an MS4 and I applied into OBGYN residency across the country. Join me as I contemplate life and enjoy the last ~freedom~ I will likely every have as someone with no real responsibilities.

[foreverastudentinmed]

Hello.

Not entirely sure why I decided to make this, but I thought I’d begin to gently yell my thoughts into the void. I have a lot of feelings and a lot of thoughts, none cohesive but alas. 

I’m an introverted, sensitive, first generation Latina medical student trying to navigate the medical world as I try to figure out where my place is in this world. 

These are my thoughts.