The last 4½ months:
-Fun – Brad almost starting the lab on fire, joking about the quizzies and testies of our teachers, laughing to try to preserve sanity through yet another series of exams, anticipating Dr. Lampa’s next correlation between human anatomy and the anatomy of non-human species, “pawn to E-5”, dallup, . When we were all talking a couple weeks ago, a stinky fart permeated the area; no one said anything, but there was no denying that someone let one out – the mystery continues (maybe it should be blamed on a Fiber One bar)……
-Tough – being the first people to arrive on campus in the mornings and the last to leave at night, seeing that no matter how much effort is made or how well you may understand certain material, some grades seem to be pulled from a hat, not having a social life (fortunately, my classmates are becoming some of my best friends), not seeing my wife and kids as much as I would like (this was expected, but it is still tough).
-Unpredictable – although our schedule was very well planned out and organized, I don’t know that there were any two days that were the same, which made it a challenge to get into any sort of organized routine.
-Rewarding – during orientation, Dr. Evans assured us that we would make some of our best friends during dental school – friendships that will last for the rest of our lives. When he said that, I thought to myself, “I have some pretty amazing friends, so I don’t know about that.” Well, 4½ months later, I stand humbled and with some truly amazing friends – they are more like a family than classmates or friends. We have been through a lot together, and we have developed a special and unique camaraderie. I feel so fortunate to work with my classmates; they are such a talented and intelligent group – the most talented group of students I have ever worked with. During this quarter (if it can be called a quarter), I have learned so much in such a short amount of time. I am getting an amazing education.
-Tiring and stressful – on campus early in the morning (I usually arrived on campus between 5 and 7:30am), studying until bedtime most nights, waking up in the middle of the night and unable to fall back to sleep because I couldn’t remember which neuro pathway carried pain fibers or which tooth has mesial root grooves or what organism causes rice water diarrhea, getting a new cold sore every other week, forgetting to eat my lunch because I was so worried about the upcoming projects and exams
-Memorable – I don’t think I’ll ever forget the first time I had to ask a hospital patient (during patient interviews) if they have ever had sex with a prostitute – that’s a tough question to ask, no matter how good you are at patient interviews.
-A dream come true – I’m not the typical first year dental student. I was accepted to dental school after persisting through three unfruitful application cycles. I have worked and prayed with all my heart to get accepted to dental school, and after a long and bumpy road, I was accepted. I felt so blessed and fortunate to be accepted to dental school, and when I heard that I was going to be in the RIDE program, I was very excited. Shortly after applying to dental school four years ago (my first application), I was diagnosed with cancer. As it turned out, instead of focusing on getting into dental school, I was going through chemotherapy and fighting for my life. My wife and I adopted a precious baby girl during this time. By the next application cycle, I was in remission, so I eagerly went through the application process. Although I wasn’t accepted, my wife and I were presented with a situation where we were able to adopt a baby boy. At the end of that cycle, I needed to have a major surgery to remove a benign tumor from the back of my abdominal cavity. The following cycle was much the same – my wife and I had a baby boy (after many doctors told us we would never be able to, after chemo and cancer), but we weren’t accepted to dental school. In my fourth attempt, I was accepted. Through all of these application cycles, I didn’t know what I was lacking – I thought my application was pretty competitive. I did everything I could think of to get accepted. I am a religious person, and I see now that God had great purposes for all that has happened throughout the past years. Things have turned out much differently than I would have planned, but things have turned out so much better than I could have ever planned.
Throughout this year, there were tough times. When school got tough, I was able to remember how much it meant to be in dental school. This has been a dream of mine for many years now, and I am so, so, so thankful to be a dental student at the University of Washington and part of the RIDE program.
Eric Nygard
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