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Medical Student trying to get out of Procrastination...


Lobares

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Hey guys,

I know gq now for some years, at start I was facing a huge addiction to gaming. I could fix it immediately when I started to do these daily journals. The first 90 days went good. I know many people are suffering from these gaming addictions much, and they relapse over and over again. Since I doubt that these people are ‚weaker‘ than others, I think this addiction is different to everyone. For me gaming was easily fixable, because it wasnt the real problem.

 

Which leads to why I open this new journal. My problem is the procrastination itself. I am a Medical Student and I have to study much. Even 6 Hours per day lead not to a big success which leads to more procrastionaton. I really want to finish Med School with success thats why I want to change my procrastinating. I do everything most likely something at the PC but It could be anything. 

So my goal is to stop that and start to actually getting my things done. Not just med school, I want to do many things but I tend to be too lazy -> too much PC instead and imaging how it could be instead of starting. 

Tomorrow I want to start with my studying again. Then I want to setup again a 90 days detox plan, filled with activities + learning routine, which I will post here.

I hope gq can help me again to fix this problem now and hopefully forever.

As always I will read postings here(even that I could do for hours instead of learning lmao) to get new ideas how to improve my strategy since many here are having the same problem.

Thanks for reading!

 

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Med student here as well. Have you tried Anki? What's your learning method? Why do you study medicine? dream job? what makes it your dream job? If you don't have one, look for one.

From my own experience: Don't shy away from looking up basic stuff you are unsure about. Learning advanced things becomes much easier that way. Always look up unclear definitions. Medicine studies is mostly about repitition I would say, so try flash cards etc.

Do you know ALI ABDAAL? Former UK Cambridge med student on youtube, heavily focusing on productivity.

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34 minutes ago, Marius said:

Med student here as well. Have you tried Anki? What's your learning method? Why do you study medicine? dream job? what makes it your dream job? If you don't have one, look for one.

From my own experience: Don't shy away from looking up basic stuff you are unsure about. Learning advanced things becomes much easier that way. Always look up unclear definitions. Medicine studies is mostly about repitition I would say, so try flash cards etc.

Do you know ALI ABDAAL? Former UK Cambridge med student on youtube, heavily focusing on productivity.

Hi, yea I know Ali and my learn system is basing on his videos(Google Sheet not Anki, but its basicslly the same). I only do repetition all day, I know that medicine is 99% memorizing that stuff.  It does work but I need a lot of time. I cant really say whether I am slow or fast, because some of my ppl in the university are saying they have to learn 8-12 hours daily, others are only on 3 hours etc. But basically I cant keep up my learning routine of 4-6 Hours daily sadly due to procrastination. But I think that procrastination is also coming because the learning is so difficult for me because its so much things to memorize..

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  • 1 year later...

Alright gonna restart this.

Its not like the last months and years were totally unproductive in terms of what people think someone at my age should do in their lives. I made what everyone speaks about, but all that doesnt change the fact that I am not doing what I am supposed to do.

The biggest problem since all this started is my med school. I just cant push through somehow. I made progress but its faaaar away from what ‘normal’ people do. I am totally willing to invest 10+ hours into learning sessions, if I could. But the procrastination destroys every ambition I have. The procrastination is the reason for all of my problems. I can just sit on my bed doing nothing all day along, it does not have to be something digital(games, youtube/netflix, social media...).

 

I see the same problem in a lot of journals - many of us can quit games/youtube etc. for good - its hard yea, but we can do it. The real struggle starts then when you actually want to get your things DONE. And you cant just block procrastination like you block certain websites etc.

I started to procrastinate literally in the same moment when the work overwhelmed me(last year of highschool, had to get the best grades possible to enter med school). The moment I would adjust my lifestyle(eg quitting med school) I probably would have no procrastination problems anymore. Currently I have a lack of motivation to do the simplest things, all because I am feeling overwhelmed from med school. 

 

 

Thats why this time I want to focus on what I want to do instead of what I not want to do. Not doing certain things are the basics of course, because they will inevitably stop you from breaking out of procrastination loop.

 

My goals:

- Doing at least 10 Promodoro-Cycles per day for med school(that means 5 Hours of learning), will try to start slow in the first 2-3 days then increase

- Workout everyday(ofc some rest days here and there according to the plan)

And a lot more, which I dont mention for now, because I want to start with these two things. After a week or so I can expand it.

 

I will start right now after posting this with my study session. Then later gonna block literally everything on my pc which isnt necessary. The block-sites thing works really great for me(you guys should try it). 

 

I know I will feel reeeeally bored/bad for a long time until I adjust to that new routine but thats how it works.

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Hey Lobares,

first of all, thanks for your lovely comment in my journal! 🙂 I really appreciate that you took the time to write this encouraging text. We both seem to have some things in common. Good for you that you were able to get rid of LoL, I still struggle at this though I am on a good way now to remove the game from my life permanently.

In terms of procrastination I found that things like med school can be overwhelming sometimes, especially when you try to learn all that stuff in a short time. Splitting medical contents into very little chapters and working through them one by one helped me a lot! Starting low and easy is a good way to deal with stress because the friction of getting things done is way lower than it would be when trying to learn a very complex topic in one session for example.

Second, if you have some good friends in med school, maybe you might find it helpful to learn with them in a group. Or - if you are more likely to learn alone - meet them and go to the library or a similar environment where you and the others study seperately for a predefined amount of time after which you take a shared break afterwards. In this case, you have an accountability partner that makes it harder for you to fall for procrastination.

Leaving the house might also help. You have already installed a block-site software, thats good. And even when you procrastinate, dont condemn yourself because of that. That just causes stress which might lead to more procrastination. I know, I am not good at this myself, so I dont want to seem like I know everything. But you get the idea, I guess 😉

Anyways, good luck on your journey! 🙂

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  • 3 weeks later...

Wow 16 days already passed since my new start.

The total abstinence from the pc in general was a really good idea. This was the very first time I did this for multiple days, and it worked like it should. However there were some other things in real life which let me procrastinate once again and even after a bunch of days I didnt learn anything for the university once again.
Sad! 
 

What can I do better this time? The hard days were definitely there but I pushed through some of them, but I didnt make it for a longer period of time, sadly. Like always, you allow yourself 1 not allowed action, although its a small one, and you repeat that every day since you allowed yourself yesterday already etc... You know the drill. So I really have to push through the first weeks without any excuse. Other than that my plan is once again the same.

 

One more thing I want to do this time is a counter here. I remember in my very first LOL detox I had that 1/90 days counter and added also some small things like studying, programming etc. that worked great. Thats why I will do this too now.

1. Studying, 5 Hours per day

2. No PC Usage, this means no youtube, browsing, social media, netflix, I mean literally nothing, I only want to study with it.

3. Training

4. Eat healthy

However - the only point which really matters is Number 1. And its the toughest one for me since ever. Always failed to built that routine... The reason of so many problems in my life. Maybe THE reason that I procrastinate so much, since I feel overwhelmed.

Thanks for reading, I wish you guys good luck on your journeys 🙂 Gonna start the counter 1/90 tomorrow hopefully.

Edited by Lobares
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And one thing I want to write to myself, which I can read up again when I go to rough times:

Dude, you knew it would be tough. Continue to do what you are doing right now. You created this routine so you get better, feel better. Follow this routine and everything will get better by itself, you dont have to change anything. Stick to the routine, everything will get easier then, the routine is the solution. Just keep doing it for a few more days and you will see.

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Today was fine. I had not much cravings, I mean it was the very first day, so the motivation is there . The next days will be important.

I am thinking right now what I could improve, what should I change... The promodoro system is great if you stick to it. But I made two bigger breaks which I shouldnt do. I want to keep the big breaks small, maybe 30min. Between each promodoro I only make a 5min break, so thats good. But I dont want to take a really big break while I am working off my promodoros. So I want to change that tomorrow

Ill stick to my goal of 5 hours of studying everyday for now, but its probably not enough. I will try to do 2 hours additionally tomorrow, but I dont want to change my list for that, because I am not yet sure whether I can make that. Ill try it tomorrow with no pressure, and then I might change my everyday goal. 

 

 Studying, 5 Hours per day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

Check - 1/90

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Today was okay as well. Did my 5 hours of learning again with success. Cant remember when I learned for so long on two consecutive days, sad, isnt it? However like I said yesterday I need to extend the hours. Didnt made it today sadly. Probably I should start earlier so its not too late and I have more motivation to do another hour or so. However my main focus is to do these 5 hours, built up that routine - only that matters.

 

Yesterday after I wrote my post I checked my old journals(League of legends detox). Its funny, a thing which I mentioned ALWAYS was ‚man I cant manage to quit youtube/pc usage in general‘, nowadays I do this without really thinking about it. I said things like ‚days feel wasted without internet, not being uptodate‘ and I know many people here have the same problems. Why is it now not really a problem anymore? I doubt that I got a key moment or anything, there was no big game changer. I think certain problems get fixed by itself when the environment changes and you do other things as alternatives. I actually just want to say: never lose hope, focus on the routine, and suddenly a problem which seemed unsolvable is now solvable.

 

I also remembered a lot of people which opened a journal at the same time I did, so we regularly followed each other. I checked a few of the peoples journals again, some are gone(relapsed, no new threads etc), some other are keep going with success. Of course I wish everyone to make the detox in the very first time, but I am astonished by some people which open up a journal over and over again, never giving up. Always try to improve to finally make it. That makes me happy. However: Really, focus on make it on the first time. At least for me the first time was the easiest detox try.

 

Studying, 5 Hours per day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

Check - 2/90

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Yesterday: 

Studying, 5 Hours per day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

Check - 4/90

I didnt have time to post here because I was really late with my tasks.

 

Today:

I knew I had a meeting today. Thats why I went straight to my tasks after I woke up. I did everything I could in that time, and thought I will continue with the learning after I am back home. However - I cam back really late and I literally had no time finishing my 5 hours of learning.... The last days gave me really a good feeling. I felt like I am actually getting work done this time(maybe the promodoro system helped me, since I am really well focused in those each small learning brackets, who ever has Problems with procrastination while studying - maybe this is something for you).

And I dont know, but I know this journal helped me very, very much. I had moments were I just wanted to relapse and forget about the plan for a day, but I knew I had to come here and post this counter. Somehow it gave me pressure - but in a really good way. It reminded me on my very first detox. I started a lot journals in the past, but only in the first one I had the /90days goal. And this time as well, I really think this helps me to stay on track.

I didnt really relapse, because I did not do my tasks due to porocrastination, I simply couldnt. But in this early stage, I cant do any excuses at all. I have to adjust everything according to my routine for the next months. After that you can have some fails like that for a day. But not in the beginning. Ill reset this counter and start fresh tomorrow - but I am really worried about whether I will get the same power I got when I started this journal. I hope so.

 

What I want to do better: Get your things early done! Plan your day according to your routine, plan realistically. Other than that - do the same like the past 5 days.

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Studying, 5 Hours per day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

1/90

The day went fine. I never ever want to go back to this mindless surfing all day. There is still so much room to improve, currently I am only focusing on the most important things, but all those years of procrastination, gaming, surfing on the internet left so many things unfinished, that I cant fix all those failures in one go. But I simply just dont want to go back. 

In a few weeks I have some exams which I should have done, literally, years ago. I just always ran away from it, I was like overwhelmed because it was an unbelievable amount of stuff to learn. Now I see that it just keeps getting better - if you invest those countless of study hours. Its not like anything changed, the only thing that changed is & more hours of studying & much more focused thanks to promodoros. However - I dont want to think to much about it. This time I just want to get things actually done. Finishing those damn exams. 

Another goal for tomorrow: I need to write an important report. Should have done that earlier(what a suprise) but now I must do it. So this is a must-do goal for tomorrow. Should take only 1-2 hours max, but with the current schedule, which is still new to me, I need to focus on doing my tasks as fast as possible.

 

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Studying, 5 Hours per day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

2/90

 

I need to study more than 5 hours per day if I want to make it. I need to go for 7, probably 8-9h. I mean its just for those 90 days. But if I dont do it I must wait another few months for the exam and I really, really dont want that. Tomorrow I will learn 6 hours for sure, its a must do. Gonna increase it then day by day.

The report I had to write which I mentioned yesterday - nearly finished it. Setting up goals here is somehow giving me a good pressure(like I said in another post). I dont want to waste that effect thats why I dont want to setup goals which I cant complete. So I  start slow. However I need to fix my learning hours for sure, I need to do more. 

 

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Studying, 6 Hours Per Day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

3/90

Day was fine. Extended my study session by one hour but wasnt that focused towards the end. 87 days left until that exam, seems like a lot but I need to make much progress every day otherwise I wont do it. So ill stay focused and do my best tomorrow once again 

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Studying, 5 Hours Per Day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

4/90

This day was tough. When I started with the university a big problem was not just the gaming, a big problem was that the amount of subjects I had to study for was extremely overwhelming. But everyone struggled with that. While other people tried to learn and adapt, I simply said ‘there is no way I can do this’. I always had this attitude of memorizing every detail. I did not know how I could do it differently. I learnt ways to memorize things, but even the best methods take WAY too much time, because you cant memorize everything.

Today I once again asked myself what I could do else. Some(or maybe the majority?) are simply re-reading the textbooks over and over again, and test theirselfs with old exams. I read in some med boards some discussions about this and one guy literally was in the exact same situation in which I am. Memorizing everything, but now in this mid final exam its just too much.  But re-reading, can that be enough? However it seems to work.

That was the reason why I thought really much about my study situation. So I was not really concentrated. I will try a new method in the next days to see how it goes. Might solve many problems. While testing it I will still do some normal revision like I used to so I dont waste too much time testing new stuff.

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Studying, 5 Hours Per Day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

5/90

Yesterday and today were a lot harder than the other days, because I am trying this new method and I cant really motivate myself properly. So I am lot less concentrated than usual with the promodors. However Ill continue like this for a few more days.

 

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Studying, 5 Hours Per Day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

6/90

 

Reaaaally tough for me the last days to concentrate. Hopefully I can focus more the next days. Tomorrow ill definitely try to use the promodors like you should, so fullfocus, then rest. 

The new learn system I talked about seems to work. At least like they say. I used to repeat everything over and over again to memorize stuff. But it seems like you dont have to do that. Our exams are MC, so I dont need to actively recall all informations and write them done. If this works I am more than happy, and I think it does. Because literally everyone studys like that here. I mean nowadays everyone says anki is the best. Yea ita good to memorize everything perfectly. But its WAY too time intensive, if you try to memorize everything. Maybe in some areas its possible, but in medicine rarely anyone does that. And even if they use anki, I just really doubt that they use it for every detail. I tried so hard, but its too tough on the long way. Thats why Ill stick to re reading now, at least for those exams which are comin up soon.

 

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Hiya Lobares!

Suggested this to another user but you might find it useful too https://www.booktopia.com.au/how-to-be-a-successful-student-richard-e-mayer/book/9781138319868.html  - it's a book that helps you find new ways to approach studying so it doesn't feel like you're hitting your head against a brick wall.    Medical school is indeed tough and it's amazing that you've kept going despite how insane they make it - well done! :)   Have you considered ways that you can take breaks to help you feel better recharged? Visiting a nearby park? I hope you're finding ways to take care of yourself in the midst of all this study.  A healthy body helps the mind stay healthy after all 

It's very inspiring what you're doing - I wish you all the best with it! 

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hi Proxee, thanks for your post 🙂 I did a lot of research way ago but at the end it comes to the common methods, what everyone does basically. What I learnt wayyy ago is that there is no gamechanger methode, just a lot of studying. However the way I go currently is sufficient, I guess. Need to keep that up + extend the study sessions.

Studying, 5 Hours Per Day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

8/90

 

Motivation nearly 0 today 😄 So I was not that productive, but since I solved old exams It didnt have much influence, since you are actively solving something eg its not that boring. I need to start way earlier, to finish faster and to stay more motivated. On my first days of the detox it went quite better. Hope I can somehow get back to that mode.

I REALLY think the only reason why I am still on track is this damn counter I use in this journal. I cant believe it myself, but that pressure let me do it. 

Today I thought a bit about some old friends, which all are gaming 24/7 in their free time. Some of them still study some rarely. It feels like this addiction is no real problem if you dont have high goals in your life. One of my friends plays basically all the time, but does a few hours of work for the university and its enough, because its an easy subject. And this is something which is really common, I feel like.

This ‚problem‘ we all share is just one because we call it like that. Some people have low standards. They know what they do is bad, but they accept it. Here the people are totally different, they never accept this procrastination/gaming life. This is something which you all can be proud of. I feel like most of the people just take it as it is. Failed -> lower the standards. But for us its like failed -> never accept it and fix the problem behind it. 

 

 

 

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10 hours ago, Lobares said:

 

 

hi Proxee, thanks for your post 🙂 I did a lot of research way ago but at the end it comes to the common methods, what everyone does basically. What I learnt wayyy ago is that there is no gamechanger methode, just a lot of studying. However the way I go currently is sufficient, I guess. Need to keep that up + extend the study sessions.

Studying, 5 Hours Per Day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

8/90

 

Motivation nearly 0 today 😄 So I was not that productive, but since I solved old exams It didnt have much influence, since you are actively solving something eg its not that boring. I need to start way earlier, to finish faster and to stay more motivated. On my first days of the detox it went quite better. Hope I can somehow get back to that mode.

I REALLY think the only reason why I am still on track is this damn counter I use in this journal. I cant believe it myself, but that pressure let me do it. 

Today I thought a bit about some old friends, which all are gaming 24/7 in their free time. Some of them still study some rarely. It feels like this addiction is no real problem if you dont have high goals in your life. One of my friends plays basically all the time, but does a few hours of work for the university and its enough, because its an easy subject. And this is something which is really common, I feel like.

This ‚problem‘ we all share is just one because we call it like that. Some people have low standards. They know what they do is bad, but they accept it. Here the people are totally different, they never accept this procrastination/gaming life. This is something which you all can be proud of. I feel like most of the people just take it as it is. Failed -> lower the standards. But for us its like failed -> never accept it and fix the problem behind it. 

 

 

 


I think you're a great example of the saying "Fall 6 times, get up 7."  The fact you've already looked into studying methods really shows off your capability and adaptability! :) 

In my opinion, the education system in any country is a big culprit for low standards and giving up. Most tests and assignments literally go "You failed? That's it. No do-over." when in real life, it's so much more different. If you're working, your boss isn't going to fire you because you didn't complete a task well (though they may get pretty pissed off).  Perhaps the education system isn't to blame but I think society has got to ask - is the education system helping people develop a positive or a growth mindset?   

Sorry to hear that you're not feeling the motivation today - that sucks. Hope tomorrow is better  

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Studying, 5 Hours Per Day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

9/90

Day was a bit better again.  

 

@Proxee

Yea well the education system is different in every country. I dont really care about it and I dont blame it. I think you can do most of the stuff by yourself, but most people dont even have a goal. Of course it can be made better, but I dont really think about the bigger picture behind it anymore. Just focusing on my goals nowadays.

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11 hours ago, Lobares said:

 

Studying, 5 Hours Per Day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

9/90

Day was a bit better again.  

 

@Proxee

Yea well the education system is different in every country. I dont really care about it and I dont blame it. I think you can do most of the stuff by yourself, but most people dont even have a goal. Of course it can be made better, but I dont really think about the bigger picture behind it anymore. Just focusing on my goals nowadays.

A good way to approach it. 

Glad to hear today was a bit better for you. All the best!

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Studying, 5 Hours Per Day | No PC Usage | Training | Eat healthy

10/90

Tested myself with a few old exams most of the time today. Since I changed my study system I dont exactly know what to do when and how, since I am studying for multiple exams at once. Tomorrow I want to start with making a plan how I want to use my hours from

now on the smartest way instead of just starting and pushing through. 

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