You’ve matched into residency, now what?
Congratulations to all those who recently matched into residency! Most importantly, take time to celebrate all of your accomplishments, spend time with friends and family, and enjoy the end of medical school! While you are having all that fun, a few things to consider:
The boring one first. Make sure you fill out any and all documents from your residency program. Especially those for your state training license - these can take some time to be processed and one less thing to stress about later in the summer.
Reach out to your co-residents. Especially if you are moving cities, it's never too early to start building a community.
Learn about your new city - make a list of restaurants you will want to try during residency and hobbies that you are interested in doing. While you will no way have the same amount of time for extracurriculars as you did in medical school, prioritizing these activities from the start can be helpful!
Read a good book. If you’re anything like me, you won’t have the time or the energy to read much. Particularly books that are at all related to medicine. Here are some of the most inspirational medical books I’ve read:
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
The House of God by Samuel Shem
Being Mortal by Atul Gawande
Finally, focus on your mind and body. Whether it’s yoga, pilates, running or weight-lifting, moving your body can do wonders prior to residency. Alo Moves has been my favorite at-home workout recently, that I was able to realistically do in residency and beyond (try a 30-day free trial here).
