THE PHARMACY

How to Pace Yourself in Pharmacy School

For the last three years, I’ve made the mistake of bulldozing my way through pharmacy school. This included neglecting my mental health in favor of perfect grades and academic success. I could sustain it for about half my pharmacy journey before I finally cracked under pressure. The imbalance in my life created this never-ending cycle of continuously stepping on the gas even though I don’t have any left in the tank.

Over the past six months, after working through my emotions and daily habits, I’ve assembled a few tips for taking care of yourself mentally through pharmacy school. This also applies to anyone in school or work.

1. Take more frequent breaks!

I remember not allowing myself to take breaks from studying, even when I felt like I was splitting my brain in half. That habit not only increased the frequency of my headaches but also made me more neurotic than I have ever been. It took me a while to realize that more is not always better. Your brain learns its best when it’s at rest.

Giving myself more frequent and meaningful breaks has helped me not to let school consume my life. I can test myself on the material I learned with enough time to master the material. Even since doing that, my grades, as well as my life, have been more…