my life, my pace

Do you…

…feel the constant need to memorize things?

…feel that everything you do is wasting your time if it doesn’t involve memorization of obscure facts?

…always carry some sort of book with you just in case you get bored enough to study (for me, it’s First Aid for the Wards even though wards is still a good long while away)?

…try to apply obscure things that you’ve learned to everyday life?

…look for something new to study once you finish whatever it was that you were studying before?

…feel that your life lacks purpose when it isn’t spent studying?

…think the world would be a better place if only everyone studied?

If you answered yes to three or more of these questions, you may be suffering from compulsive studying disorder, or CSD, an extremely rare but serious condition in which patients find life pointless if it is not spent in the pursuit of knowledge.

CSD is characterized by periods of study mania, defined as prolonged and feverish studying, followed by periods of study inertia, characterized by prolonged slacking off and an inability to study despite the mental urge/need to study. Studies have shown that periods of study inertia often coincide with and intensify right before important exams, which can be quite debilitating. Studies have also shown that periods of study mania often follow important exams when patients feel let down by the fact that they no longer need to study and want to cling to the sense of purpose that studying imparts on them by seeking out new studying materials.

Treatment for CSD includes providing patients with things to study in conjunction with psychotherapy. Refractory cases may respond to antidepressants.

Case study: MLMP is a twenty-something-year-old MD/PhD student who has just passed her qualifying exam, which was characterized by a four-week period of study mania followed by a five-week period of study inertia then followed by a three-week period of extreme study mania. Now that MLMP is done with her qualifying exam, she finds that she now lacks a sense of purpose and is seeking something to study. She is looking into studying for and taking the USMLE Step 2 CK to fill the void. Comment: MLMP is suffering from classic CSD. She should be encouraged to pursue the USMLE Step 2 CK if it is in fact feasible. If it is not, it is suggested that she study her basic science material from her first two years of medical school in preparation for her return to the wards.

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