Heat Wave

I finally got to wear my favorite flip flops today. For some reason, my feet in San Francisco always stay cold. Today was an exception. The sun was shinning and all 94 degrees of heat were beating down on a city that is not accustomed to such high intensity UV rays. It was the perfect day to go to Ocean Beach.

Having grown up in the central valley, the so-called "heat wave," is bearable. In fact, the heat was a welcome change from the fog, wind and chills that are so endemic to San Francisco.
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The second part of BMB has covered a wide array of topics, including multiple sclerosis, neuropathology, hypnotic drugs and emotions. The lectures on emotions was especially interesting. A world-renowned expert on emotions, presented an approach to read people's faces to determine if people are lying based on subtle facial expressions.

Along with learning the basics of neuropathology and emotions, I also learned the art of the mini mental status exam. During our psychiatry apprenticeship, we had the opportunity to take part in interviewing a patient. The approach to taking a mental history is fundamentally identical to the history of any other disorder, except we focus on the mental health. There is definitely an art to the interview; there are certain questions that need to be asked and certain topics that must be covered.

Most importantly, you must be prepared to handle yourself when you are
processing the information your patient gives you, including patients who are suicidal, delusional, depressed and unresponsive to treatment.

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I wonder how long the heat wave will persist. Hopefully, the sun will shine this weekend during Bay 2 Breakers, a city-wide run from the Bay Bridge to the Ocean, a total of 7.26 miles. I have registered and am looking forward to this trans-city run, an opportunity to get to know the city up close and personal, in all its glory. More details (and photographs) to come...