Nast-eeee-ness. Gross. Repugnant. Juicy. Odious. Vomit-inducing. Blarghh.
All these terms describe your insides.
Today marks Day 9 of Gross Anatomy. 3 cadavers distributed among 17 students. Admittedly, the cadaver lab was one of the reasons I applied to the Radiologic Science Program here at UNC. Though it is physically and mentally challenging at times, it's easy to see the necessity of something so hands-on and in-your-face. Your latissimus dorsi (your inferior back muscles) really do wrap around to the front and attach to the humerus. And your lungs? HUGE! These accumulated dissections make me want to diet for the rest of my life, there is no escaping adipose tissue or fat once the dermis is reflected back. Four hours, four days a week, 8AM - 12PM in Macnider, the Med School building. I can tell you that my Ragin' Cajun hot dog from the Health Affairs Bookstore I had during my lunch hour immediately following my first lab was trashed after the first bite with no regrets other than having purchased it and spicing it up with stomach-churning chili.
Today's lab, the pelvic region, was perhaps the most brutal thus far. After locating the kidneys and ureters, we literally took a saw to the body, and transected the body in half, separating the upper trunk from the lower limbs. Then, I bisected the legs right in half, sawing through the buttocks to the very front. The rectum was as large as my hand on both sides, and literally... Full. Of. Shit. As soon as the saw made contact with the table underneath, every one of the 6 members of my group let out an audible gasp, simultaneously doing backstrokes to get outside the circumference of rancidness. I wish I could be more tactful about explaining the whole situation, but the words fell right out of my mouth and hit the ground running when it happened. The rest of the students rushed over to see what the commotion was about - it was obvious that our lady was in a worse (aka constipated to the max) state than the others. Of course, some had to suppress giggles, while everyone else seemed to have a look on their face that questioned whether or not THAT'S what THEY looked like on the inside (of course denying the fact or thinking of when next to schedule a detox appointment). Not missing a beat, us three girls of the group picked up the left leg, and grapevine shuffled it over to the tissue disposal bin where a towel was used to scrape out the crap. Then, we made a beeline for the sink, where I literally stuck my finger through the a-hole to push everything out. Lucky for me, my state of shock rendered me olfactory-impaired.
I guess the one good thing that came out of this whole expedition was my appreciation for birth and life. Odd, right? After the legs were cleaned out, we located the uterus, which was smallish, extremely muscular, and a bit triangular. How could a baby grow inside of that thing?
As soon as I walked out of the building, I swung my bangs around to the front of my face and realized that I definitely got my sense of smell back. After covering myself in my friend's Strawberry Daquiri body spray, I'm good to go, hoping it will successfully mask my stink until late afternoon.
Summary of the Weekend: Duke Hospital orientation for Radi Sci, bonding with the Radi Sci girls, Panera Bread chai latte enjoyed outdoors with Katharine's puppy (Radley), Kal bi and Tofu soup at Vit Goal, Mosquito club in Raleigh, late night Waffle House, Pulp Fiction and Greg's homemade corn salsa with some peoples, learning tennis and hitting hardcore backhands, shiki sushi deliciousness, and Juno.
