Oh, My Achin' Butt

It's time for continuing education again, something that most professionals have to do. Once or twice each year I go to a conference to learn about new developments or procedures in veterinary medicine, refresh my memory on things I thought I knew, and get free stuff from the various vendors. It can be very interesting and educational, but most of us run into a common problem...butt fatigue.

You see, most vets are pretty active people at work. We're going from room to room and case to case. On our busiest days we may never sit down and may not even have time for a lunch break. Our minds are having to shift gears every 10-20 minutes as new patiets come in, hospitalized patients get discharged, or lab results become available. Mentally and physically we're pretty much on the go for the whole workday.

Now take a normally active person and make them sit in a chair for 1-2 hours at a time for an entire 8 hour day. Ouch! Even in the most engaging lecture I'll find myself getting bored and restless. My hind end starts to literally hurt and I'm shifting positions to keep comfortable. In one of my lectures this morning we didn't have a break for an entire 2 hour period. For someone who is normally moving around a lot, this is a minor form of torture.

But we get through it. My colleagues and I know that we have to go through this to keep ourselves informed about current medical trends and information so that we can be the best doctors possible. I guess it makes us appreciate those days when our feet hurt instead of our behinds.