Oh, you wanted to hear about something medical?

Occasionally, I enjoy beginners luck, and I am fooled into thinking that I can go from not having a skill at all to having that skill right away. Instead, I am reminded that most things take practice, and that improvement is incremental (usually with a few steps back). 

This has been my experience with learning the pelvic exam, which I have been practicing under supervision on patients over the past three weeks. I dread and look forward to giving them, because I know that I am causing the patient more discomfort than she would experience at the hands of my attending, but I am also eager to learn this skill that I will eventually need to have. I feel a great deal of empathy for the patient when it comes to the physical exam.

The stakes are a bit higher than with home cooking, no?