A photo takes me back 14 years to my first summer as a doctoral student in neurosurgery at Jichi Medical University.
Back then, all I knew was that my field was neurosurgery, focusing on epilepsy surgery. Specifically, I was working on pinpointing the seizure source in epilepsy cases, particularly mesial temporal lobe epilepsy.
It sounds impressive, right? But honestly, I was completely lost and had no idea what I was doing. Sure, I attached EEG electrodes to patients’ heads. Yes, I recorded their brain activity. I observed when seizures happened and noted the changes in brain wave patterns during these episodes.
I also learned about fNIRS, a brain imaging tool that uses infrared light. Despite diving into all sorts of theories, I couldn’t grasp what I was truly doing.
For a whole year, I went through the phase of, “What the heck am I doing here?” It wasn’t until later that I understood the importance of adding seizure source assessment modalities to avoid invasive procedures and strengthen diagnostic confidence.
What I want to say here is that feeling confused and clueless, especially in the early years of education, is not unusual. It’s actually quite common. There were times I wondered, “Did I choose the wrong topic?” But deciding not to quit and keeping on going eventually led me to a world I truly love: applied cognitive neuroscience. The foundation of this field lies in understanding the human brain and its imaging technology—things that puzzled me for years.
So, if you find yourself confused in the early stages, keep moving forward!
