Notes from Sofia

NYC Life & Style

Recent Posts

  • On the whole 10K steps thing

     On the whole 10K steps thing

  • Sweat440 3 Month Review

     Sweat440 3 Month Review

  • Cape Town Review & Recommendations

     Cape Town Review & Recommendations

  • 2022 Reads

     2022 Reads

  • Head Start on 2023 Goals ✨

     Head Start on 2023 Goals ✨

  • Summer/Fall 2022 Empties

     Summer/Fall 2022 Empties

On the whole 10K steps thing

On the whole 10K steps thing

I had an unexpected experience over the last few months that really helped me get back on track with my fitness goals. An old friend of mine started a fitness accountability/challenge type group on social…

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Sweat440 3 Month Review

Sweat440 3 Month Review

At the time of this review, I’ve been a member at Sweat440 for 3 months now and I want to share a review. This …
Cape Town Review & Recommendations

Cape Town Review & Recommendations

I’m going to start off by saying up front that Cape Town is probably one of my favorite cities I’ve ever visited. …
2022 Reads

2022 Reads

After finishing up my last required medical licensing exam (USMLE Step 3), I devoured the following list of books to make up for a couple …
Head Start on 2023 Goals ✨

Head Start on 2023 Goals ✨

I don’t like waiting until January 1st to try to form a new habit or to start working on goals. The last 2 years, …
Summer/Fall 2022 Empties

Summer/Fall 2022 Empties

The Neutrogena HydroBoost moisturizer has been on every ‘empties’ post I’ve done so far, which tells you all you need to know. It’…
TURKEY/TÜRKIYE RECAP / RECOMMENDATIONS (PART 3 – ANTALYA)

TURKEY/TÜRKIYE RECAP / RECOMMENDATIONS (PART 3 – ANTALYA)

Farzan and I visited Turkey, or Türkiye as it’s now called, in June 2022. This post will cover our experience in Antalya at …
Turkey/Türkiye Recap / Recommendations (Part 2 – Cappadocia)

Turkey/Türkiye Recap / Recommendations (Part 2 – Cappadocia)

Farzan and I visited Turkey, or Türkiye as it’s now called, in June 2022. This post will cover our recommendations for Cappadocia, and …
Turkey/Türkiye Recap / Recommendations (Part 1 – Istanbul)

Turkey/Türkiye Recap / Recommendations (Part 1 – Istanbul)

Farzan and I visited Istanbul, Cappadocia, and Antalya this month (June 2022) and I wanted to share my recommendations for anyone else who may be …
Virtual Interview / Meeting Must Haves

Virtual Interview / Meeting Must Haves

Since the pandemic started, interviews have been virtual for university, residency, etc. I just went through pediatrics residency interviews, which were virtual, and while …
How to Stay Sane while Studying for a Big Exam

How to Stay Sane while Studying for a Big Exam

Whether it’s the US Medical Licensing Exams (USMLEs) like in my case, or another standardized exam – studying for these tests is a PROCESS. …
Empties Part 2 – Fall 2021

Empties Part 2 – Fall 2021

I really enjoy when other bloggers or Instagrammers do this type of post, so I saved up some empties to share with you all. …
Microblading: Review + Pictures

Microblading: Review + Pictures

Why did I get microblading? The long and short of it is that I don’t have as high of an arch in my …
Empties Part 1 – Summer 2021

Empties Part 1 – Summer 2021

I really enjoy when other bloggers or Instagrammers do this type of post, so I saved up some empties to share with you all. …
No Shopping Challenge – Final Review

No Shopping Challenge – Final Review

I did a 1 month update on this challenge which covers most of my thoughts on the challenge and is probably more helpful to read …
Spring Sephora Sale Picks

Spring Sephora Sale Picks

I wanted to keep this short and sweet because I don’t use a million products every day. I only use a few things, …
Dorm & Apartment Tips

Dorm & Apartment Tips

Decor Related Tips In a small dorm or apartment, furniture should be as sleek and minimal as possible in order to maximize space. I …
Interview Questions – College

Interview Questions – College

I’ll go ahead and say it- I’m not the most eloquent or the best under pressure. So interviews, as you might imagine, …
Interview Questions – Med School

Interview Questions – Med School

I’ll go ahead and say it- I’m not the most eloquent or the best under pressure. So interviews, as you might imagine, …
A Cardio Hater’s Review of the Peloton

A Cardio Hater’s Review of the Peloton

After seeing so much hype around Peloton throughout 2020, I decided to finally give it a try in December because my building has a few …
No Shopping Challenge- Month 1

No Shopping Challenge- Month 1

During the last week of December 2020, I reached a tipping point. I was purchasing SO many things- clothes, beauty products, and home/kitchen goods. …
Holiday Traditions for Non-Christians

Holiday Traditions for Non-Christians

I’ve been meaning to start some fun holiday season traditions with Farzan for a while now. On one hand, I don’t want …
The Best Gifts YOU All Have Ever Received

The Best Gifts YOU All Have Ever Received

The best gifts you all (my readers!) have ever received!
How to Prepare for Clinical Rotations

How to Prepare for Clinical Rotations

To start, I’m not writing this post because I feel like I was the best prepared student for clerkships or because I feel …
On Productivity

On Productivity

This article is a tough one for me to write because I feel a little like a fraud- I’m not always the most …
How to Take Care of Shoes & Boots

How to Take Care of Shoes & Boots

Prior to wearing When I bought a pair of UGGs in 7th grade, the package said to spray the boots with a suede/leather …
How to decide on a medical specialty

How to decide on a medical specialty

Pre- Clinical Years In my own experience, it’s hard to know for sure what you enjoy prior to clinical rotations, but I do …
Thrifting Tips

Thrifting Tips

Online First, I’ll focus on online thrifting via sites such as Poshmark, Mercari, ThredUp and others. Online thrifting is much easier to filter …
How to layer in winter- without adding bulk

How to layer in winter- without adding bulk

January is a time for productivity- meaning I’ve been spending a lot of time in libraries and coffee shops. While I love these …
Splurging vs. Saving

Splurging vs. Saving

As a student, I have no choice but to be mindful of my shopping/spending habits. I try to consider many factors before making …
How to Take Care of Sweaters

How to Take Care of Sweaters

Sweaters are some of my favorite pieces, and I don’t mind investing in them because I know that they last me many years. …
Personal Safety on Campus & In Cities

Personal Safety on Campus & In Cities

Growing up in Chicago, my parents always emphasized the importance of personal safety and paying attention to everything happening around you. I always knew …
Reflections on TBL Pilates

Reflections on TBL Pilates

Over the last week, I participated in the 5 Day Pilates challenge with The Balanced Life (TBL) and shared the experience on Instagram Stories. Today, …
4 Best Designer Shoes Dupes

4 Best Designer Shoes Dupes

***I recognize that many of us may not have the luxury of still being able to shop, and I really hope this post doesn’…
Faux Leather Leggings: Spanx vs. Carbon38 vs. Commando

Faux Leather Leggings: Spanx vs. Carbon38 vs. Commando

For someone whose fashion sense is rather non-edgy, I’m surprised to say that I’ve tried the three most popular faux leather leggings. …
Gift Ideas for Him & Her

Gift Ideas for Him & Her

For each category, I tried to list the items in order from most affordable to most expensive. That said, there are several brands that …
BBG 1.0 Review

BBG 1.0 Review

One of my 2019 goals was to complete the famous BBG workout program, and I finally started it in October. I only stuck to it …
A Brown Girl’s Honest Experience with Laser Hair Removal

A Brown Girl’s Honest Experience with Laser Hair Removal

If there’s one thing that South Asian women (honestly, probably women of all ethnicities) can bond over, it’s hair removal. Hair removal …
How to approach research ~stuff~ (Part 2)

How to approach research ~stuff~ (Part 2)

Part 1 of this post on research covered the questions of how important research is when applying to med school or residency, how to find …
How to approach research ~stuff~

How to approach research ~stuff~

Earlier this week, I presented some research at a conference for the first time, and I wanted to talk about how to approach research …
How I Study During Rotations

How I Study During Rotations

When I started my rotations in January, I felt so overwhelmed. Because my class takes the USMLE Step 1 after our clinical year, I hadn’…
How to pick which medical school to attend

How to pick which medical school to attend

It’s officially that time of year when medical school applicants get to compare their admissions offers (if they’re lucky) and make a …
6 Ways I Deal with Failure

6 Ways I Deal with Failure

Whether you’ve experienced minor setbacks or life-altering failure, we all feel discouraged from time to time. That said, relying on healthy coping strategies …
How I stay healthy & active as a student

How I stay healthy & active as a student

As a student, I am limited by time and budget, but there are a few habits I’ve formed that probably make a big …
How I Deal with Negativity

How I Deal with Negativity

I’m not sure why, but I’ve been getting a lot of questions about how I handle negativity lately. It kind of makes …
Undergrad vs. Med School Admissions

Undergrad vs. Med School Admissions

One thing many students don’t realize is that the college application process in the US is different from the medical school application process. …
2018 Year In Review + 2019 Goals

2018 Year In Review + 2019 Goals

2018 Review 2018 definitely flew by, but I think it’s important to reflect on what went well and what could be improved. Initially, it felt …
How to eat healthy as a student

How to eat healthy as a student

I wanted to get this post up before the new year, when many people make it a goal to eat healthy. Eating healthy is …
10 No Cooking Required Trader Joe’s Meals

10 No Cooking Required Trader Joe’s Meals

As a medical student, it’s definitely a priority for me to eat healthy and in a budget-friendly way. However, I’ve ruled out …
On Motivation

On Motivation

This post has been a long time coming, but I have been putting it off because it’s such a complex topic. The number …