Day 1
Monday started bright and early with us boarding the bus to Sweden at 7:45am. But despite the early rise, everyone was pumped and ready to go.
Our first stop was a psychiatric prison in Skåne. Although photos were
Our first stop was a psychiatric prison in Skåne. Although photos were
Our first stop was a psychiatric prison in Skåne. Although photos were prohibited, at a cost of over 600 USD per night per inmate, I’m sure you can imagine it wasn’t your usual Alcatraz. A tour of the prison began with us clearing security and then entering a foyer where the color-changing cloud shaped lights were synchronized with the sky outside. We then made our way to the visiting rooms which were decked out with beds, couches, and toys, all ready for friends and family to pay a visit. The rest of the facility was full of surprises with an activities room that resembled a high-school arts and crafts area, an ear acupuncture office, a couple of gyms, and of course, a sauna.
The conclusion of the tour left us awestruck. Fortunately, straight after we had the opportunity to talk to a psychologist and research coordinator in the Division of Forensic Psychiatry, to whom we were able to ask all our burning questions. We learned about why most of the patients were there, the views Swedish taxpayers had towards this beautiful facility that housed murderers, and the treatments the patients in the facility received.
After the visit we hopped on the bus back to Malmö and checked into our hostel where we were given a couple of hours to rest before heading to Boulebar Drottningtorget. Now, I don’t quite know how to explain the boulebar, but it was essentially a restaurant and bar combined with an indoor bocce complex. I think you’ll just have to check out the pics below to see what I mean.
Our first stop was a psychiatric prison in Skåne. Although photos were
Day 2
Tuesday morning started with breakfast at the hostel and then a 30 minute drive up to another Swedish town, Lund. Upon arrival we were each given 200 Swedish krona to buy lunch, and with the favorable exchange rate it went pretty far. After a bit of exploration through the botanical gardens we met back at the Lund Cathedral just in time to watch the astronomical clock do its thing.
prohibited, at a cost of over 600 USD per night per inmate, I’m sure you can
prohibited, at a cost of over 600 USD per night per inmate, I’m sure you can
We then made our way to the day’s academic visit at the Lund stem cell center where we heard the stories of two researchers and got a tour of their labs. This was a great way to get to know the ins and outs of pursuing a career in neuroscience research and what opportunities are available abroad, as well as how to find them. On our tour of the labs we had the chance to see how mouse brains were sectioned and stored as well as exploring astrocytes through microscopes.
prohibited, at a cost of over 600 USD per night per inmate, I’m sure you can
Day 3
Wednesday was the day I had been looking forward to all week – it was the day of our cinnamon roll baking class. Usually I’m not a morning person, but I had no trouble being ready for breakfast at 7:30 when I knew our first activity of the day was going to trigger a big hit of dopamine. Instead of explaining the class, I’ll let the pictures do the talking.
prohibited, at a cost of over 600 USD per night per inmate, I’m sure you can
You’d think things couldn’t get any better, but DIS pulled through yet again taking us straight from the baking class to a great lunch at Smak.
After filling our stomachs with warm homemade cinnamon rolls, a huge lunch, and one of the best chocolate mousse cakes I’ve ever had for dessert, we continued on to Malmö’s University Hospital where we learned about the diagnosis of mental illnesses as well as the horrific history of psychiatric hospitals. It was interesting to learn about everything from the history of lobotomy to current ways of diagnosing mental illnesses and modern medications.
prohibited, at a cost of over 600 USD per night per inmate, I’m sure you can
Days 4 and 5
Thursday and Friday were spent back in Denmark and consisted of lectures at DIS as well as a field study to an old psychiatric facility in Roskilde. Our study tour was an interesting way to learn about different topics within psychopharmacology from three different mini lectures. The first was an introduction to genetic research in neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders where we learned about the central dogma in biology including mutation and its role in disease, as well as general approaches for disease mapping. The second speaker talked about alternative strategies for detecting rare genetic variants. And lastly, our final speaker for the day covered pharmacogenetics and tailored treatment, including individual variation in drug response, the concept of personalized medicine, and disease heterogeneity.
We wrapped up the week on Friday with a class reflection on what we had learned over the course of our Core Course Week, and how this new knowledge might impact our lives going forward.
Overall the week was a great opportunity to learn more about what’s currently happening in the field of neuroscience, as well as a fun way to get to know our peers outside of class through all sorts of planned and unplanned activities.
The Pursuit of Hygge 
Leave a comment