feeling incompetent

Hey guys, im a 3rd year medical student originally from the UK but studying abroad.

this is a bit of a weird situation but im starting to find out that i am simply just not competent enough to do medicine, i struggle with basic practical tasks and i am much slower than other students in carrying out instructions by the teacher. It difficult to describe but i feel like my brain just functions much slower.

Do you think this will be a huge problem in the future? i was planning to do Foundation years in the UK, but recently i saw how much is expected of them and im worried i wont be able to cope

Are you sleeping enough? Are you under a lot of stress? Sometimes if you're suffering in one or both of these areas you can feel like your brain just isn't functioning properly.

Alternatively, have you considered being assessed for some kind of learning disability? Like dyspraxia (the closest one I can think of right now, I'm not an expert)? If there is a reason that you are struggling that can be documented then you should be able to access reasonable help and/or adjustments to allow you to perform the tasks required to get through med school and do the job. Have you spoken to your GP about this?

Performing well in exams only involves a limited set of skills. You are clearly having issues with a different set of skills. If the problem is big enough that you're wondering whether you can even finish med school or work as a doctor then it's time to go and talk to your GP or the disability coordinator of the students union about it, don't you think?

Yes I think you are very right, its just a very weird and slightly embarrassing thing to talk about. ive expressed these thoughts to my parents but since they are the most practical people in the world they don't really take it seriously. Interestingly enough my brother has the same issue so Im starting to think its related to how we were raised (not a very stimulating environment - watching tv all days, playing computer games, not going out enough, no responsibility ect), unlikely a genetic issue, like i said earlier, parents are the exact opposite of me. Thanks for the advice, I appreciate it.

It could also be that your parents just don't want to face the 'blame' for whatever might be the issue, or they don't want to admit the possibility that there could be an issue that they've ignored up until this point. Not everyone's parents turn out to be as supportive as they grow up assuming. Definitely talk to some people about it and see what kind of solutions can be suggested before you make any kind of big decisions.