EPTUnlike the last blog which was #4thelulz, this one will mainly be about me. Who am I kidding, this will only be about me Xp. I don’t usually share much personal information on TL (or anywhere else for that matter), but I want to share some recent parts of my life today because if nothing else, I’m sure I’ll get a good laugh when reading this years later. Hope you enjoy
So summer of junior year while at UC Davis, I got hooked up by a doctor I met through volunteering with some members of my fraternity with a job as an emergency room scribe. Most people (even people in healthcare) don’t know what a scribe is so I’ll explain:
An ER scribe acts as the emergency physician’s personal assistant and is specifically trained to help complete patients’ medical charts. For example, you go to the ER and complain of abdominal pain, the doctor will ask you all sorts of questions such as: when did it start? what symptoms are you having? have you taken any medications already? and so on. His scribe would accompany him in seeing you and WHILE the doctor is conversing with you and examining you, the scribe is responsible for taking down the information contemporaneously on a computer. The scribe is also responsible for documenting patient progress and labs and tests ordered by the physician. Most of the time, physicians will also dictate their decision making, course of treatment, diagnoses, and disposition to the scribe as well.
As you can imagine, being a scribe is incredibly demanding both physically and intellectually. I often worked 9 to 10 hour shifts nonstop, with maybe a 10 minute break for food/bathroom. And because of the nature of the ER being open 24/7, I have also had to work graveyard shifts and national holidays as well. Every week, I would have a new work schedule so my sleep patterns were always fucked up and could only visit home 2 weeks a year. Why do all this shit for only $10/hour? Well, as you might have guessed, I wanted to go to medical school!
After working 3 years as a scribe at 3 different hospitals (with around 50 different doctors, 2500 hours worked, 10000 patients seen) in Northern California, I finally got accepted by Saint George Medical School last October! Of course, I also took the MCAT twice, volunteered when I could, and spent around $6000 (literally all my savings) over two application cycles to get there…
So, WAS IT WORTH IT?
Well, yes. It was worth it not just because now I WILL be a doctor, but because I’m finally grown up. See, shortly after I got my scribe job, I was actually at an all time low in life:
1. I just broke up with my first serious girlfriend of 2.5 years and she moved on in one week
2. Work was incredibly demanding and I was often unhappy at work
3. My grades were suffering, combination of being too tired from work /depressed about break up /just
want to graduate already /alcohol
4. SC2 was just not the same...
This phase lasted about 6 months during which time I was legit sad and questioned everything. What is the point of my life? Do we exist? Do I really want to be a doctor? How will I handle the debt of medical school? What other careers should I pursue if I don’t get in? Am I so insignificant that a person can go from dating me for 2.5 years to another relationship in a week? (btw she is still with him)
I struggled with finding happiness and joy in everyday life. I was unmotivated and didn’t want to get up and do anything. However, I was surrounded by so many people IRL (mostly my fraternity friends) who all seemed to be doing well in school and who were excited every single day that I guess I was never truly very far from who I was. Of this, I feel very fortunate to have so many great friends. Also I MUST give TL a BIG shoutout at this point because I spend a lot of time online and TL really is like another home for me. I have been here for 7 years now and I’m not exaggerating when I say my daily visits to TL also helped me stay somewhat grounded during this phase.
Anyway, as time passed I slowly got over my break up, I adjusted to my work schedule, and I started seriously studying again. I tried to be positive and just kept chugging along day after day. After graduation a year later, I felt happy and at ease for the first time in a long time. Suddenly, everything appeared clear as day. I LOVED the idea of being a doctor, and I dreamed of all the things I could accomplish. I COMPLETELY moved on from my ex after I figured out it was right for us to break up and that she’s not the type of girl I am looking for, so no need to get so hung up on first serious relationship. I had also more or less figured out what “life means” for me, and what things were important for me.
My ability to enjoy life and thoughts about my future kept me focused and motivated. Even though I did not get into any medical school the first year I applied, I wasn’t too bothered by it tbh. I knew what my goals were and I was going after them. I applied again. Then, like I said, near the end of last year, I nailed my interview and was #confirmed going to a school to receive a MD starting August 2014.
So since the new year, I finally quit being a scribe and just embraced all the free time I haven’t had in years. I caught up with friends. I started reading again (jesus it felt so strange at first). I started writing my book. I even started playing Dota2 and bought a PS4! For the past two months, I have been in China visiting some extended family since it will probably be a VERY long time until I see them again. My cousin will also be coming back with me in July to see how we live in the land of the free as her HS graduation present.
Wrapping up now. This whole process of trying to get into medical school was really about me growing up and figuring myself out. If I should go through another low point in my life, I think I’m much more prepared for it now. I feel like I have the confidence to do what I want in life, or at least the ability to not crash this ship completely. Of course, even with the effort I put forth myself, none of this would have been possible without the advice, support, encouragement, and sometimes mere presence of my friends. One can not ride solo in life, surround yourself with good people!
If you’ve read everything until now, THANK YOU VERY MUCH! I know it’s a very long blog, but trust me, this is still the short version. It’s been three years after all and so much shit has happened. If you are interested in seeing what medical school life is like on the BEAUTIFUL island of Grenada (seriously google SGU medical school), you can follow my adventures at my wordpress blog. Coming soon I promise, and I will try to update it with interesting things.
THANK YOU! AND I LOVE YOU TL! <333
