Scared Of What To Pursue

[Dbox96]

What's up everyone

At first, the only things on my mind were dead set on neurosurgery, then I switched to orthopedics.

But then I had to be real with myself and question whether I can handle something that tough in the field.

Not to say that I shouldn't challenge myself, but I had to set in reality. So I decided on anesthesia. But after reading the whole issue with CRNA and demand, I'm not sure if I should become one.


I'm not gonna lie guys, I can't see myself doing anything out of medical field. But I dont think I can handle something difficult...at least difficult to me.

I dont care about a salary as much as the actual love for what I'm doing. The only reason I'd like a satisfactory pay is just to take care of this debt coming up.


Can anyone please recommend anything in the field that isn't stressful ?

peace and happiness guys

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[superpom_7]

First, don't doubt yourself. I learned the hard (not really, but I learned to stop) way of doubting myself and then I end up thinking to myself "holy bleep, I can do this". Doubting yourself and saying you can't handle something that is "difficult" isn't going to help you. You don't/won't really know for sure if you can handle it until you do it or show some signs that you are capable and are willing to work hard, but never say never. Keep in mind that people change their specialty or what they want to specialize in many times, and lots of people realize that what they wanted to specialize in when they were in undergrad, or even before, is different than what they want to specialize in years down the road. You can make things more difficult than what they are by constantly having that negative mindset that you can't do it because it's perceived as difficult. You have to be honest with yourself, but also not so degrading and harsh on yourself.

I really wouldn't pick based on stress, but on what you want to do.

 

[Quinoline]

What's up everyone

At first, the only things on my mind were dead set on neurosurgery, then I switched to orthopedics.

But then I had to be real with myself and question whether I can handle something that tough in the field.

Not to say that I shouldn't challenge myself, but I had to set in reality. So I decided on anesthesia. But after reading the whole issue with CRNA and demand, I'm not sure if I should become one.


I'm not gonna lie guys, I can't see myself doing anything out of medical field. But I dont think I can handle something difficult...at least difficult to me.

I dont care about a salary as much as the actual love for what I'm doing. The only reason I'd like a satisfactory pay is just to take care of this debt coming up.


Can anyone please recommend anything in the field that gains respect but isn't stressful lol ?

peace and happiness guys

If you have not yet begun undergrad, I am not sure if you know yourself well enough to make these statements.
As superpom said, you do not yet know your potential. In undergrad, I'd recommend pursuing goals higher than what you think you can achieve, so you have as many options as possible once you've had more time to mature and get to know yourself.
Also, your post seems a bit contradictory in that you say you are only looking for something you will love, but you also are looking for a field that gains respect. "Climb mountains not so the world can see you, but so you can see the world."

 

[sonofva]

Firstly , if your primary goal is to do something you love, then the difficulty or hours shouldn't matter. If they do, perhaps a career different than medicine is for you.

And if you scared, go to church, to quote Ice Cube.

 

[Dbox96]

Firstly , if your primary goal is to do something you love, then the difficulty or hours shouldn't matter. If they do, perhaps a career different than medicine is for you.

And if you scared, go to church, to quote Ice Cube.

thanks I appreciate that....

 

[Dbox96]

First, don't doubt yourself. I learned the hard (not really, but I learned to stop) way of doubting myself and then I end up thinking to myself "holy bleep, I can do this". Doubting yourself and saying you can't handle something that is "difficult" isn't going to help you. You don't/won't really know for sure if you can handle it until you do it or show some signs that you are capable and are willing to work hard, but never say never. Keep in mind that people change their specialty or what they want to specialize in many times, and lots of people realize that what they wanted to specialize in when they were in undergrad, or even before, is different than what they want to specialize in years down the road. You can make things more difficult than what they are by constantly having that negative mindset that you can't do it because it's perceived as difficult. You have to be honest with yourself, but also not so degrading and harsh on yourself.

I really wouldn't pick based on stress, but on what you want to do.

Thanks, I understand. The only reason I say im scared is because surgery is a big responsibility you know ? maybe im just overthinking things. But what if I screw up during
operation and I get sued or something?

 

[Mad Jack]

Firstly , if your primary goal is to do something you love, then the difficulty or hours shouldn't matter. If they do, perhaps a career different than medicine is for you.

And if you scared, go to church, to quote Ice Cube.

I'm going to disagree with that. The thing is, people often have good friends, family, and possibly a fiancé by the time they are in medical school. Now, ultimately, medicine is just a job- yeah, we can glorify it all we want (which we don't) but ten years post-residency, a job's a job. The excitement wears off, things become routine, you might even start to get bored. What's the point of giving up everything about yourself to pursue a career that, at the end of the day, is just a career? I guess I just look at it differently than most- I want to keep my friendships and my relationship healthy through the process, and I'll do whatever it takes to stay who I am from start to finish, because I care about the people I care about more than I care about some job.

What's up everyone

At first, the only things on my mind were dead set on neurosurgery, then I switched to orthopedics.

But then I had to be real with myself and question whether I can handle something that tough in the field.

Not to say that I shouldn't challenge myself, but I had to set in reality. So I decided on anesthesia. But after reading the whole issue with CRNA and demand, I'm not sure if I should become one.


I'm not gonna lie guys, I can't see myself doing anything out of medical field. But I dont think I can handle something difficult...at least difficult to me.

I dont care about a salary as much as the actual love for what I'm doing. The only reason I'd like a satisfactory pay is just to take care of this debt coming up.


Can anyone please recommend anything in the field that isn't stressful ?

peace and happiness guys

Get into medical school first. You'll find you can hand some types of stress better than others- you might find 40 hours of psych to be more painful than 80 hours of surgery, or you might find you really enjoy that 60 hours a week of EM, despite the insanity. You will undoubtedly change very much as a person by the time the process is over, so it isn't even worth really factoring in right now, as the 26 year old you will be very, very different than the 18 year old you.

 

[superpom_7]

Thanks, I understand. The only reason I say im scared is because surgery is a big responsibility you know ? maybe im just overthinking things. But what if I screw up during
operation and I get sued or something?

Of course surgery is a big responsibility. It's serious and risky. Don't screw up during an operation? I am not a surgeon so I really don't know how to answer that. Just..stop stressing and stop overthinking it. Don't think about what bad things can happen because I'm sure people think about what could go wrong all the time, but you can't have that mindset.

 

[da8s0859q]

If you have not yet begun undergrad, I am not sure if you know yourself well enough to make these statements.

Get into medical school first. ... You will undoubtedly change very much as a person by the time the process is over, so it isn't even worth really factoring in right now, as the 26 year old you will be very, very different than the 18 year old you.

These things.

maybe im just overthinking things. But what if I screw up during operation and I get sued or something?

I'm an emergency medicine resident, probably something like 13 or 14 years older than you. It's a higher-than-average risk specialty. What if I can't intubate someone to put them on a ventilator despite several attempts and different equipment, then can't oxygenate them, then can't secure the airway doing a cricothyrotomy, and they arrest and die? Point being, life doesn't work like that. Don't overthink. Be good at what you do.

 

[sonofva]

I'm going to disagree with that. The thing is, people often have good friends, family, and possibly a fiancé by the time they are in medical school. Now, ultimately, medicine is just a job- yeah, we can glorify it all we want (which we don't) but ten years post-residency, a job's a job. The excitement wears off, things become routine, you might even start to get bored. What's the point of giving up everything about yourself to pursue a career that, at the end of the day, is just a career? I guess I just look at it differently than most- I want to keep my friendships and my relationship healthy through the process, and I'll do whatever it takes to stay who I am from start to finish, because I care about the people I care about more than I care about some job.

Get into medical school first. You'll find you can hand some types of stress better than others- you might find 40 hours of psych to be more painful than 80 hours of surgery, or you might find you really enjoy that 60 hours a week of EM, despite the insanity. You will undoubtedly change very much as a person by the time the process is over, so it isn't even worth really factoring in right now, as the 26 year old you will be very, very different than the 18 year old you.

I hear what you're saying and agree. It's important to try to keep a good balance in your life. However I don't think you'd disagree that med students/residents/doctors do have to make some sacrifices along the way that the general population does not,. So it's better to decide early if you're willing to make those sacrifices or not. If you know you don't want to work hard, or you want to dedicate yourself to family 100% etc. the medicine isn't the career for you. Better to decide early

 

[Hillo]

If you're into surgery, why not dentistry? And there's dental anesthesia (pick which cases you want to do).

 

[DermViser]

What's up everyone

At first, the only things on my mind were dead set on neurosurgery, then I switched to orthopedics.

But then I had to be real with myself and question whether I can handle something that tough in the field.

Not to say that I shouldn't challenge myself, but I had to set in reality. So I decided on anesthesia. But after reading the whole issue with CRNA and demand, I'm not sure if I should become one.


I'm not gonna lie guys, I can't see myself doing anything out of medical field. But I dont think I can handle something difficult...at least difficult to me.

I dont care about a salary as much as the actual love for what I'm doing. The only reason I'd like a satisfactory pay is just to take care of this debt coming up.

Can anyone please recommend anything in the field that isn't stressful ?

peace and happiness guys

#1 - You're in high school. You have no credential to decide whether a certain specialty like Neurosurg or Ortho is right for you, or even Anesthesia.

That being said you asked for less stressful fields - Derm, PM&R, Pathology, Radiology, maybe Ophtho.

 

[Doctor Bob]

That being said you asked for less stressful fields - Derm, PM&R, Pathology, Radiology, maybe Ophtho.

Pathology: what if you read the slide wrong, and tell the surgeon they got all the malignancy, but they actually didn't and the person dies?
Radiology: what if you miss the small spiculated nodule in the lung CT and then the person later goes on to die of metastatic disease which could have been caught earlier?
Ophtho: what if you slip while doing a lasix procedure and their eye EXPLODES sending gooey viscous humors all over the room...

hahaha.. but seriously. To the OP, medicine is a stressful field, even for the so-called less stressful areas. Your painter messes up their job and your room turns out the wrong color. The bagger at walmart messes up their job and your bread gets squished. A doctor messes up their job and... well, most of the time nothing happens, but in the worst case scenario the patient dies. It goes with the job. Every doctor will kill a patient through inaction, lack of knowledge, or direct action, at some point during their career. Either you accept that or move on to another job.

 

[BioBeaver]

The most important thing you can do is remember that anything is possible. You're at a point in your life where there's great risk in deciding what to pursue, but also great reward in that you literally CAN DO ANYTHING YOU WANT WITH YOUR LIFE. It's a wide open book, most doors are still open, and if Medicine is what you want then go do it and be the best at it. No fear.

 

[DesertPT]

#1 - You're in high school. You have no credential to decide whether a certain specialty like Neurosurg or Ortho is right for you, or even Anesthesia.

Let's get real, if you're still in high school your goals at the moment should be to get in to college, grow a brain, go to some football games and not cob up your grades too bad as a freshman.

 

[Stagg737]

Let's get real, if you're still in high school your goals at the moment should be to get in to college, grow a brain, go to some football games and not cob up your grades too bad as a freshman.

Amen. One step at a time. Get into undergrad. Then enjoy your life and get the grades/MCAT you need to get in (along with some ECs you enjoy). Then get into med school. Then study your a*% off for 2 years to get a strong board score. Then finish year 3 and start figuring out what field you have a chance at based on your boards. Then go into that field. You've got at least 6 years before you even need to really start thinking about what field you're going to pursue. Try and enjoy them while you can.