MD .

Started by meraki_soul
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I think you need to have a serious sit down with yourself, and maybe your therapist or academic advisor or other trusted person who can offer guidance - if you do not take this exam now, would you ever be ready? It sounds as though you have had over a year and multiple reschedules at this point. ADHD is no joke, and I truly feel for you, but you will need to take this exam (and many more still to come) eventually. I don't believe your school is kidding around here. I'm sorry you are in this difficult situation.
 
As said above, it's time for a serious talk with an advisor and some serious introspection. That advice stands regardless of your decision here.

To actually answer your question, I would advise not asking for an extension and giving your exam your best shot.
 
I dont mean to sound harsh, but you’ve had what sounds like over a year to study… will you ever be ready? What will you do for steps 2 and 3? Step 3 you have to manage being a resident AND studying for that exam.

I wish you the best of luck, but your school absolutely could dismiss you for this. You could always ask for an extension but I’d give it a shot honestly. What have your practice scores looked like?
 
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Ask for the extension. If they give it to you then great. If they don't then, sadly, you'll have your answer. You have nothing to lose.
By the way, ADHD and anxiety very frequently co-exist. For some, the stimulant medications can worsen anxiety but, of course, talk to your psychiatrist about that.
Best of luck.
 
Sometimes, despite not "feeling ready", the best course of action you can take for yourself is to do it. Take the exam. If the outcome is not good enough, then we'll worry about that. If the outcome is a pass, awesome.
 
I think you're out of time and need to take the exam. If you've been studying for this long and can pass practice tests, you're likely going to pass the real thing too. Your anxiety is making you think there's absolutely no way you're going to be ready and as a fellow sufferer I get it, but you need to get this out of the way so you can continue with your career.

I had to stop multiple times mid-exam and take breathing exercise breaks. No one can stop you from breathing.

My bladder and bowels went into overdrive and I almost pissed & **** myself multiple times. I had to race through a few questions to get a block over with.

I passed, and with good scores too.

Don't sell yourself short. You're probably more ready than you give yourself credit for.
 
Really tough situation because I feel for you if you are going through mental health issues, but at the same time your school has worked with you many times. They gave you 3 extensions and a complete year of LOA which should have been enough for you to resolve whatever issues were going on and to prepare for step 1. The fact that it is a year later and you still aren't ready for the exam will strongly imply that you are either not ready at this point in your life or prepared to continue your medical education. It's a tough situation, no doubt, but it doesn't get any easier going forward. You can certainly try to talk to them about extending again because you have nothing to lose by asking them for an extension, but if they say you must take the test then you must take the test. Best of luck OP
 
If you fail your USMLE, I think there's a good chance that you will be dismissed. With your current scores, I do agree you are at a high risk of failing so it probably is worth asking. I don't think your school would dismiss you for asking, so if you TRULY believe you've been misdiagnosed and would benefit from an extension then go ahead and ask.

But be prepared for an answer of no. Best of luck to you.
 
I have been through this on the school's side. It's truly remarkable how you can give someone an entire year and a single directive (pass Step 1) and they can still end up against the wall.

My best advice is to be proactive. Get evaluated for ADHD, and get a new psychiatrist if you have to. Share that with the committee. Summarize what you have been doing to prepare for Step 1, including your practice test scores, and share that with the committee. They might be irritated that you haven't gotten things straightened out, but that's water under the bridge. The goal is to let them see a path forward for you: new evaluation, new diagnosis, +/- new meds, renewed study effort, hopefully pass Step 1 before school starts. If it's that versus dismissal then they might just keep you around.
 
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Med Ed said:
I have been through this on the school's side. It's truly remarkable how you can give someone an entire year and a single directive (pass Step 1) and they can still end up against the wall.

My best advice is to be proactive. Get evaluated for ADHD, and get a new psychiatrist if you have to. Share that with the committee. Summarize what you have been doing to prepare for Step 1, including your practice test scores, and share that with the committee. They might be irritated that you haven't gotten things straightened out, but that's water under the bridge. The goal is to let them see a path forward for you: new evaluation, new diagnosis, +/- new meds, renewed study effort, hopefully pass Step 1 before school starts. If it's that versus dismissal then they might just keep you around.
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too much time to do something is not a good thing.
 
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