- Joined
- Jan 31, 2011
- Messages
- 570
- Reaction score
- 299
I have some chronic health issues... One thing I would like to mention is not a lot of doctors have experience being patients, so it might be hard to judge what is actually possible for their patients to do. Not saying to discount their advice, especially because we know our own training best, but to think critically about whether what they say truly applies to you based on what you know about the job and yourself. Maybe a good thing would be to gather a realistic idea of what life is like at your school and try to live on that schedule on your own for a few days?
Another thing is there are a lot of specialties that are more "desk job", not just the lifestyle ones... e.g. I'm in peds and I do the occasional LP or art stick, and walk around on rounds and to answer pages (which can be a few or a lot), but that's about it in terms of physical exertion. There's definitely time to have a snack, take a scheduled med in the break room, or other minor things you would need. Could you push through the more physically exhausting specialties for a few months to make it through 3rd year? Are you dead set on surgery/OB or would you be open to other fields?
Finally I have found that a lot of my issues are solved with good time management/planning/organization. For example, I also have to eat pretty frequently. I ALWAYS carry snacks in my pockets so I don't get stuck in a bad situation (on surgery/OB I ate between cases or literally any other time we had a break). I know lots of residents who prep all their meals and snacks and only eat homemade meals (/leftovers) at work for various reasons, health or ideological... on some rotations or specialties this is going to be harder but at some point it comes down to prioritizing. Also know people who go to the gym daily! On surgery my main priority was sleep so I had zero social life except my weekly trip to the grocery store because I'd just come home, eat dinner and go to bed lol.
ETA: I do know a decent number of people who have taken time off for illness but they have all been able to come back (e.g. a new diagnosis). I also know a LOT of colleagues who have some sort of chronic health problem or disability. It's hard for us to say b/c we don't know you. I honestly think the best thing might be to try living "on schedule" or maybe even shadowing again to see if you can handle it.
Feel free to PM if you want more specifics.
Another thing is there are a lot of specialties that are more "desk job", not just the lifestyle ones... e.g. I'm in peds and I do the occasional LP or art stick, and walk around on rounds and to answer pages (which can be a few or a lot), but that's about it in terms of physical exertion. There's definitely time to have a snack, take a scheduled med in the break room, or other minor things you would need. Could you push through the more physically exhausting specialties for a few months to make it through 3rd year? Are you dead set on surgery/OB or would you be open to other fields?
Finally I have found that a lot of my issues are solved with good time management/planning/organization. For example, I also have to eat pretty frequently. I ALWAYS carry snacks in my pockets so I don't get stuck in a bad situation (on surgery/OB I ate between cases or literally any other time we had a break). I know lots of residents who prep all their meals and snacks and only eat homemade meals (/leftovers) at work for various reasons, health or ideological... on some rotations or specialties this is going to be harder but at some point it comes down to prioritizing. Also know people who go to the gym daily! On surgery my main priority was sleep so I had zero social life except my weekly trip to the grocery store because I'd just come home, eat dinner and go to bed lol.
ETA: I do know a decent number of people who have taken time off for illness but they have all been able to come back (e.g. a new diagnosis). I also know a LOT of colleagues who have some sort of chronic health problem or disability. It's hard for us to say b/c we don't know you. I honestly think the best thing might be to try living "on schedule" or maybe even shadowing again to see if you can handle it.
Feel free to PM if you want more specifics.